Remolding Your Body Physically By Learning To 'Feel' It Inside with Your Mind

---We normally think of being able to 'feel' some external physical object by touching it with our fingers, or by being 'felt' or 'touched' back by the physical object. It's a two way street...a functional ability of the skin all over the surface of the body. In other words, in touching an external physical object, the skin senses the sensation that it is touching that external object while at the same time it senses being touched back by that object.

---We can 'feel' or 'sense' other sensations other than the sense of touch, although I would venture to say all these other sensations are variations of the same thing. For example, depending upon how hard we press when we touch something, we develop the added sensation of varying degrees of 'pressure.' We then feel a sense of pressure not just on the surface, but even beneath the surface of the skin, the nature of the feeling of pressure being dependent, in turn, upon the degree and nature of the force being applied.

---When the pressure is great, for example, or for other reasons, the skin and tissues below the surface of the skin not only feel (or sense or experience) the sensation of 'pressure,' but additionally the sense of pain might then enter into the picture (which I would likewise also venture to say for reasons I will not give here, are variations of one another: 'touch,' 'pressure,' 'pain'...and other sensations).

---In other words, and although the average person might not ordinarily think about it, these varieties of sensations are felt on the surface of the skin while at the same time they are also capable of being felt more deeply, underneath the surface of the skin--perhaps as far down as the fatty tissue beneath the skin, or the muscles or the bones--this again depending upon the nature and degree and etc. of the sensations being experienced.
---...These deeper sensations might therefore be thought of as 'internal sensations' (as opposed to 'external sensations' wherein the surface of the skin seems to be doing the touching, 'externally'). In other words, these 'internal sensations' appear to be emanating from within the body although, granted, they appear to be 'felt' very close to the surface of the skin, but beneath it.

---Now remember, we're about to learn how to feel and become much more aware of our 'internal sensations,' which as you will see number in the multitudes of sensations and variations of sensations. And I will explain how these 'internal sensations' can be used as a 'guidance system' to remold or sculpt the body physically both internally and externally (even mentally), similar to the way one might sculpt or mold a statue of clay...and we will be using a combination of different fields and modalities of learning to do so, topics as I have variously been presenting throughout this web site.

---I would now point out that when we touch something, it is a physical act that we perform. For example, we have to move or extend our hand and reach out with one of our fingers to touch an object. Obviously, in doing so we would be performing a function, such as the function of moving our arm or fingers.
---...That this is obvious is a 'no brainer,' but I say it to point out that when our bodies move or make motions, we are feeling multitudes of sensations indicating to us that we are making such motions. We might be feeling the sensation of touch or pressure as noted above, or simply the sensation of awareness that our arm has been moved into a certain position. This awareness is called 'proprioception,' the sensation as to where our limbs, etc are located, which we can sense even when our eyes are closed.

---I would further note that even the act of 'standing' involves motion, but of a microscopic nature wherein the muscle fibers are microscopically contracting, etc. Otherwise muscles would go limp and we would fall to the floor!

---What I'm getting at here is that I'm about to categorize all motions of the body as being inclusive of all forms of exercise. In other words, exercise, whether running or lifting weights or standing still, is nothing more than a variety of motions of the body.

---I prefer to use the word 'motion' rather than 'exercise' because exercise is too limited, and the word motion is more graphic. With it we can picture that exercise is a form of movement of the body which, as I said, is inclusive of microscopic contractions of muscle fibers even when we appear to be standing still...as when holding our arms out and stretching or holding our body in a rigid postural stance, which I call 'posutring.'

---So again, I will use the word 'motion' interchangeable with the word 'exercise.' This is important. You'll see why.

Running Summary #1: Summarizing what I've said to this point:

We can sense a variety of 'external sensations' as well as 'internal sensations.'
Exercise is a form of motion or postural stances of the body.
When we make motions of the body or make postural stances (when we exercise) we are aware we are doing so because we are feeling both external and internal sensations corresponding to those particular motions or postural positions.

---Imagine you've gotten up in the morning and you're standing by the side of the bed with your hands to your side. You are standing still and your eyes are closed so you can concentrate on how you are feeling inside. You might be feeling like you have to stretch. Whatever that feeling is, that you have to stretch, is a conglomeration of internal sensations that you just don't feel right, or that you will at least feel better after you will have stretched.

---But you don't stretch yet. Your eyes are closed and you are concentrating on how you are feeling inside. Remember, from having stretched in the past you know that the stretch will do something for you, that you will be feeling different inside after you have stretched.

---Fine. Once you've had your eyes closed long enough and adequately sensed how you're feeling inside, you then stretch both your arms out to the side, and keep stretching, as if you're trying to reach the walls on either side of the room. Your eyes are still closed and you are concentrating on what you are feeling inside as you continue to stretch. You might be feeling a 'tenseness' in your forearms or a 'tingling' in your fingers. You continue stretching as you continue feeling the tenseness in your forearms and how your upper arms are also becoming tense, and then suddenly, after about thirty seconds or so of stretching, you relax and let both your arms fall flaccidly to your sides.

---...And as you stand there, your eyes still closed, you are now feeling an exhilarated sensation and other sensations within your arms, a feeling of satisfaction from having completed the stretch, a feeling of relaxation.

---Whatever feelings you sensed within your arms and shoulders before the stretch, telling you you needed to stretch...those feelings are now gone. Your eyes still closed, you sense the continuing feeling of satisfaction and relaxation within your arms and shoulders, and you notice how even those sensations slowly, over the next twenty or thirty seconds, begin to dissipate and become less. You open your eyes. You feel fine now. You've stretched.

---How many times have you felt like this in the past, feeling like you needed to stretch, then stretched, and then felt satisfied after you'd stretched? Perhaps many. People often find they are experiencing an internal feeling they need to stretch. But what did they actually do when they stretched? Fact is, before the stretch, having just awakened from sleep, the circulation of blood within your arms is not quite what it would be after you've been up and moving around for awhile. The feelings your have within your arms and shoulders before the stretch, and indicating to you that you need to stretch, is a reflection of the physiological status of the circulation within your arms and the toneness of the muscles and so on which occurs just after you wake up.

---Then, when you are actually stretching, the exhilarating feeling and other sensations you are experiencing within your arms is a reflection of the muscles and blood vessels within your arms all being stretched, and in a real sense helping to increase the circulation of blood throughout your arms and within its muscles.

---Finally, when you complete the stretch and drop your arms limply to your sides, the sensation of 'completeness' you are feeling within your arms is a reflection of the enhanced circulation and other changes within your arms which were brought about by the stretch.

---The point is, the stretch was a 'motion.' The feeling you had before the stretch represented the physiologic status within your arms before the stretch. And this particular motion, the stretch, brought about certain physiological changes within your arms so that when the stretch was completed your arms felt different.

---In other words, the motion, or exercise of stretching, changed the physiological status of your arms, and you could feel the changes in the physiological status by a change within the sensations of both your arms before, during and then after the stretch.

---In still other words, you made a specific motion of your arms which brought about a specific set of physiological changes within your arms, and as to which changes you were able to feel by virture of your having sensed a difference in the internal sensations of your shoulders and arms.

---A given physiological status of a part of your body is changed into a different physiological status by virtue of a specific motion of that particular part of your body, and which changed physiological status you can feel by the changed sensations from before and after the motion, or exercise.

---A particular motion can therefore bring about a change within the physical structure of your body, however microscopic those changes might be, and you judge the change by the way you are feeling.

---You might think that the changed physiological status of your arm is only temporary, and that might be. But if the particular motion or exercise is repeated on a regular basis, fact is, and in accordance with the principles of progressive adaptation and the repetitive application of stresses to the body, the accumulation of changes, however minute, will eventually result in varying degrees of overtly seen physical changes. Perhaps these changes will be in the strength or size of muscles, or in the density of bones, or in the thickness and tensile strength of ligaments and tendons, or as we will see, the changes might be in the structure and function not only of the heart and lungs, but also of a variety of different tissues throuhout the human body.

Running Summary #2: Summarizing what I've said to this point:

We can sense a variety of 'external sensations' as well as 'internal sensations.'
Exercise is a form of motion or postural stances of the body.
When we make motions of the body or make postural stances (when we exercise) we are aware we are doing so because we are feeling both external and internal sensations corresponding to those particular motions or postural positions.
If a particular motion or exercise is repeated on a regular basis, the accumulation of microscopic changes resulting from the motion will eventually result in corresponding overtly seen physical changes, as well as correspondingly changed in internal sensations which can be used to judge the degree and nature of the physical changes.

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---You ask an average 'healthy' young person, let's say 18 years old, "How do you feel?"...chances are the average response is going to be something like, "Fine...I feel fine."

---If you then ask an average 'healthy' elderly person, let's say 75 years old, the same thing, "How do you feel?"...chances are that person too might say something like "Fine...I feel fine." Their response again is based upon the assumption that they are having no overt symptomatology other than just being older.

---I've done this quite a number of times with a lot of people. If you go on questioning the older persons you often get added statements like,"You know, if I didn't look in the mirror and see how old I looked...I wouldn't believe it. I feel so good."

---If I then continue inquiring with more specific questions like, "Do you have any difficulty going up two flights of stairs?" I'm then more likely to get a response like, "Well, that's a lot of stairs. One flight's no problem, but by the second flight, I suppose I'd get somewhat out of breath, and my legs would be tired. But that's understandable. I'm not a kid anymore."
---...Or perhaps I'd also ask, "How about your strength. Are you just as strong as when you were younger?" The usual response then might be something to the effect, "Oh no...I'm older now. Of course I've slowed down."

---Actually, I could go on and on and ask a bunch of 'aging deterioration' related questions and the elderly persons would usually admit to a whole host of decreased levels of functioning like "My gait isn't as sturdy as it used to be," or "my sense of balance is off a little." And then sometimes they'd try to excuse away their admitted responses by saying something to the effect, "Well, I'm not as active now as I used to be when I was younger."

---And then, the irony of all this, if I then go back to my original question and ask, "How do you feel?" they'll all still pretty uniformly respond with, "I feel fine."

---You know, human nature and its variety of mechanisms of denial are oftentimes very strange phenomena. Somehow our human psyche, our minds, allow us over a period of time 'to get used to' our deteriorated changes.
---...To demonstrate, I will tell you a little magical story. Imagine an elderly person suddenly finding himself in a younger 18 year old body...and I'd then ask that person the same question, "How do you feel?" The usual response would be something like, "Unbelieveable...I can't believe I feel this way. I feel so strong and agile and steady. And I can just about run up a flight of stairs without getting even the slightest out of breath. The way I feel is amazing. I must have forgotten what it felt like to be younger."

---If on the other hand the young 18 year old finds himself or herself in a 75 year old body, he or she might respond to my question as to "How do you feel?" by saying, "Oh my goodness. What happened to me? I feel so tired. I can hardly move. My arms are so weak...I must be sick."

---What I'm getting at here is that the human mind has a way of forgetting things of the past, and the sensations emanating from the deterioration of our bodies are no different. That's why the young and the old persons will often respond similarly to "How do you feel?" as if they were both feeling the same way inside, "Fine." Truth is, of course, they don't 'feel' the same way inside, but over time while the gradually deteriorated changes attendant to aging have been going on, their minds have allowed them to get used to and accept the changes, not completely, but to a large degree.
---...Otherwise, if the average person didn't psychologically 'accept' or 'get used to' the aging related changes as they became older, just about everybody as they became older would 'feel' and be reminded of their internally changed sensations of deterioration, and almost uniformly so a great majority of them might then become significantly depressed because of it, and so on!

---So, realizing all this I said to myself, "What if I make sure I always remember how I felt inside when I was younger, as I became older, and not let time and age make me forget? Perhaps I could then do something to make me continue feeling the same way I felt in the past even as I became older?

---Actually, this is pretty ingenious if I don't mind saying so myself. After all, remember what I've discussed above about the correlation between internal sensations within the body--the way we feel inside--and the physical appearance of the body. Concisely put, internal sensations can be used as a guide to make different combinations of motions which would in turn change the body physically in multiple ways commensurate with the way one felt internally when he or she was younger.

---Put in other words, if I do things to change my internal sensations over a period of time back to the way I felt when I was younger--and healthier even--perhaps the corresponding physical changes which would occur would result in that of a more youthful appearance!

---So that's exactly what I've been doing for years now. I put blindfolds on and learned to bring myself into certain altered states of mind while make multitudes of varying motions, as in a gym with multitudes of different exercises, and over time I've developed a keen sense of my internal sensations, always keeping in mind the way I felt when I was younger and healthier, and always doing things and making motions and varying postures which would bring on internal sensations commensurate with the way I felt inside when I was younger.

---A lot of people say they exercise and feel better. Well, that's just the tip of the iceberg. I've actually figured out which motions or combinations of motions performed which way and for how long and for how many repetitions and to how much of a resistance and on and on and on so as to change the way I felt inside concerning my breathing and sense of well being, my internal feelings of strength and vitality, the regularity and strength of my pulse and in turn my heart, my balance and coordination and reaction time...I could go on almost endlessly as to the relations I've figured out.

---In other words, I've been figuring out for many years now which exercises or motions or combinations of motions and so on does what to which body part and to what aspect of the functioning of the body while always taking into consideration my knowlege of body physiology and anatomy and histology and biomechanics and my medical and surgical knowledge and the pathological changes of disease and aging...and so on.

---I don't just go into a gym and move a weight to change my biceps muscles or whatever. I use the weight, for example, to determine its effect on my lungs, and on my heart, andon the rhythmicity and strength of my pulse, on the gastrointestinal, cardiovascular and neurological system, and on my internal feelings of well being, and so on while realizing all the while that a biceps exercise, for example, is not just designed to change my biceps muscle, but more so is designed and performed in such a way as to have multiple effects and changes on all aspects of my body both internally in the way I feel and externally in the physical functioning of my body and in the way I look!

---I've learned which motions do what. I've learned which internal sensations bring about which physical changes and how they interrelate with the signs and symptoms which are often improperly categorized as due to aging, when in fact they are not, and I've learned to do similarly with the signs and symjptoms of many different diseases.

---Ironically, my advantage in being able to figure these things out over the years is that I'm older now and have been ill with the most serious of illness. So I've had and continue to have real life testing scenarios wherein I have no choice but to learn which things I have to do, or what I have to eat or not eat, or how I have to think and so on, in order to change my body back to a better status. And all the while I've used my physical appearance and the way I feel inside to guide the changing nature of what I have to do on a day to day basis to bring about the changes I am striving for.

---I know this is beginning to sound somewhat involved, and I will not deny it requires a great deal of perseverance and knowledge. But fact is, as you will see, I've done and continue doing the hard part in laying out the pioneering groundwork to some very simple 'formulas' as to what to do to make things work, depending upon what aspect of one's body one is trying to change. And I see no reason this cannot be simplified and taught to others, which is what I'm trying to do via this web site.

Running Summary #3: Summarizing what I've said to this point:

We can sense a variety of 'external sensations' as well as 'internal sensations.'
Exercise is a form of motion or postural stances of the body.
When we make motions of the body or make postural stances (when we exercise) we are aware we are doing so because we are feeling both external and internal sensations corresponding to those particular motions or postural positions.
If a particular motion or exercise is repeated on a regular basis, the accumulation of microscopic changes resulting from the motion will eventually result in corresponding overtly seen physical changes, as well as correspondingly changed in internal sensations which can be used to judge the degree and nature of the physical changes.
Being that internal sensations and feelings often correspond to external appearances and physical functioning, certain combinations of physical motions guided by internal sensations have been figured out and devised to change the physical body into that of a more youthful, robust, and healthy looking appearance.