1. Consistency. 5 minutes every day is more helpful and you will see more results than an hour once a week. Being consistent with your yoga and meditation practice allows you to slip into that place of calm, focused attention on a regular basis, making it easier to live in the “bahv,” or a state of bliss.
2. Patience. Our brains are often compared to monkeys in the yoga and meditation world and yours is no different. So when your mind does what it is used to doing (wandering off, ignoring that fact that you’re trying to meditate/do yoga here!), no need to chastise or judge. Gently bring it back to center, to the breath, mantra or whatever you’re using to help you meditate. Acknowledge the thought then let it goooo.
3. Sit up straight and tall. Elevate your hips so they are above your knees. Use a bolster or something else. Work on your postural muscles. They WILL develop. Just give them some time and try to sit up straight as you meditate. This will allow your body to sink into that state of calm quicker and more efficiently if you’re are always practicing proper alignment. This isn’t to say that lying down or sitting in a chair is ever appropriate. But try to make sitting up straight, without any back support your routine.
4. Your breath is your guru. If ever you feel like a meditative state is the furthest thing from possible in any situation, don’t forget your breath. Follow it, acknowledge it, gently push it to slow down, gain control of it. It will be with you until the day you die. Make each and every one count. The more you turn to it, the easier it is to remember it when things are rough.
Keep practicing the techniques I’ve posted in my videos. They are basic, fundamental ways to meditate. And take the yoga I’ve been teaching and use that to channel what your body tells you it needs. Stay tuned for more videos next week!
Namaste, Jenna