Coming Home To Your Body

Interested in starting your own entrepreneurial journey in health and wellness but unsure what to expect? Then read up on our interview with Peter Appel, Founder of Movingness, located in Pietarsaari, Finland.

What's your business, and who are your customers?

In the modern world, many people struggle with a stiff and rigid body. We sit too much and think too much, and when we move, we often do it in a restricted way. As a result, neck, shoulder, and back pain are more than common. In fact, our sedentary lifestyle has a negative effect on our health on many different levels. From this perspective, Movingness is a very practical method. It can really help you unstiffen your body and once again move with ease and grace. But Movingness is also asking a deeper question: Why have we lost the lust to move? And how can we enjoy movement again?

I often talk about Movingness as a way of coming home to the body. Here it’s important to notice that we’re not talking about a traditional set of exercises. Movingness is about finding a path back to the felt sense in the body of being whole and alive. And from there, we can move the way we live and love the way we move! On this path, we’re using movement and conscious attention as our guides. The first step is to really feel the body. In Movingness, the feeling is knowing and recognizing what’s going on inside of ourselves. When we feel ourselves from within, we can use this information to release tension, re-tune our movement patterns, and simply find more freedom in the body... In many methods, it’s about imitating the instructor or forcing the body into fixed positions. Not in Movingness. Here, we’re listening to the body and working together with it. This, I think, is a unique feature. And it’s very pleasurable. It often takes you into deep states of well-being, satisfaction, and meditation.

In September 2023, I’m starting my sixth extensive training in Movingness. So far, students from all over the world and from all walks of life have taken part in it. Some have been yoga teachers, dancers, trauma therapists, or psychologists, while others have been “ordinary people” with a deep longing to reconnect with their bodies. And that’s the beauty of Movingness – you don’t need to have a “yoga body“ to do it. Your own body is more than enough!

Tell us about yourself

For many years I worked in media and marketing. Long working hours with stressful deadlines took its toll on my health. Physically, it put a lot of strain on my back. Mentally, it drained my cognitive and emotional energies. So to cope, I just did what everyone else did: I consumed painkillers and visited physiotherapists and asked them to “fix” me.

Gradually, I understood this wasn’t sustainable. So I started doing some yoga. Eventually, I went through four different yoga teacher training! But still, I wasn’t satisfied. I wanted to know even more about the body. So I continued my explorations with dance, Feldenkrais, meditation, and many other methods. Until one day, I got tired and stopped going to courses and training. After some months, something fascinating happened! My body started to move in a totally new way. It woke me up in the middle of the night to show me how it wanted to move. The same thing happened in the early mornings and in my practice on the yoga mat. The new movements were amazing! They felt so soothing. Simultaneously relaxing and energizing. While I was exploring this new way of moving, I noticed that so many people were struggling with their bodies. I understood that disembodiment is an epidemic hiding in plain sight. And I felt that Movingness was a gift that had been given to me. And now, it was my turn to bring it out to the world and share it with other people.

What's your biggest accomplishment as a business owner?

I’ve found it amazing that it’s possible to connect and create a deep sense of community with my students even though we’re living so far apart from each other and in so many different time zones.

What's one of the hardest things that comes with being a business owner?

The most challenging is to offer something new in a world where people are so busy that they only want to repeat what they already know. This is, in fact, a typical stress reaction. When we’re in the sympathetic nervous system (fight or flight), it’s almost impossible to take in new information. We’re only focused on surviving.

So in Movingness, we slow down to make it possible to learn new things. When we slow down, we can feel our bodies. And we can explore how different movements affect our well-being. Actually, it’s not only about feeling the body. It’s also about creating feelings in the body by choosing how we move. So it’s really about a creative dialogue with the body!

What are the top tips you'd give to anyone looking to start, run and grow a business today?

Ask yourself, what can I do to bring more love to myself, to other people, and to the whole Earth? And create something from this deep inner wish. Of course, you also need an income, so you need to be realistic. But I still think it’s crucial to be connected to your inner intention.

Where can people find you and your business?

Website: https://www.movingness.com/
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/movingness
Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/movingness_com/

If you like what you've read here and have your own story as a solo or small business entrepreneur that you'd like to share, then please answer these interview questions. We'd love to feature your journey on these pages.

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