What Is Meditation?
Meditation is a practice that allows you to instil a sense of calm in yourself. This can be accomplished in various ways.
A meditative practice will usually require focusing on your body, your surroundings and how they interact with each other. It can include the act of letting thoughts just flow over you and not trying to dispel or keep them (think about them).
While meditation has always been associated with religious practices, in the 21st century, when our attention is constantly being sought after, it is more important than ever.
Types of Meditation
Meditation doesn’t have to be sitting down and being silent for half an hour.
There are different forms of meditation/meditative practices that might suit you.
For example, Tai Chi is a type of meditation.
Naturally, this would be better suited to someone who struggles to sit still.
A List of Meditative Practices:
- Tai Chi
- Yoga
- Mindfulness
- Transcendental Meditation
- Guided Meditation (these can be useful as a starting point!)
- Qigong
- Progressive Muscle Relaxation
- Walking Meditation
Of course, this list is not exhaustive. But I think it’s a good place to start and by looking into what kind of meditation you think might be best will set you on the right path.
If you want to learn more about these types of meditation read here for my quick guide:
The Benefits of Practicing Meditation Everyday
According to Harvard, daily meditation can help reduce:
- Stress
- Pain
- Depression
- Anxiety
But it can also promote creativity, intuition and a greater connection with yourself.
Cornell goes even further with this and shows simply how beneficial this habit can be:
“Some research indicates that regular meditation may even increase brain size and grey matter, improve intelligence and creativity, strengthen the immune system, normalize blood sugar, and lower blood pressure, heart rate, cholesterol, and the buildup of plaque in coronary arteries.
However, it doesn’t take years of meditation to experience results. The benefits can be immediate … and long-term!”
How To Practice Meditation Daily
Meditation can be practiced in a range of ways, for a range of benefits.
This might seem confusing or daunting at first. But it actually means that there’s a type of meditation suitable for you.
The biggest struggle people have with starting to meditate is that they don’t keep it going!
While one session of meditation may help you feel better in the short term. The real benefits of meditation come from practicing it on a regular basis.
You can get started by:
- Carving out some time for yourself each day. Ideally, you’ll want to meditate towards the start of your day – but ultimately any time is better than none at all
- Meditation is more about your mindset than anything else. By trying to relax and ‘get out’ of your daily life – you’re already ahead
- You can tack your meditative practice onto another habit like journaling or having a hot drink in the afternoon.
- Playing a guided meditation, from YouTube or Headspace, or some calming music
- Sitting or laying still
- Allowing your thoughts to pass through you, or focus on your breathing
Conclusion On The Benefits Of Meditation
The benefits of meditation are clear.
By having a meditative practice in your life you’ll be able to reduce stress, gain focus, increase productivity and be happier.
The post Why You Need To Realise The Benefits Of Meditation appeared first on Learned Men.
