When you think of mindfulness, what's the first thing that comes to mind?
- being at peace with the world?
- maybe a monk?
- meditating on the edge of a cliff for 12 hours?
Honestly, until I learned what mindfulness was really about [in simple forms] I had that impression too.
Maybe you think something completely different, but the idea of 'practising mindfulness every day' sounds like a chore, who has the time for that? It also sounds quite daunting! I don't know what to do, I would need someone to teach me, is it even worth it?
I found it quite interesting to discover that a lot of what we do in our day-today life is classed as mindfulness! Also, mindfulness can in fact be done by anyone.
So, I have compiled a few lists [can you tell I like lists?]
1. Unlikely mindfulness activities
- Being present in any moment. This can be anything from reading, showering, stretching, whatever it is you are doing. To do this mindfully you must try and be as free from distractions as possible and really observe every sensation. How do your shoes feel against your feet as you walk? Feel everything surrounding that one moment. Turn off the TV, the background music etc and just feel.
- Having a mindful conversation. You may do this already [which is amazing] but most of us don't, and that's okay. Sometimes it's difficult to focus on what other people are saying when we are stuck in our own heads, what are they thinking about me? am I blinking too much? to little? To be mindful in this scenario you need to let go of these thoughts. Let go of all judgement [including judging the other person.] Take some deep breaths and observe things you wouldn't usually. - Their breathing rate - what words make them smile - how quickly are they talking. Just make a mental note of objective things about the interaction.
- EATING! Yes, you can eat mindfully! This is good to practise because you start notice just how much food you're having [too much/just enough/too little] and appreciate what you have. Once you have your food, don't eat it straight away, but observe it objectively without judging. State some facts about the food - the colour - does it look shiny etc. then pick it up - feel the food in your hands - the texture - the weight - then finally eat it - observe the texture again - taste - sounds. It's super relaxing, and because you're eating slowly you are less likely to feel indigestion and food coma.
2. Super easy mindfulness activities [5 mins or less]
- Breathing exercises [find your own rhythm or look for some online for inspiration]
- Stretch in the mornings, curl up like a ball and stretch again. Keep repeating until you want to get up
- Tense the muscles, then relax and repeat tensing for longer each time
- Colouring/drawing
3. Classic mindfulness
- Meditation [choose your own form of this, I personally like guided meditations]
- Yoga/Pilates
4. Finally, good apps for mindfulness
- Calm (previously Calm.com) good for guided meditations, only £35 for a year, new content every day, loads on there already! You can try it for free, I think there's 7 days of calm which is free.
-Gotta yoga, bit more pricey (depending on if you get a deal) around £100 mark, good for learning yoga and also the names of various poses, good progression, I would only recommend if you have enough space and a genuine interest in doing this at least weekly. You can get a few videos for free though.
- Headspace is better for videos and things, personally I prefer calm however if you're looking for shorter content then go for this one (£50/year) there's a free trial available too.
- Fabulous makes you stay on track with your goals and gives suggestions of well-being, really visually pleasing and makes you enjoy developing good habits, around £50/year which sounds a bit much but it's basically like a pocket life coach. If you aren't interested in the paid version, there is a free version.
Thank you for reading, I hope you can implement some of these into your daily life and have a more mindful time.
Enjoy x
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