Tag Archive for 'meditazione'

Mindfulness and positive awareness of ourselves

The practice of mindfulness can be extremely helpful in focusing on one’s positive qualities and maintaining concentration on what is beautiful and significant in one’s life. Here is a potential mindfulness program to remain focused on the beautiful aspects of oneself:

  1. Breath Awareness - Start with a practice of mindful breathing. Find a quiet place, sit or lie down comfortably, and bring your attention to your breath. Notice how the air enters and leaves your body. This helps calm the mind and enter a state of presence in the present moment.
  2. Recognizing Positive Thoughts - Throughout the day, pay attention to positive thoughts about yourself. When thoughts of appreciation, gratitude, or self-love arise, take a moment to acknowledge them without judgment. You might jot them down in a journal to keep track of them.
  3. Practice Gratitude towards Oneself - Dedicate time each day to reflect on at least three things you love about yourself or are grateful for. They could be skills, personal qualities, relationships, or even small daily successes. Focus on how these positive aspects influence your life.
  4. Active Listening and Compassion - When interacting with others, practice active listening. Pay attention to what they say that’s positive about you or your actions. Even if they might be small things, accept them with gratitude and compassion toward yourself.
  5. Mindfulness in Movement - During daily activities like taking a walk, stretching, or doing household chores, be aware of your body’s movements and the sensations you experience. This helps you maintain awareness of the present moment and appreciate your physical abilities.
  6. Mindfulness in Leisure Time - When you have free time, dedicate it to yourself without external distractions. You can practice guided meditation, listen to relaxing music, read an inspiring book, or engage in activities that connect you with yourself and your passions.
  7. Daily Self-Reflection - Before going to bed, take a few minutes to reflect on the day that just passed. Observe and acknowledge the moments when you cultivated positive thoughts about yourself or practiced gratitude. This practice can help reinforce a positive mindset.
  8. Positive Visualization - Set aside time each day for visualizing yourself in positive and rewarding situations. Imagine yourself achieving your goals, feeling fully happy and fulfilled. This practice can help you create an emotional connection with your desires and goals, reinforcing a positive mindset.
  9. Cultivating Kindness Toward Oneself - Practice kindness toward yourself as you would with a dear friend. When facing difficulties or moments of self-criticism, be compassionate and kind to yourself instead of judging yourself harshly. Use reassuring and loving phrases to support yourself in challenging times.
  10. Creating an Inner Safe Space - Dedicate time each day to create an internal space of calm and serenity. This can be done through meditation, visualization, or repeating positive affirmations. This internal space becomes a place where you can retreat when you need to renew your energy and strengthen your self-confidence.

Remember that the practice of mindfulness requires time and consistency. Maintaining a kind and compassionate attitude toward yourself is essential. This program can be adapted and personalized according to your individual needs and preferences.”

Sport, meditation and concentration

Meditation is for all

When we think of meditation we usually picture a monk in a faraway country in Asia or some privileged person like u actor who has time to do practice at dawn. Most of us don’t meditate because we consider it useless, because we think we don’t have the time, because we are so stressed that meditating would be an added stress, because we would rather sleep an extra half hour and then we are always late, because we have other things to think about, because we don’t need to, because you have kids or the house to fix before you go out, because if he/she doesn’t know anyone who does it there must be a good reason, because at home he/she would think he/she is crazy, because he/she tried it but it’s not for him/her, because he/she doesn’t even have time to eat breakfast in the morning, because he/she thinks it doesn’t do any good, because it doesn’t help solve problems, and so on.

They are not aware that meditating is a way to take care of ourselves and to guide our thoughts on a path that improves our well-being.

In that sense, meditating is taking a thought that we like and developing it, expanding it until it uniquely and totally occupies our mind. Meditating allows us to be focused on one thought at a time with the goal of promoting well-being.

Research has shown that the positive effects of meditation show up clearly after adding up 30 hours of practice. So if a person practiced for 15 minutes for 6 days a week, after 3 months he or she would see the first improvements in his or her mood and psychological condition, which would stabilize over the following months. Of course, this activity is suggested for people who do not suffer from psychological disorders and who, instead, should follow a psychotherapeutic course with a professional.

The meditation in sport

Phil Jackson and Kobe Bryant talk about the relevance of mindfulness and meditation to develop the self-control and full mastery of ourselves during the competition.

“It’s like having an anchor. If I don’t do it I feel like I’m constantly chasing the day as opposed to being in control” – Kobe

“You seat on the bench, you take a deep breath and you reset yourself; and you do that through the mindfulness.” – Phil

 

Risultati immagini per Phil Jackson & Kobe Bryant discuss the value of meditation and mindfulness

The use of meditation in sport

The use of mindfulness seems to be one of the new strategies and techniques to train mentally athletes to stay focused on the present and on their performances, rather than be dominated by competitive stress. It want to remember that 40 years ago transcendental meditation and zen were already described as modes suitable to sports. At this regard, I report what had written at that time  two of the sports psychologists who have provided significant contributions in term of innovation and efficiency of their approach.

Robert Nideffer (1976) in the book “The inner athlete”:

“Trascendental meditation (TM) procedures can be helpful in improving an athlete’s general feeling of well-being as well as increasing his energy level and his ability to concentrate … they are very useful to athletes who engage in endurance events which require little in the way of external attention … keeps him from becoming locked into negative, self-defeating thoughts and feelings … most applicable in those competitive situations where an athlete’s responses require non thought, where movements have been learned so well that they have become automatic … complicated gymnastics routines or dives are often practiced to the point where they are almost reflexive” (p.179).

Terry Orlick (1980) in the book “In pursuit of excellence”:

“Thinking is useful in many ways, but there some occasions when thinking interferes with the task and you have to leave it behind …

In such cases, you cease to be your own conscious master but become an instrument in the hands of the unknown. The unknown has no ego-consciousness and consequently no thought of winning the contest … it is for this reason that sword moves where it ought to move and makes the contest end victoriously. This is the practical application of the Lao-tzuan doctrine of doing by not doing” (p.146, corsivo è di Daisetz Suzuki, Zen and Japanese Culture).

Relaxation, yoga, meditation, mindfulness

Relaxation, yoga, meditation, mindfulness

do you want but do something

Risultati immagini per yoga day 2017

Champions who meditate

There are now many sport stars who use meditation to reduce stress, among others there are Kobe Bryant and Lebron James in basketball, the  beach volleyball Olympic gold medallist Misty May-Trainor and Kerri Walsh and Andy Murray in tennis. Focus to be in tune with ourselves and own performance. In Italy, in most cases we are still stuck to the well-known concept to pull off the male attributes to overcome stress.

Running and meditation

Accomplished runner and leader of Shambhala, Sakyong Mipham has found physical activity to be essential for spiritual well-being. In this practical and inspiring book, he offers simple lessons that meld mindfulness with physical movement which can be used by anyone – regardless of age, spiritual background, or ability. The result is an enhanced way of life – more energy, more focus, more patience – that will appeal to runners, spiritual seekers and anyone interested in great health and wellbeing.

(http://runningmind.org/)