Finding Your Center: 7 Everyday Ways To Meditate
Do you have a case of the “should’s” when it comes to meditation? Many of the women I talk to in my coaching practice and on the road during speaking engagements certainly do. They feel they should be meditating, and believe that the only way to do it is to sit cross-legged on a mat for twenty minutes each day chanting “Om”. When they feel they can’t commit to this as a regular practice, a lot of women say, “Why bother?”
If this sounds like you, I completely understand. I’ve wrestled with these same “should’s” myself.
Meditation can be challenging, especially because so many of us feel we don’t have the time or experience needed to do it correctly. If we do find the time, a lot of us would just as soon do the vacuuming we’ve been putting off, than submit to sitting still without thinking for twenty minutes.
According to mindfulness coach and yoga instructor, Diane Sieg, vacuuming can actually be an effective way to meditate. “Focusing your full attention on a task, like vacuuming, or other activities requiring concentration, creates new neural pathways in the brain,” Sieg explains. “The focus required for these everyday tasks provides the same meditative benefits as focusing on your breath while on the mat.” Sieg says the key is concentrating on only one activity at a time rather than trying to multi-task the way so many of us do.
If you’re looking for everyday ways to meditate that don’t require a mat and timer, here are seven activities that can help you feel a deeper sense of calm:
- Cleaning. There is something wonderfully peace-inducing about taking up the sponge, broom, or vacuum, and getting to work. Embracing the “Zen” of cleaning can leave you feeling relaxed and refreshed, with a sparkling kitchen floor to boot.
- Coloring. If you’ve been on social media or in bookstores lately, you may have noticed that coloring books for adults are trending to say the least! This favorite childhood activity is all grown up with a variety of books offering highly intricate, sophisticated, beautiful scenes to color. More and more women are lining up their colored pencils and coloring their way to calm.
- Gardening. Getting your hands into the dirt and connecting with the earth to tend the garden is incredibly restorative. Gardening is a great way to feel more peaceful as well as grounded.
- Knitting. A huge contingent is enjoying this beloved pastime as much for the mind-clearing benefits, as for the joy of creating a scarf or sweater.
- Walking. Even if it’s stepping out of the office at lunchtime, or circling the block before heading out to run errands – taking a walk is a great way to calm your mind and find your center.
- Writing/ Journaling. Putting actual pen to actual paper and pouring out your thoughts can be a wonderfully meditative process. Writing down a list of the people and experiences in life for which you are most grateful can give you an especially positive boost.
Whether it’s coloring, planting seeds, or knitting one and purling two, the act of focusing all of our attention on one activity helps bring us into the present moment and reap the restorative benefits of meditation…and that’s something to “Om” about!
