Yep, the Mind-Body Connection Is a Real Thing—Here’s How to Strengthen It

If you’re a fan of workouts like yoga and Pilates that incorporate the breath or mindful movement, you’ve probably heard about the “mind-body connection.” 

Even if you haven’t heard the term verbatim, maybe you’ve been instructed to “scan your body for areas of tension and send your breath there, inviting your muscles to relax” at the end of a yoga or meditation class. Even during other workouts, such as endurance-focused modalities like running and cycling, there’s an emphasis on staying mentally strong in order to physically push through in tough moments. Outside of fitness, too, most of us have experienced our mind and body “speaking” to each other—like noticing a racing heart or sweaty palms when we’re nervous, for instance. 

But how exactly does this mind-body connection work? We spoke to psychologists to break down the science, including how a strong mind-body connection can benefit you in all aspects of life—and how to bolster that mental and physical link. 

What Is the Mind-Body Connection?

“The mind-body connection is the way our mind, our brain, our emotional life, [and] our cognitive understanding of the world interplays with our physical ability,” says Joseph Galasso, PsyD, a sports psychologist. While our thoughts and mental state can impact our physical performance, “for our engine to run well, for us to perform optimally, both pieces of us need to be working and in synchrony,” Galasso says. 

The problem is that, oftentimes, this isn’t the case. “Typically, the brain is seen as the teacher or the control center, and the body is typically the student,” explains Kate Cummins, PsyD, a licensed clinical psychologist and registered yoga teacher and yoga therapist. “However, when somebody has a balanced and regulated mind-body connection, the body can speak as the teacher as much as the brain—and that is truly the goal.”

So while you might not always feel like your brain and body are in harmony (more on how to find that balance Cummins speaks of ahead), the mind-body connection is simply the idea that our mind and our body are deeply intertwined, rather than separate entities.

Is the Mind-Body Connection Real?

There’s real science to show that the relationship between our brain and our body is more than just an abstract idea. In fact, a study published last year in Nature concluded that this connection is actually embedded into the structure of our brains. 

Using functional magnetic resonance imaging (fMRI), researchers at Washington University School of Medicine in St. Louis discovered a new brain network, which they named the Somato (body)-Cognitive (mind) Action Network, or SCAN. As the study authors explain, this newly discovered network in the movement areas of the brain indicate a connection between the brain and body that better explains why, for example, anxiety causes those sweaty palms or racing hearts, or why regular exercise can lead to a more positive perspective on life. 

“We’ve found the place where the highly active, goal-oriented ‘go, go, go’ part of your mind connects to the parts of the brain that control breathing and heart rate,” said the study’s first author Evan M. Gordon, PhD, in a news release. “If you calm one down, it absolutely should have feedback effects on the other.”

As the study authors point out, this research focused on investigating areas of the brain that control movement and how they interact with how our mind thinks and plans—not the philosophical connection between our mind and body. But their research affirms the mind-body connection is indeed a real network in our brains, rather than an abstract relationship.

Benefits of Having a Strong Mind-Body Connection

While certain workouts can help foster a stronger mind-body connection (more on that ahead), the benefits of a firm mind-connection go beyond our ability to simply hold a plank or hit a new PR (although it can help with that, too!). Here are a few of the many benefits of a strong mind-body connection, according to research:

It May Help You Recover Faster from an Injury

If you’re dealing with a sports injury, you might think you need to simply wait for the body to heal on its own. And while the physical healing process does take time, research from 2021 suggests that “psychological factors play a substantial role in the recovery process.” 

Cummins illustrates the power of the mind during the healing process with a hypothetical: Two professional athletes are suffering from an ACL tear. One sits around thinking their career is over and that they’re no good, while the other tells themselves that they’ll recover and come back stronger than ever before. “The person that has positive thoughts is going to recover and heal quicker,” Cummins says. And on the flip side, research shows that injured athletes who have higher levels of stress and fear of reinjury are less likely to fully heal and recover.

“With our patients, we will quite often utilize relaxation techniques [which can include meditation, breathing techniques, visualization, and progressive muscle relaxation] because it’s shown to take time off the rehabilitation process,” Galasso adds. 

It Can Relieve Pain and Other Physical Symptoms

Some research also shows that the mind-body connection and mindfulness-based stress relieving practices can lead to changes in the brain that reduce the subjective experience of pain. 

This may extend beyond sport injuries to those dealing with chronic pain and illnesses. One 2016 research article, for example, found that using guided imagery (which involves visualizing positive scenarios in your mind) and progressive muscle relaxation (which involves gradually tensing and relaxing muscles one area at a time) helped cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy better manage a cluster of physical and mental symptoms, such as pain, fatigue, nausea, and depression. 

Another 2021 review looking at alternative treatments for pain medicine concluded that guided imagery can assist in managing pain, fatigue, depression, stress, anxiety, and reducing medication use, as well as improve the general well-being and quality of life for patients with musculoskeletal disorders (which are conditions that affect the joints, tissues, bones, and muscles).

It Can Boost Your Athletic Performance

During a run, ride, row, or strength training session, you may have heard a Peloton instructor remind you that “your mind is your strongest muscle” or some other version of “mind over matter” to motivate you during a class. As it turns out, these reminders can serve as more than words of encouragement: They may have the power to improve your athletic performance, experts say.

“Your body listens to everything your brain says—every single thing,” Cummins says. “A marathon runner will tell you that most of that 26.2 miles is in the head—it’s all about really retraining your brain to focus on the positive thoughts. Rather than, saying ‘Oh crap, I have 14 more miles to run,’ it’s saying, ‘Holy crap, I can’t believe I ran 12.2 miles.’” 

Indeed, professional athletes focus not just on physical training, but also mental training, including techniques like visualization and positive mantras, because they really can work. Research from 2016 indicates that positive self-talk has the power to improve athletic performance. And a 2020 research article found that a five-week mindfulness training program (which included practices like body scanning and mindful breathing, meditation, yoga, and walking) improved participating athletes’ endurance performance and cognitive functions.

How to Build and Strengthen Your Mind-Body Connection

The good news is there are many ways, both in and out of the gym, to help activate and strengthen your mind-body connection. Here are a few to consider:

1. Try Yoga, Pilates, and Barre

With its focus on the present moment, physical poses, control of breath, and meditation, yoga is the classic example of a mind-body exercise, which is defined by the National Institutes of Health as a form of exercise that combines body movement, mental focus, and controlled breathing to improve strength, balance, flexibility, and overall health.” 

In fact, a 2021 review of 15 studies that used magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to investigate the effects of mind–body exercise on brain plasticity revealed that these exercises led to changes in the structure, neural activity, and functional connectivity in various regions of the brain that were associated with physical and mental health benefits. (Translation: Mindful workouts like yoga may literally change your brain for the better.)

Pilates and barre can also promote mindfulness and concentration with their focus on form and alignment, making them other great workout options for strengthening your mind-body connection. (All three of these modalities, by the way, are available on the Peloton App.)

2. Make Time for Meditation and Breathwork

Breathing is an automatic process, but many of us inhale and exhale in less-than-optimal ways without even realizing it, which can cause a physiological response, Galasso says. “When we’re feeling anxious, when we’re feeling overwhelmed, when our mind and our body are not connected, our breathing can either be very erratic (think: hyperventilation) or for a lot of people, especially when they’re angry, they can hold their breath, which causes our blood pressure to go up,” he explains. 

On the flip side of things, structured breathing exercises like box breathing (a loop where you breathe in for a count of four, hold for a count of four, slowly breathe out for a count of four, and hold for another count of four) work because they force you to be intentional about how your diaphragm is working.

This gets us out of our heads and activates the parasympathetic nervous system, which promotes a state of rest and relaxation. What’s more, this also counterbalances the sympathetic nervous system (SNS), which is responsible for the “fight or flight” response, Cummins says. She suggests both meditation and deep breathing exercises for fostering a mind-body connection.

“If somebody is very cognitively entrapped in anxiety—common in our high-performing Western world—if they can learn how to regulate their breath or meditate, and be in a state of sitting still, they get into theta waves state, which is the the wave state in your brain that slows you down and heals you and rejuvenates you,” Cummins says. 

3. Practice Gratitude

Cummins also suggests keeping a gratitude journal. “If you are focused on the positive, you’re dumping in that dopamine, which is that euphoric, feel-good neurotransmitter,” she says. This practice has benefits for both your brain and your body: “That’s going to reduce the cortisol levels in your bloodstream, which is going to make your body slow down and feel more balanced,” she says. 

4. Prioritize Sleep and Nutrition

Remember: A balanced mind-body connection means the body can also speak to your mind—and that goes beyond just breathing exercises.

“When you’ve had a really good night’s rest or you’ve eaten a very nourishing, nutritious meal a few days in a row, that kind of retrains your brain to feel better as well,” Cummins explains. Even if you’re feeling anxious or negative, if you wake up and your body is telling you you’re doing OK, it can help reframe those thoughts to be more positive, she says. Pretty cool, right?

This content is for informational and educational purposes only and does not constitute individualized advice. It is not intended to replace professional medical evaluation, diagnosis, or treatment. Seek the advice of your physician for questions you may have regarding your health or a medical condition. If you are having a medical emergency, call your physician or 911 immediately.