Do you meditate?

Not yet, but been meaning to get into it.

I think mindfulness meditation is a good place to start.

Dan Harris' book "10% Happier: How I Tamed the Voice in My Head, Reduced Stress Without Losing My Edge, and Found Self-Help That Actually Works - A True Story" gets a lot of great feedback, despite the somewhat cheesy sub-title.

At least he makes light of it, too. :)

[video=youtube;Dt5Qv9tUObI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dt5Qv9tUObI[/video]
 
I find Sam Harris useful on the topic, too. Easily understandable for someone who isn't an expert, and provides useful information for those who are curious.

How to Meditate

After writing that article he provided some guided mindfulness meditations to help get started.

The Mirror of Mindfulness: Two Guided Meditations

[video=youtube;t8U5J_LV3UI]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=t8U5J_LV3UI[/video]
 
I used to subscribe to this https://www.headspace.com

Used to do a 20min session every day.

Used to go and sit in the server room so I wasn't disturbed.

I find it calms me down and allows me to process all the chaos going on in my life in a systematic approach.

I haven't done it in ages and need to get back into it
 
Meditation or Yoga?

Which would you prefer? I think Yoga gives you the same kind of mental concentration as Meditation, but with that you get the good feeling or stretching the body too.
 
I love yoga. I regularly go to the gym to see the ladies performing.

Edit: Dem stretching and postures ooh lawdie!
 
Shaun108 said:
I love yoga. I regularly go to the gym to see the ladies performing.

Edit: Dem stretching and postures ooh lawdie!
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Agreed. While I stop short of being a gym voyeur, a beautiful woman doing yoga is a sight to behold.

Not to derail but how does Yoga differ from Pilates?
 
Meditation : to engage in contemplation or reflection

Yes. Often. What's so special about it ?
 
I balance rocks on the shore or up a mountain. It helps me to put things into perspective.
 
Datura said:
I balance rocks on the shore or up a mountain. It helps me to put things into perspective.
Click to expand...

Damn Hippie.

I have actually seen balanced rocks on a walking trail in the Drakensberg once. I think loads of people to it as a pass time? And it's fascinating seeing it with the odd shaped rocks balancing on nothing other than their weight and funny angles.
 
Datura said:
I balance rocks on the shore or up a mountain. It helps me to put things into perspective.
Click to expand...
Reminds me of this dude:

[video=youtube;vswc7xB0V6c]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vswc7xB0V6c[/video]
 
Pitbull said:
Damn Hippie.

I have actually seen balanced rocks on a walking trail in the Drakensberg once. I think loads of people to it as a pass time? And it's fascinating seeing it with the odd shaped rocks balancing on nothing other than their weight and funny angles.
Click to expand...

It's incredibly relaxing.
 
I learned about mindfulness in a article about Steve Jobs.
And that works for me.

Here how the technique was taught to me as far as I recall it:

1. Sit cross-legged in a quiet place, preferably on a low pillow to reduce strain on your back. Take deep breaths.

2. Close your eyes and listen to your inner monologue, the thoughts that spin through your mind all the time: work, home, TV, whatever. Those thoughts are the chattering of your "monkey mind." Don't try to stop it from chattering, at least not yet. Instead just observe how it jumps from thought to thought to thought. Do this for five minutes every day for a week.

3. After a week, without trying to silence your monkey mind, during the meditation, shift your attention to your "ox mind." Your ox mind is the part of your brain that thinks slowly and quietly. It senses things around you. It doesn't try to assign meaning to anything. It just sees, hears, and feels. Most people only really hear their ox mind when they experience a "breathtaking moment" that temporarily stops the monkey mind from chattering. However, even when your monkey mind is driving you crazy with rush-rush-rush and push-push-push, your ox mind is still there, thinking its slow, deep thoughts.

4. Once you're feeling more aware of your ox mind, ask it to start quieting your monkey mind down. What worked for me was imagining the monkey mind going to sleep due to the slow walking of the ox as it moves patiently along a road. Don't get upset if your monkey mind keeps waking up. It's a monkey, so it can't help acting like one. However, you'll find that, despite its protests, your monkey mind would rather give it rest and stop making all that tiring and tiresome noise.

5. As your monkey mind calms down, continue to shift your attention to your ox mind. Each breath will seem to take a long time. You'll feel the air on your skin. You may feel your blood flowing through your body. If you open your eyes, the world will look brand new and even rather strange. A window, for example, becomes just a square thing that full of light. It doesn't need to be opened or closed or cleaned or repaired or anything else. It's just there. You're just there.

6. While it can take a while to get there, you'll know you're doing the exercise correctly when it seems as if no time has passed at all between when you started the timer and when it goes off. When you succeed at that, gradually increase the amount of time you spend each day. Weirdly, no matter how long you practice, it will seem as if no time has passed.
Click to expand...

It works like a charm. Nowadays I fall asleep as soon as my head hits the pillow.
 
I practice mindfulness meditation from time to time. I find it helps relieve stress and anxiety, especially when your brain is needlessly thinking and worrying about things and geeting stuck in that downward spiral of self-reinforcing negative thinking. I find the meditation just helps to slow down and quiet the mind.
 
Yes… decided to try it out after a bad break up and never looked back. I meditate twice a day and feel way more centred and energized. Would recommend it to anyone tbh:)
 
Not sure if this counts as meditating.

I'll find a quiet place, light up and just reflect on the day for about 15 minutes.
 
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