Me & Mindfulness Meditation
Never been able to sit still for 5 minutes never mind sitting still and meditating?
I first started practicing meditation and regular breathwork exercises in March 2020 when we had the first lockdown. I had just made a big decision to leave the job that I had been doing for 21 years and go it alone, still working in the fitness industry, when lockdown hit us.
Like many people this had a huge impact on me, mainly on the way it made me feel, I felt stressed, I couldn’t sleep, my energy levels were low and my focus was zero. I knew I needed to refocus and rebalance.
I started practicing meditation and breathing techniques for a few minutes in the morning then gradually worked up to 10/20 minutes depending on my time.
It gave me a sense of inner peace.
I now meditate outdoors, in the garden, as this has always been my happy place, so I feel this just gives me added health benefits. It gives me a greater feeling of revitalisation, more enjoyment, and a greater intent to want to do it again.
The benefits of meditation
- Gaining a new perspective on stressful situations
- Building skills to manage your stress
- Increasing self-awareness
- Focusing on the present
- Reducing negative emotions
- Increasing imagination and creativity
- Increasing patience and tolerance
- Improving sleep quality
My advice:
- Meditate first thing in the morning. Sit in a comfortable position, set a timer for 5-20 minutes and take a few deep breaths. Release and notice how each breath feels different and how parts of your body move on the breathe.
- Walking meditation, set your timer for 5-20minutes and as you walk, bring your focus into your body, the muscles in your legs your arms, shoulders your facial muscles feel every breath and release any tension.
- Observe your breathing and feel the air flow in and out steady and controlled.
- Try to breathe in and out through your nose.
- Inhale a deep breath into your lungs, check by putting your fingers around your lower ribs, feel it expand ( lateral breathing pilates ) then feel your ribs expand, and thirdly feel how your chest rises in the last part of the inhale.
- Pause and then exhale reversing the process now firstly chest, ribs then the tummy.