How to meditate.
As a Yoga Instructor and Personal Trainer I have introduced many of my clients to meditation for the first time. And the reaction of many of them is one of surprise and delight. And today I am going to share my secrets to any easy and enjoyable meditation practice with you too!
The general consensus is that meditation simply means to sit in silence with eyes closed and try not to think. It’s like saying not to think of a pink elephant, what do you do? You think of a pink Elephant.
My years of practice and research have helped to change my experience of meditation forever, and now meditation is actually very enjoyable. And not only to me, to all of my clients too, and because of my many techniques I will ensure that you to fall into a meditative state as well.
This article is great for those new to meditation, as well as those have practiced meditation for many years.
WHAT IS MEDITATION?
Meditation is used in many ways, but essentially it means to come into the present moment and remain there. Traditionally we have thought that it means we have to immediately empty our minds and keep them empty while we meditate for hours. But if you have tried this method, you will know this is a very difficult (if not an impossible) task. And reason for this is because it is the top down approach.
The top down approach means that we are trying to change our mind state with our mind. However, if we are already in a stressed out, sped up, emotional state, it can just feel like we are battling ourselves. We can’t change our minds just with our minds. We need our bodies too.
And that is why my approach is different.
It is the bottom up approach.
My approach is to bring you into the present moment via your body. It creates space between you and your mind first. It slows down the internal pace. And it basically gets us out of our analytical mind. And that result is magical, because thoughts quickly and easily start to float away, leaving us with a clear and calm head. Centered and grounded.
Read below for a meditation experience that is accessible for all!
But just like EVERYTHING, you must remember this is a practice.
The more you do it the easier it gets; as your focusing muscles strengthen, just like any other workout.
And lastly, try to focus on enjoying the exercises rather than fixating on emptying your mind.
These tips can be used before a specific meditation practice OR as forms of meditation themselves.
MOVE -
If we try to drop into meditation whilst we are still very much in our heads, we will have a big struggle. For most of our daily lives we are in our heads, when we are on our phones, laptops, watching the TV and even driving.
So BEFORE you meditate stretch, shake, dance, walk, run or weight train.
Try to stay mindful as you move, using it as an opportunity to take refuge from your mind, and feel your body as it moves. This technique will bring you into your body, out of your head and give you an easier route into a meditative state. It will also encourage release of emotional charge or stuck energy. Think of it like a snow globe being shook up.
BREATHE -
Breath-work will slow down your internal pace, switch your nervous system from flight or flight and into rest and digest. It will slow your thoughts and also release emotional charge from the body. There are many breath-work practices that can be used, but my favourite is 4 part breathing. To practice 4 part breathing you simply breathe in for 4 counts, hold for 4 counts, breathe out for 4 counts and hold the breath out for 4 counts. The trick with breath-work is learning how to control the air flow as it comes in and out of your body. If you take a big amount in one count, you will struggle to reach count 4. When I start with clients, I ask them to breathe really quietly, so quietly they can’t even hear themselves. This way they start to really control the airflow and as a result reach count 4 with ease. You can go to my YouTube channel to find my breath meditations.
AWAKEN YOUR SENSES -
I use scents, visuals and sounds to help me come into the present moment. Similar to movement, it is away of getting me out of my head and into my body very quickly.
GO OUTSIDE -
This will help us to see a bigger perspective, a wider world and connect us to our natural surroundings; which could be to simply look at the sky above you, or out into the distance. The reason I suggest this is that when we stay inside our perspective becomes very narrow, which keeps our minds fixated. When our eyes stay still it effects our brain, and when we stare at a screen all the time our eyes move very little. Another point is that when we see a big horizon, it improves our mood and energy. This simple shift will open up our perspective and help us to see beyond our immediate circumstances, worries or thoughts.
SWITCH FROM THINKING TO FEELING -
An easy way to meditate is to focus on the sensational/physical experience of your body, your breath, your emotions or your surroundings. Rather than analysing and quantifying things in the mind, try to physically feel them. This is a very quick route out of the head and into the present moment. Another approach is to keep your eyes open and simply look around at the room that you are in, take in the shapes, colours and textures that you see. This is a somatic practice that is wonderful if you are feeling shaken or un-grounded.
EYE FOCUS
Our eyes connect to our brains and so we focus our eyes we focus our brains. With your eyes closed, focus your eyes towards the tip of your nose or in between the eyebrows as you do a breathing meditation. I often find that eye focus brings us into and keep us in the present moment when doing a closed eye meditation. Yogis use eye focus as a big part of their practice, as it is also believe that it helps to activate the third eye. In Modern Science it is also known that the eyes connect to our vagal nerve. The Vagal Nerve is an integral part of the nervous system, and when stimulated can help to bring us into rest and digest mode.
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Or go to my YouTube page for guided meditations and breath-work meditation.