A Beginner’s Guide to Meditation

We all know life can be stressful—family, friends, pets, and work, can all be sources of stress. Developing a fitness routine to deal with stress can improve your life in many ways. Fitness itself is a self-care activity which promotes physical, mental, and emotional well-being. When considering how to integrate more fitness in your life, keep in mind that every workout shouldn’t leave you mopping up after yourself. Formats like yoga promote breath and movement in a more mindful environment than you won’t find on most gym floors or group classes. There’s also a meditative aspect of yoga that allows you to be more in touch with your mind and how your body feels in the moment, which can enhance your performance during harder workouts.

VASA offers a retreat from the busy gym floor in its STUDIO FLOW room. Each of the three class types (Flow, Deep Stretch, and Restore) offers a unique benefit, with Restore classes being the most mindful and meditative of the three. Getting into comfortable positions and promoting relaxation through the breathing cycle, Restore is the class that creates a present feeling with mind and body. Creating space in your day for you to notice your body, feel your breath, and remove the constraints of your thoughts can leave you feeling lighter and ready to take on the stress of the world outside of class.

If you don’t yet have access to STUDIO FLOW, you can still devote some time to yourself at any point in your day through meditation. Meditation has been shown to decrease stress levels, improve attention, increase sleep quality, and lower blood pressure in those who practice for just a few minutes daily. Life provides us with plenty of stress, so taking a few minutes to decompress can also improve your relationships with your friends and family and enhance your self-awareness.

If you haven’t tried meditation yet, follow these simple steps to get started:

• Find a position that feels comfortable to you in a quiet space.
• Set a timer; start with a short amount of time, and gradually build up as you become more comfortable with meditation.
• Notice your body and how it feels in the comfortable position you started in.
• Focus on your breath as you slowly inhale and exhale.
• The mind will wander as you start to think about things other than your breath. When this happens, return your attention to your breath and try again. Don’t judge yourself or worry about where your mind wandered, just focus on your breath.
• When your timer goes off, slowly return to your normal breathing as you begin to notice the sounds and sights of your environment again.
• Take note of how your body feels, your thoughts, and your emotions in the moments immediately following your meditation session.

Whether you want to move your body or take a few quiet moments to yourself, there are no drawbacks to incorporating yoga or meditation into your daily routine. Try STUDIO FLOW or meditation (or both!) to experience for yourself the positive effect self-care can have on your life.