Meditation

Breath in and breath out. Meditation is an important tool to discovering your overall wellness. While eating good and exercising are great, you mental and physical health starts from within. Today, I want to share the importance of practicing meditation and some great meditation resources.

Mediation has many great benefits! While meditation can feel silly at first, I encourage you to push past the “awkwardness” and commit to it. I gave up many times before mediation became beneficially for my mental health. Below are the main benefits of meditation:

1. Better Sleep
2. Reduced Stress
3. Mindful eating – less stress eating
4. Relaxation in social in physical settings
5. Clear Mind – make better decisions

While these are just a few of the benefits from meditation, there are MANY more for you to explore! Practicing meditation for at least five minutes a day is a great first step in your wellness journey.

Exploring the right meditation practice for you is very important! There are lots of instructors, apps, and videos out there! Below I am going to list a few of my favorites:

1. “Mindfulness Guided Meditation”. This is a great starting point for people trying meditation for the first time! (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dEzbdLn2bJc)
2. Find a relaxing playlist! There are many on Spotify, Apple Music, or Youtube to choose from! My favorite is listening to instrumental music. This is an effective way to slow down your mind.
3. Go for a hike. Hiking or going for a walk by yourself is an amazing way to restart your brain. Listen to the sounds of nature and enjoy the silence.
4. Download an app. Two of my favorites are, “Stop, Breath & Think” and “Insight Timer”.
5. If you like listening to podcasts, there are SO MANY out there! Some popular meditation podcasts are, “10% Happier”, “Meditation Minis”, and “Meditation Oasis”.
6. Breath! Breathing is so important!! Looking for quick meditation? This is a great starting point! Tip: breath from your stomach not your neck. In yoga you will often see instructor breath so intense that it comes from their neck. This is bad! It actually signals your body into “fight or flight” mode instead of relaxation.

I hope you were able to learn something from this weeks blog. I encourage you to hope off your computer or phone and practice at least 5 minutes of meditation right now. I promise you will start to see a difference in your life the more you meditate. Till next time…