These workouts and movement flows are inspired by the natural world. It is often a good idea to slow down from time to time, to unwind and to concentrate on your body, mind and emotional health. The flows and workouts included in this article are each designed in a unique way, to achieve a variety of purposes. From yoga to running, core movement flows to mobility work, they offer a spectrum of solutions to re-engage with yourself and the natural world in a mindful and considered way.
GO ON A MINDFUL ADVENTURE
“A mindful adventure is really about being present, presence is a practice, and it’s a practice that you have to show up for every single day.” Adriene Mishler
They are designed to improve your body, calm your mind and help you to concentrate on the world around you. You can perform these anywhere, on clifftops, mountains, beaches or in forests or other natural environments. Each one is designed to help you in a different way and is perfect for when you are travelling and reveling in your own sense of wanderlust and place in the world.
Source: adidas
PART 1 – Movement Flows Inspired by the Ocean
The healing effects of the ocean are well understood throughout the many differing cultures that are spread across the planet. Find yourself a secluded place then begin one of the following flows.
1. FEEL GOOD FLOW
THE ADIDAS X WANDERLUST COLLECTION
Wanderlust is here to inspire a healthy lifestyle through mindful adventures. Together with adidas, this unique collaboration takes you on a path toward cultivating your best self. Explore the new collection designed for yoga, meditation and running.
Source: adidas
Wanderlust: The wish to travel far away and to many different places¹
Shop the adidas X Wanderlust collection
2. YOGA STRETCH
This is an excellent way to focus on your mobility and breathing.
3. YOGA FOR ABDOMINAL WALL
A strong core is essential for all athletes. To strengthen it in different ways is a surefire way to prepare for everything. Slower movement flows are an excellent complimentary way to improve your body in many different ways.
WORKING TO SAVE THE OCEANS
Select pieces from the adidas X Wanderlust collection are constructed from Parley Ocean Plastic™. This material is upcycled from plastic waste intercepted at beaches and coastal communities before it reaches the ocean. The garments are materially and symbolically representative of adidas’s commitment to cleaner oceans and safer seas as they push to preserve the natural habitats and animals of the waters that cover 71% of the Earth’s surface. 91% of that water being found in the seas.
To stylistically and aesthetically demonstrate this process, the garments in the collection are designed with the ocean in mind.
Source: adidas
Flow freely in fast-drying, multi-purpose pieces designed with the ocean in mind.
PART 2 – Workouts Inspired by Movement through Beautiful places
“An early morning walk is a blessing for the whole day” Henry David Thoreau
Henry David Thoreau, (born July 12, 1817, Concord, Massachusetts, U.S.—died May 6, 1862, Concord) was an American essayist, poet, and practical philosopher, renowned for having lived the doctrines of Transcendentalism as recorded in his masterwork, Walden, and for having been a vigorous advocate of civil liberties, as evidenced in the essay “Civil Disobedience” (1849).
First published in 1854, Walden details Thoreau’s experiences over the course of two years, two months and two days in a cabin he built near Walden Pond amidst woodland owned by his friend and mentor Ralph Waldo Emerson, near Concord, Massachusetts, USA.
He used this time to write, stay fit, grow vegetables, build a house, work the land in a self-sufficient way and concentrate on himself and his surroundings. The quote above details how he often liked to begin his days in order to set himself up for the rest of his waking hours. He would use these walks to think and concentrate on the natural world around him. This movement through the natural landscape became a way for him to become more mindful of his surroundings, and of himself. In a sense his entire project can be understood as a mindful adventure.
Source: adidas
The following workouts are inspired by this idea, designed to make you move and concentrate on your surroundings. They each involve running so that you can complete them through parks, over beaches or on trails through forests. Take the time to warm up properly by walking for 10 – 20 minutes, concentrate on your breathing and enjoy the surrounding landscape before you start to run.
4. RUNNING SESSION
For quality. Set an easy pace and think about form, rhythm and breathing. You do not need to race anyone, approach this more with the mindset of developing a skill rather than setting a time.
- 3 km run
- 50 Cossack squats
- 50 lunges
- 50 airsquats
- 3 km run
So how can exercise improve your mindfulness?
Mindfulness means maintaining a moment-by-moment awareness of our thoughts, feelings, bodily sensations, and surrounding environment. Being aware of your body and thoughts is a vital skill to develop if you want to understand yourself in greater depth. It is also tremendously useful because it allows you to understand yourself during training and competition, when can you push harder and when should you hold back? Where are your real and perceived limits?
“Live, travel, adventure, bless, and don’t be sorry.” Jack Kerouac
The adidas X Wanderlust collection is designed with flexibility and comfort in mind, so each garment moves to the shape and form of your body.
Source: adidas
5. RUNNING MOVEMENT FLOW
Complete 6 rounds of the following:
- 10 minute run
- 1 minute sprint
- 5 minutes walk
In the walking phase of each round, concentrate on bringing your heart rate back down to its resting rate after the sprints. Think about how each part of your body feels, and focus on maintaining a steady rate of breathing. The idea is to really listen to your body and how you respond to the different ways in which you move.
Source: adidas
6. WORKOUT
- 10 hill runs
- alternate between full pace and about 60% effort
- rest for 3 minutes between rounds
In the rounds where you are operating at 60% capacity, really focus on your running form and make sure to lean forward and use the natural momentum of your body. The concept is not to exhaust yourself, but to concentrate on the small details about how you move.
POST WORKOUT MINDFULNESS
An important part of mindfulness is to develop the ability to be present in the moment. Wherever you are, be all there. Once you have completed any of the above movement flows, spend five minutes using this box breathing technique. This will calm your mind and thoughts, and help mentally reset you and your body for the rest of your day.
Use the graphic below as a guide and align your breathing with its rhythm. As the circle expands, breathe in deeply. Focus completely on breathing deep into your lungs. As the circle shrinks, exhale all the breath from your body.
As a rough rule, spend 4 seconds on each inhale and exhale. Now it’s time for you to reconnect with yourself and your surroundings. Let the adventure take you anywhere.
“It is good to have an end to journey toward, but it is the journey that matters in the end.” —Ernest Hemingway.