Have you ever counted the hours you spend on you in a week or a in a month? Do you know what quality time spent with yourself, investing in yourself, looks & feels like?
Since undertaking a twice daily meditation practice, (yes that's a minimum of 40 minutes a day time I swore I never had!), my perspective on a commitment to invest in myself has completely changed. I'm not any less busy and yet, not only do I meditate twice a day, but I now also have time to get to a yoga or pilates class as well!
My priorities have changed, I do not compromise my time in stillness. I create space for this every day, yet I'm still as productive, even more so, than I was before. My meditation practice is one of conscious rest and de-stressing. I believe being still, freeing myself from the distractions of life; devices, people, my intense schedule, my to do list, etc, closing my eyes and sitting, was the key to unlocking the potential within me. Paired with a regular yoga practice I was able to tune into what my body needed and begin to move in that direction, making little changes and tweaks every day/week/month, falling off the wagon and willingly (sometimes not so willingly) getting back on. Investing in rest was a critical first step.
In the beginning, I chose things I could easily achieve like sleeping more, sitting in meditation once a day for just a couple of mins (yes that's 2 mins) to create the habit, going on walking catch ups around the park or down the beach with friends instead of brunch, or getting to a yin yoga class at least twice a week where the teacher would invite us into stillness (and when you're in a class you do what everyone is doing!). These were just some of the ways I began to shift out of the old 'no time' mentality and into a new abundant way of being.
Neuroscience tells us sleep is critical for a healthy brain and body, and most of us agree, gone are the attitudes of the 80s & 90s - I'll sleep when i'm dead. However, not everyone has a good night's sleep, many just count this as normal saying 'I'm a light sleeper' or 'I never get a good night's sleep'. Its not normal, and there are ways to improve your sleep quality - this is something you could invest your time in, research how, or get help from an expert.
Yin Yoga actually helped me to understand how to be still, 4-5 mins at a time in each pose, tuning into my body's language, and watching my mind race away at the hint of discomfort. Yin yoga taught me to be with what is, to be present and trust in the power of a moment by moment experience. I'll be advancing my knowledge of Yin by training with the founder of Yin Yoga Paul Grilley early next year. To my regular Yin students, you can expect a new and deeper understanding in the wisdom I will begin to share in class next year.
Meditation is an ancient and established practice, and modern science is now touting its benefits, easily researched online to placate the mind, and felt profoundly in your body when you practice regularly. It is a form of conscious rest and very worthwhile exploring, especially for those super busy people like me. I'm currently practicing the 1 Giant Mind Being technique, and am now certified to teach 1 Giant Mind Learn Meditation courses! If you are interested learning to meditate in 2020 let me know.
To exciting and restfilled times ahead! See you on the mat soon.
In peace and abundance,
Wallis
