Mindfulness: 5 practical tips for beginners
In recent years, meditation has been gaining popularity.
Every time I receive more questions from people interested in learning to meditate, and it certainly is something that makes me happy. Whether to reduce stress and anxiety, or to improve the quality of life in general, I always recommend introducing the practice of Mindfulness into the daily routine.
Mindfulness requires will
However, although science has contributed knowledge about the many benefits that this practice brings us (emotional, mental, physical and inner peace) the reality is that it is not easy to meditate . It is common to see that people start full of illusion, just to try, they go as the days go by they are not able to find a moment to practice.
And it should not surprise us. We are used to not stop doing things, not to "waste time" with activities that do not have immediate utility and to escape from boredom. This is how the beginner, almost without realizing it, invents multiple excuses not to meditate.
Mindfulness requires practice
Myself, when I started, I quickly became an expert of "tomorrow does not pass" . I loved the idea that meditation represents, the benefits it brings, and it was also very good to say that I practiced Mindfulness. However, at the moment of truth, he procrastinated again and again.
In the end I was lucky to live near a Buddhist monastery and asked to participate in several retreats, which put me in a situation where it would have been very bad if I did not attend. I was very happy to do it. I stopped pressing to fulfill my goals and I realized that I could enjoy meditating, in fact I wanted to .
You may be interested: "Mindfulness: 8 benefits of mindfulness"
Mindfulness: the usual excuses of beginners
Therefore, if you are starting or thinking about starting soon in this meditation, I would like to share with you these tips that can help you to overcome the five main usual excuses :
1. I do not have time
This is undoubtedly the most repeated and perhaps the most absurd of all. We are all busy, yes, but we always have five minutes to dedicate ourselves .
Many beginners believe that they have to start with 30 minutes of meditation a day and that is a big mistake. The key is to progress. Set a simple goal, for example 5 minutes a day the first week until you can meditate a minimum of 20 minutes a day. Create the habit of spending 5 minutes a day and gradually go up to 8, 10 minutes, and so on It is the best way to feel comfortable with this practice. Think that just 10 minutes of daily meditation already brings you many benefits.
2. I get bored
Boredom is the greatest enemy of the beginner meditator, and frankly I understand it. An activity that consists of doing nothing, does not sound especially attractive.
But friend, doing nothing is already doing something. And it's really difficult. Let someone guide you at the beginning, practice guided meditation to make it less boring . There are also meditations of very different types, some are based on certain topics that may be more attractive or repeat mantras. This makes it more enjoyable since it reduces the impression that you are not doing anything.
3. I do not do it well
One of the biggest difficulties to meditate is to set expectations or repeat yourself "everyone meditates well except me".
If you do not manage to concentrate on breathing because they keep coming to you different thoughts such as the shopping list, weekend plans or how boring you are, congratulations! That is what you are doing phenomenally. The goal of Mindfulness meditation is just that, observe all the thoughts that are going through your mind . Just watch them, accept that you have been distracted and pay attention to your breathing again, until the next distraction comes.
To start shooting: "5 Mindfulness exercises to improve your emotional well-being"4. I have something important to do
You are meditating and suddenly one of the thoughts that distracts you makes you realize that you have really forgotten something important that you have to do.
You can not stop thinking about it, so this time yes, you convince yourself that this meditation is not going to be useful at all. Error! The more distracted the better, so you do not get bored. Observe how distracted and nervous you are . Be aware of your accelerated breathing and how much you care about what you have to do. Courage, after all, in just ten minutes you can do it.
5. I do not know where to start
A good idea would be to start at the beginning. Simply Sit and pay attention to your breathing, a sound or an external object . You do not need anything else. No classical background music, no scented candles, nor being able to sit in the posture of the lotus flower. Just make yourself comfortable but do not lean your head, keep it upright so you do not fall asleep. Notice how you breathe and how to breathe and breathe. Y... voilá, You are already meditating!
I hope these little tips have convinced you to tear down those excuses that we all put to not meditate and really try it. When you least expect it, you will discover that you are hooked!
