Stop everything you're doing for one whole minute. Pay attention to your body. Does it feel tense, relaxed, or uncomfortable? Pay attention to your breath. Are you breathing deeply or taking small breaths? Pay attention to your energy level without judgement, just curiosity. What do you feel right now? This is mindfulness.
Mindfulness is the ability to pay attention to the present moment, without judging yourself. It's about bringing attention to your daily activities to see how it affects your mind, body, and spirit.
How often do you stop what you're doing during the day to check in with yourself?
Becoming more present helps calm your mind and keeps you grounded. Being mindful means allowing feelings to exist without driving your actions. You are able to accept life as it is without wishing it was different.
Mindfulness means acknowledging thoughts as they arise without buying into them. You take actions based on what you feel in your heart and not from old habits.
Benefits of Mindfulness:
It helps you learn more about yourself.
It helps slow you down.
It helps you to stress less.
It helps you focus or concentrate on one thing at a time.
It helps you change bad habits.
It helps us be more resilient.
It leads to self-acceptance and compassion for others.
It leads to a more enjoyable life.
Here are some techniques you can try throughout the day to become more mindful.
Body Scan:
Find a quiet place to sit comfortably where you are alone. Close your eyes and take a deep breath in through your nose. Hold the breath while counting to four, and then breathe out through your mouth. If your mind starts to wander, just acknowledge your thoughts and bring your attention back to your breath. Now, focus on the top of your head. Notice how it feels. Scan down to your neck. Move to your chest. Your back. Your stomach. Then your shoulders, arms and hands. Move down to your legs and finally your feet and toes. Notice how the energy shifts throughout your entire body.
5 Finger Breathing:
Slowly trace your right hand with your left finger. Start at your wrist and work your way up to the top of your thumb. As you trace each finger, breathe in through your nose as your climb up. Keep your tracing slow and steady with your breath. As you climb down, breathe out through your mouth. Then switch hands. Notice how you feel after tracing both hands.
"Mindfulness is simply being aware of what is happening right now without wishing it were different; Enjoying the pleasant without holding on when it changes (which it will); Being with the unpleasant without fearing it will always be this way (which it won't)." - James Baraz
I've really been trying to practice mindful eating...really paying attention to taste and texture of food. That way I don't over eat and I enjoy my food much more. It also helps me make wiser food choices. Mindfulness helps us enjoy everything more because we are completely focused on what we're doing in the moment.