The Power of Mindfulness

iStock_000026133263SmallIt was around mile 16 of the marathon that I started losing faith. My adrenaline had worn off, I was hungry, my legs felt like lead, and there was nothing but a mile long incline in front of me. To power myself through the final ten miles of the race I turned my attention inward. Rather than focusing on the distance I had ahead of me, I kept my minds eye on one thing, my breath. Keeping my attention on the simple process of inhaling and exhaling was the only way I could stay present and moving in the moment, thinking of what was left of the race in it’s entirety was far too overwhelming.

Now I know that might sound super Zen and artsy fartsy, but it’s true. There’s a great power in mindfulness, and it has served me in achieving goals from completing the marathon to living a happier life.

Health and Fitness

There are so many things we do automatically out of habit. When trying to make a major change like following a diet or workout plan, the key is to bring mindfulness to everyone of those automatic actions or responses and see if it’s serving the end goal.

For example, every time I go to the grocery store I buy pretty much the same thing. Even the route I take within the store has become routine. Prior to switching to a healthier lifestyle, that grocery store routine included a few habitual grabs like mac n cheese, soda, and frozen toretellinis that weren’t doing much for my healthy living goal. Once those things were purchased and in my home, I certainly couldn’t let them go to waste, and so my poor eating continued as I continued to struggle with weight loss.

It wasn’t until I stopped myself in my tracks, literally, to question in the moment of reaching out for that bag of chips, “Is this going to serve me?” that I was able to make a change. Sure, rationally I knew the chips weren’t helping with the weight loss, but it was only when I could bring that awareness to the moment of habit that I was able to make a lasting change.

Personal Finance

Mindfulness is instrumental when trying to curb unnecessary spending. Again, it’s bringing that awareness and asking the question of “Is this really serving me?” in the moment of habit, be it the daily coffee purchase, a retail shopping habit, or ordering another drink after work.

I used to struggle in traditional retail environments like Target and Pier 1. The displays are so beautiful and tempting, my wallet practically opened on it’s own. Now when I walk into a store, I have a very different mindset. Instead of “It’s all so beautiful” I think, “Is this useful, worthwhile, necessary?”- most of the time, I walk out empty handed, which means more money for bigger goals like savings and retirement.

Happiness

I used to be a pretty unhappy, negative person. While my cynicism and frustration still get the best of me from time to time, I can tell you what a game changer mindfulness has been in creating a happier life for myself.

The most important change I made was bringing mindfulness to my reactions. I can’t do much about the things that happen to me but I can chose how I respond to them.

Bringing mindfulness to that moment of response has changed me from feeling like a victim and blaming circumstances and things outside of myself to feeling empowered and finding ways to overcome and make the best out of every challenge.

It doesn’t come easily or without work, I try to check in with myself as often as possible, and in the heat of the moment, it’s hard to quell an automatic response. But I’ve found that the key to making a change that lasts is cultivating mindfulness until the action I’m being mindful of becomes habit.

So the next time you’re looking to make a major life change, stop searching outside of yourself and simply look inward. Cultivate your mindfulness and you’ll be capable of achieving the end goal, even when it’s still ten miles ahead and all uphill.
How have you realized the power of mindfulness in your life?


Comments

The Power of Mindfulness — 6 Comments

  1. A few months ago, I really had a problem, I wake up with lots of negative things came to my mind and that’s the reason why I got so stress whole day. I even cry without knowing why. Even my daughter observed that I always frowned, she even told me to smile always. Thankfully, now I choose to be happy, to be positive always, I set to my mind that I need to forget all the bad vibes.

  2. It’s funny because most people equate meditation with “OM” and the sitting pose, but to me, meditation is just mindfulness. When I run, I call out a mantra with every stride like ‘strength’, ‘peace’, ‘calm’, etc… When I walk, I try to block out the human made distractions and listen to the birds and see the colors of the landscape. Mindfulness can be practiced in everything we do all day long including cooking, cleaning, brushing your teeth, etc…

    • I practice a similar version of “active” mindfulness. It’s when I’m doing things, particularly difficult things, that I most often try to find my calm in a mantra or singular goal like a breath.

  3. “The displays are so beautiful and tempting, my wallet practically opened on it’s own” Bahahaha!!! Hilarious! I totally know what you mean though…those stores set up those displays because they WANT you to feel you need that in your life to make you happy, successful, popular, etc. Damn they do a good job. I love this post because mindfulness, specifically related to things that cause stress i my life, is helping me be a calmer person. At least I think it is. Being mindful of my stress triggers helps me break the cycle of stress right when it starts. For instance when I texted my friends to play volleyball this weekend, no one was available. I started to feel the normal feelings of sadness, loneliness, rejection…but I had to stop myself right away and ask myself, “what was I missing?” “What did I need and how can I get it other than playing this weekend.” And more importantly, them not being able to play is NOT about me! 🙂 Anyway, mindfulness is a huge part of getting over a lot of things.

    • I’m completely with you. Sometimes a small minor thing sends me into freakout mode. It takes some serious checking in with myself to really assess if that reaction is appropriate, necessary, or serving me.

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

I appreciate your readership and really enjoy hearing your thoughts on different topics. Thank you for contributing to the discussion.