5 tips to kickstart your meditation practice
Meditation has been around for thousands of years but today, in our busy world, the need for peace and stability has become vital for keeping our hearts, minds and souls together. The practise of meditation can however, whilst being hugely beneficial, present challenges for many of us to access. We like to put up all kinds of blocks, conscious and unconscious, which often prevent us from even starting. And when we do, trying to keep the mind still and having the patience to stay with it can be really frustrating.
As the rewards can be immense and lifechanging, I have given some thought of ways to help those of you who are new to meditating, as well as for those of you who have started and then given up.
So here are five tried and tested ways to get you off the mark, as well as help you stick with it and keep going.
1.Start small.
Don’t be overambitious. Begin with 5 to 10 minutes. Even 1 minute if it helps you start! Before I became a meditation teacher, I worked in the corporate sector and initially felt my life was just too busy to set aside time for meditation. However, I decided to begin with 3 minutes every morning and that really worked in starting me off. So why not try setting your alarm 5 minutes earlier in the morning and take 2 minutes to wake up and give yourself 3 minutes to practise. Then build up from there.
2. Build a habit.
Commit to it every day like you do to brushing your teeth (hopefully!) You instinctively know that brushing your teeth is good for the health of your gums and for the health of your friendships. Meditating helps me to reflect deeply and get to know myself in a more authentic way and helps me with the way I relate to people. I believe it will do the same for you.
3. Find a comfortable place
Don’t think you have turn yourself into a pretzel in order to meditate. Sit on a chair, sit on your bed, lie down, do it on the loo! There are so many challenges to meditation and often the body just gets in the way as it can cause discomfort or pain. There is already enough going on in the mind so let’s remove one of the big obstacles. And, if you cannot sit comfortably then lie down.
4. Choose the right time for you
If you are a morning person do it in the morning. If you are evening person meditate at night. If you only have a few minutes at lunch then try starting then. Remember tip number 1 - start small. Do however, avoid practising after stimulants or sweets. The train, tube or bus are great places to meditate…nobody knows what you are doing and you look like you are just sitting there (that is after all what you are doing?.
5. If one technique does not work for you then try another.
There are lots of styles, techniques and methods to access the world of meditation. They all lead to the same place eventually. You could try: breath meditation, reciting mantras, visualisations, body sensing and guided meditations. There are lots of apps and classes out there to help you get your practice off the ground. One of the most simple methods is following your inhalation and exhalation and counting upto 5 on the inhale and the same amount on the exhale. Listen to the sound of the air coming into and leaving the body and try to keep it smooth and steady.
Research has shown that The benefits of a regular meditation practise are improved focus and energy, reduced symptoms of stress and improved sleep patterns. Let me know how you go or if you have any questions.
#meditation #learntomeditate #meditationforbeginners #meditationteacher