You might get completely floored by this TikTok trend, literally. Searching the social media platform for the hashtag #floortime will return lots o’ videos of people lying. No, not that type of lying where people tell you bleep that’s not true, which can be quite common on social media. Rather, it’s people lying on their backs, sides or tummies on various types of floors, like carpet, hardwood, linoleum or tiling. Accompanying these “Floor Time” videos are comments showing how down people are with this practice, describing it as “the best part of the day”, “free therapy” and “the best feeling ever.”
Floor Time Has Long Been A Part Of Mindfulness Practices
All of this is not super surprising, floor sure. Lying on the ground has long been part of different relaxation and mindfulness practices. For example, you may have heard of the yoga term Shavasana, which means “corpse pose” in Sanskrit. This is a common resting and restorative pose that typically takes place near the conclusion of a yoga session. This pose consists of lying on the ground like a corpse would, face-up with your limbs comfortably extended and eyes closed. Of, course, a primary difference from being a corpse is that you should keep breathing, preferably deep breathing, while maintain this pose. That’s because breathing in general is kind of important. Plus, the whole pose is done to calm, de-stress and ground the body, literally and figuratively, and, thus, the mind too.
During Shavasana, one option is to add body scanning. This entails progressively going down through your body from head to toe, trying to relax each part and seeing how easy versus difficult it is to do so. A yoga instructor might tell you to imaging each body party getting heavier and heavier and spreading more and more into the floor.
Moreover, lying down is a big part of many practices and procedures where relaxation is important. For example, it’s not common for you to hear someone say, “OK, stand on your tippy toes while I massage your body.” Or “For this waxing session, let’s have you stand on your head.”
Floor Time May Help Your Body Relax
While there isn’t a ton of formal scientific research on floor time practices, the benefits of lying down shouldn’t be completely ground breaking stuff. After all, chances are you usually nap and sleep in such a position, assuming that you aren’t a horse or elephant. Not being in a standing or even sitting position allows more of your muscles to relax and not have to keep parts of you upright. Different parts of your body don’t have to fight gravity. This includes the blood in your blood vessels which can then be more equally distributed throughout your body. Being in a recumbent position (which is a scientific way of saying horizontal position) can also allow your blood to more easily return through the veins to your heart.
Of course, not all things are necessarily easier from the recumbent position. You may find it a little harder to breath as you no longer have the assistance of gravity to help pull your diaphragm (meaning the dome-shaped muscular structure and not a contraceptive device) down to inflate your lungs. Additionally, being horizontal can worsen gastroesophageal reflux or heartburn, as stomach acid can more easily flow backwards up into the esophagus.
Floor Time May Help Your Mind Relax
When your body is relaxed, your mind tends to relax as well. That’s because the two are typically connected as I have emphasized before for Forbes. If your head is somehow separated from your body, you should see a doctor immediately.
The nervous systems in your body help govern this connection. Two of your major nervous systems are the sympathetic one, which manages the fight or flight response, and the parasympathetic one, which manages the rest and digest, conserve energy response. Both of these take cues from what your body is currently doing in order to decide when and whether to activate.
Say you, for example, have to run away from a lion, a tidal wave, a politician or something else very scary, your sympathetic system will prompt different parts of your body to be even more alert and ready for action, like increasing your heart rate and blood pressure, tensing your muscles, dilating your pupils and keeping you from peeing and pooping, most of the time. Your sympathetic system is what can keep you safe and alive during challenging moments.
Lying down on the other hand will tell your parasympathetic system to do the opposite. It will lower your heart rate and blood pressure, relax your muscles, constrict your pupils, increases your digestive activity and help you pee and poop. This is important for long-term survival too. After all, your body does need down time to restore, get rid of bleep, literally and figuratively and grow.
Floor Time Can Change Your Perspective
Think of your mind as a party. When you’ve got a strict guest list that doesn’t allow new people or things to enter, it can be more like an echo chamber, the same old people and thoughts. When, on the other hand, you relax things and allow different and new things to enter, you never know what may happen. This could bring new perspectives and solutions to your problems.
The physical act of lying on the floor can also literally and thus figuratively change your perspective. It may help to see the room from a different angle, which in turn can stimulate a new way of thinking. The sounds, smells and other sensations can be different too like, “Boy, this carpet stinks. I’ve got to start cleaning it.”
Floor Time May Help Relieve Pain and Pressure
There’s one other firm argument for floor time. A firm surface could provide needed support for your spine and other parts of your body. When you are sitting or standing, your spine may be bent away from its natural, neutral alignment. Your posture, in general, may be off and thus cause stress and strain on various joints. Floor time may not only ease this pressure but also remind and teach your body what posture should be maintained.
Naturally, being on the floor may not be naturally the best position for everyone. Depending on your body and its condition, such a position may cause or exacerbate different problems. Therefore, if floor time leads to pain or discomfort in any way, don’t just fight through it. Seek advice and guidance from a medical professional.
Here Are Some Floor Time Warnings
Finally, it’s important to ground yourself in some precautions before you go to the ground. Be careful about going down and getting up too quickly. The changes in position could dramatically alter your blood pressure and lead to dizziness and passing out. Moreover, moving quickly could lead to injury.
Choose an appropriate place and time to lie down. A busy intersection would probably not be the best place and during your job performance evaluation would probably not be the best time for example. Make sure that the area is clean. Otherwise, you may end up being like a giant human mop.
Check out the floor before you lie on it as well, Make sure that it is firm and sturdy enough. Also, look for any items that may hurt you like nails or daggers. You don’t want floor time to turn out to be gore time.
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