In today’s fast paced world, seeking solitude may make you seem like the odd one out. But when constant connectivity - what with social networking, taking laptops on vacations, taking smart phones to bed etc. - gets to you, a little bit of ‘you’ time to connect with yourself may be just what the doctor ordered. Sometimes getting away from constant connectivity may make a particularly stressful week better. But we city people do not have the luxury of space, so why not try yoga and meditation?
Yoga slows down the tempo of your day and makes you focus on the present. Meditation for the untrained mind, however, leaves you thinking of everything in the past and future when you should be focusing on the present. But as a beginner to meditation, is that such a bad thing? You may not be able to clear your head in the first attempt, but sometimes even having a window to focus on your thoughts can be of immense help to sort out problems and priorities.
Wellness is a big contributor to longetivity and healthy living and is as internal as it is external. If on the one hand you take care of what you eat and you’re reasonably active but on the other hand if you are stressed and are not able to relax (oh let me check Facebook one last time) and spend time with yourself, then you still have a long way to go before you can call your lifestyle healthy.
So how do we marry the concept of Yoga with meditation?
Meditation is one limb of the yoga philosophy. While power yoga has taken over the world with its promises of quick weight loss and toned abs, lets not forget that yoga came into being to help yogis concentrate on meditation. They couldn’t really think about what to cook for dinner while standing on one foot for hours now could they? Yoga also stretched out their limbs to make it easier for them to sit in a meditative posture for hours.
If you can take out 15 minutes in the morning to sit and meditate, to contemplate on your day gone by or the day ahead or just to get your thoughts in order, that could be a good way to get that vital time to yourself. If you can’t take out those 15 minutes or more, then a good way to incorporate a little meditation into your life is to try it at your yoga class.
Yoga slows down the tempo of your day and makes you focus on the present. Meditation for the untrained mind, however, leaves you thinking of everything in the past and future when you should be focusing on the present. But as a beginner to meditation, is that such a bad thing? You may not be able to clear your head in the first attempt, but sometimes even having a window to focus on your thoughts can be of immense help to sort out problems and priorities.
Wellness is a big contributor to longetivity and healthy living and is as internal as it is external. If on the one hand you take care of what you eat and you’re reasonably active but on the other hand if you are stressed and are not able to relax (oh let me check Facebook one last time) and spend time with yourself, then you still have a long way to go before you can call your lifestyle healthy.
So how do we marry the concept of Yoga with meditation?
Meditation is one limb of the yoga philosophy. While power yoga has taken over the world with its promises of quick weight loss and toned abs, lets not forget that yoga came into being to help yogis concentrate on meditation. They couldn’t really think about what to cook for dinner while standing on one foot for hours now could they? Yoga also stretched out their limbs to make it easier for them to sit in a meditative posture for hours.
If you can take out 15 minutes in the morning to sit and meditate, to contemplate on your day gone by or the day ahead or just to get your thoughts in order, that could be a good way to get that vital time to yourself. If you can’t take out those 15 minutes or more, then a good way to incorporate a little meditation into your life is to try it at your yoga class.
The next time you go to your yoga class, try making a conscious effort to spend time with your self. If you can’t block out thoughts let them come, but try and focus your thoughts. Once you do this, you may find that many priorities will sort themselves out as you may find yourself thinking about a couple of things constantly that are of utmost importance. You may also find that you are less crabby because you are getting that vital space for your thoughts.
Apart from obvious calmness and focus, meditation has other health benefits too according to science daily.
Meditation will help you sleep better, combat stress and help you put your life into perspective. What better way to get a step closer to your health goals?
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