the power of mindfulness
Back in the 1970’s, jogging became a trend sweeping the United States and many people thought joggers were crazy at the time. Today we know jogging is one of the healthiest activities you can do, especially for cardiac health. Much like the western world discovering the power of jogging and its many health benefits, meditation is having its own wave of popularity sweeping the western world from the east. Those who meditate are not only more mindful, because they have created mental space for clearer thinking, they are healthier. Meditation has been proven to reduce stress levels, provide better sleep, and improve focus, creativity and compassion.
Meditation, much like running, has major health benefits including being named a preventive measure to cardiac-related illnesses by the American Heart Association. It has been proven beyond cardiac health to also be a preventative measure in warding off neurological disease as well. Essentially, in many ways, the regular practice of meditation is helping people live longer.
Meditation has all sorts of benefits. It literally changes the wiring of your brain. Science has proven that those who meditate have more gray matter in their brain, which helps with decision making, thought processing, and evaluating rewards and consequences. Having more gray matter essentially means having more intelligence. More so, it has been associated to delay and reverse cognitive function related aging in middle-aged populations to be able to operate on par with 25-year-olds.
It seems so simple to sit still and do nothing, easy enough right? Not quite. Finding the time and effort to meditate as a regular routine for many seems to fall to the bottom of the to-do list. Building this habit takes commitment. Here are some easy tips to begin integrating a meditation practice into your day.
Get a meditation app on your phone. My personal favorite is the Calm Meditation app. The guided sessions are on relatable topics such as “gratitude,” “judgement,” “focus,” and “managing stress.” An app like this also can send you daily reminder notifications to keep you accountable for your meditation practice. There are so many fantastic meditation apps out there like: Headspace, Waking Up, and Insight Meditation Timer.
Go for mindful walks silently in nature for 20 minutes and just observe. By taking a break from the day-to-day grind and going on a focused walk like this (without your phone!), you can also reap similar mindfulness benefits of meditation.
If meditation during waking hours isn’t working, start with a yoga nidra meditation practice as you’re falling asleep. You can find plenty of these guided meditations on YouTube.
And finally, consistency is key. Make a goal for no zero-minute days. Even if you meditate for 2 minutes, it totally counts!
Since I began meditating over the past few years, I’ve noticed I am way less anxious, happier, more compassionate, and available to enjoy the present with my friends and family. I genuinely believe integrating a regular meditation practice is one of the best lifestyle changes that I have made in my well-being and truly a gift to myself.
