Practicing Mindfulness

Have you been wanting to become more in tune with your body and mind? Practicing mindfulness is a great way to do that! There are many different ways to practice mindfulness. The image above highlights six ways that you can incorporate mindfulness into your daily life.

Gratitude: Practicing gratitude is a great way to get yourself in a more positive mindset. Think about what you are grateful for, big and small! Whether you are grateful for something big like your job, family, or home, or something small like the cup of coffee you make every morning, walking outside to a crisp winter day, or your favorite song coming on the radio! Thinking about and identifying those specific things that you are grateful for every day can make a big difference in your overall outlook on life.

Breathwork: Practicing breathwork is a wonderful way to quiet the noise of everyday life and really connect with your body. Taking 5 minutes to yourself to close your eyes, take a deep breath, and visualize your breath inflating your body, expanding your belly and chest, then exhaling, allowing your body to deflate and come back to normal helps tell your body to relax. There are many different ways of practicing breathwork, all of which can help increase balance and support relaxation. 

Relaxing hobbies: This is one of the more automatic, less intimidating forms of mindfulness. Participating in a calming hobby is a good way to get your mind off of the stresses of the day and allow yourself to do something that doesn't require a lot of thought. This can be something like crocheting, painting, going for a walk, going to the gym, etc. Anything that you enjoy doing that gives your mind a break. 

Limiting screen time: In this day and age, we are constantly bombarded with information on our technological devices. Many of us have to look at a computer screen for our jobs, and then when we get a break, we look at a smaller screen to interact with others or distract ourselves. Limiting that time staring at a screen can be beneficial in many ways. It creates time to do other things, it opens our eyes to the world around us, it can help us concentrate on our tasks and even sleep better! When we shut off the screens, we are able to quiet the digital noise and hear ourselves think. 

Feel the sun: You know the feeling of being in the dead of a Michigan winter and trying to remember the last time you saw the sun? Then, having a day when it finally shows itself, even though it is still freezing out, and getting that rush of endorphins as you feel the subtle warmth and light on your face? Enough said. 

Mindful movement: Many of us tend to think of exercise as a chore, or as something we should do if we want to lose weight or to be more in shape, but exercise is so much more than that! Moving your body in a way that feels good to you is a great way to quiet your mind, release bodily tension, and even release emotions that we have been bottling up. It can be something as simple as going for a walk around the block on your lunch break, doing some wind down yoga before bed, or doing some stretching while watching your comfort show. Movement doesn't have to be hard to be beneficial. 

Like I said above, there are so many ways to incorporate mindfulness into your daily life. These are just a handful of the ways that I have found beneficial for myself. Give them a try! See what you like and don't like, try other options! Something small can lead to big changes toward living your life in a more mindful way.