if you imagined that macabre picture and decided to stop. no more excuses, no more rationalizations, no more procrastination. you are going to stop. well, that decision is a great first step. but how are you going to do it? Every day of school was designed to teach you to follow the pattern and fit the mold. dig in and do the work. day after day, year after year relentlessly. stopping was never something you practiced. it's always harder to stop or even control the mind. i wouldn't suggest you even try. way too much effort and much likelier to fail at it. it's easier to begin with the body. ironically, your body has stopped moving since you started working. no, running to work and between meetings doesn't count. the last second sprint to catch the train is barely what your body is itching to do. so here's how we start to stop.
breath
take a deep breath. take another deep full breath. repeat for 2 min every 2 hours. you don't have to suck in a lungful and hold it till you burst. remember you're just playing with your breath. don't make this work. maybe you want to try rapid shallow breaths instead. breathe in through your mouth and breathe out through your nose. or vice versa. it really doesn't matter. breathing isn't an Olympic sport and nobody's keeping score. enjoy the experience of filling your lungs and letting it go. play with your breath. explore how it feels. for those 2 minutes, you're not a professional, a spouse, a parent, or any of the myriad titles you've conferred upon yourself. you're just a living being playing with your breath. rediscover the magic in the most mundane activity of your life.
movement
now that you're comfy playing with your breath, let's expand to involve the rest of the body. no fancy routine, equipment, or space needed. right there at your desk, start moving your body in whatever way you feel like. social and clothing constraints aside, explore the body that doesn't feel like it belongs to you. even if you think you're overweight or unfit, don't let that excuse stop you. It’s like the scene in kill bill where Uma Thurman is returning from a coma: wiggle your toes or twiddle your thumbs. that's a start. just 2 minutes every 2 hours. sound like fun? if the answer is no, explore other parts of your body, try to move those muscles you never knew existed. rediscover the connection between your mind and your body.