Why are yoga and meditation practices so powerful when someone is going through a change?
I have witnessed it personally, and many with me.
Here’s why.
Yoga and meditation can help you to provide the consistency it takes to make that change for good, help you evolve, go deeper to find balance in your life, and make changes that truly last.
So many times we start making changes to our lives but we don’t see our efforts last.
We stop.
We go back to zero.
And we feel hopeless…
If you’re reading this, you likely carry some kind of inner urgency for change.
You know something has to shift, and you’re ready.
But what if you start and then nothing happens!? What to do?
It’s easy to stop and continue to hide behind excuses or start something new that is going to give you the consistency you’re looking for.
So, how do we make a change for good? How do we make it into a sure thing?
The changes you want are things that you can see, but that’s not the entire answer.
It’s very easy to focus on tangible changes that you can see with your own eyes.
For example, to feel better you may want to break up that relationship, lose some weight, or you may have promised yourself to finally start planning your family’s weekly meals better.
It’s very common to think that change is about what you could DO differently to get the results that you can see (and others can see).
It’s true, ultimately it’s about what you take action on…
but…BEFORE action, it all starts with inner change.
It’s that inner shift that makes the change last, not what you do.
Profound.
When you’re making an inner shift, the doing looks a lot different.
Now, why do I bring up yoga and meditation in this context?
Yoga and meditation are powerful practices when it comes to helping you to make that change you really want to make.
The reason is that both yoga and meditation are embodiment practices.
You work with your body.
Not your mind.
Hear me out – asana (the physical practice of yoga, but I will call it yoga here) is something you DO with your body.
For example, meditation is something you EXPERIENCE through your inner world, your body and your consciousness.
Yoga and meditation together are practices that ultimately enhance your self-awareness.
Simply put, while yoga is enhancing your self-awareness of your physical body, meditation is helping to become self-aware of your inner world.
Inner change that lasts can happen when energy is released that is stuck in the body.
Body change that lasts can happen when we release energy that is stuck in our inner emotional world.
Both our bodies and our mind are interchangeable. They go together.
Together this creates a powerful seamless experience of change from the inside out, connecting both our inner world through meditation and our body through yoga practice.
I know that yoga and meditation go together like “hand in glove” because personally, I learned meditation way before I started to practice yoga. It wasn’t until I put the two together that lasting change started to happen for me.
Before I put yoga and meditation together in daily practice, I couldn’t figure out why I just kept going in the same tracks as always.
Many times I started to make a change in my life but after a short while, I found myself back in the same pattern as before.
I still lived in up in my head.
My body was nowhere near ready to latch on to the change, so I reverted back to where I was.
Meditation is a key practice, but by only evolving our inner world we don’t make change real and tangible in our daily lives.
Real lasting change comes through action from a place of an evolved inner experience.
Only then the result can be different from before.
So if you’re wondering how you can make lasting change practical for you, you’re in the right spot. Consider starting to practice both yoga AND meditation, not one or the other.
I am going to give you 3 practical ways that I know work together as a unit if you’re just starting out and want to respond to your urge to change.
If you follow through on these 3 steps (not just step 1, not just step 1+2, ALL 3!) I guarantee things are going to evolve for you, but only if you put these three steps together.
I am making it simple because I know the hurdle to doing 3 new things at once can feel like it’s a big commitment.
Knowing how busy you are, and how little time you may have, it’s good to start with the absolute basics.
And by the way, it doesn’t have to get fancier than this. You can simply do this yoga and meditation practice at your desk (and you’ll start to see the change rolling in. :-))
Here we go!
Do you want a change that lasts? Combine these three practical yoga and meditation steps:
1. Connect with your inner world through meditation (so simple you can do it at work!)
- If you haven’t tried meditation before, the simplest meditation, to begin with, is a short guided meditation.
- All you have to do is decide that you’re going to meditate for the next 5-10 minutes and then start and follow along. Simple!
- There are many great meditation apps out there to use. Find a meditation guide that you like. You don’t want to be annoyed by someone’s voice, so really looking for a voice that you LOVE.
- To eliminate any excuses, here is a guided meditation series that I recorded for you to try.
2. Connect with your body through yoga (you can even do it at your desk).
- The unique thing about yoga is body movement with a focus on your breath.
- Our breath is our connection to our body in addition to physical movement.
- The more you can observe your breath and your body movement from one pose to another, the more you’ll get the benefits from the practice.
- Find a local yoga studio or online program that you really love. It’s more likely you’ll do it if you love it!
- To get you started today in the simplest possible way, here is a simple desk yoga practice that I recorded for busy women who want to connect back with their bodies during the workday.
3. Take consistent action for change with a realistic routine.
- Now here comes the difficult part.
- While you’re likely to try yoga and meditation, you’re less likely to keep going with it.
- But I’ll tell you the gold is in consistency.
- Don’t get discouraged because you don’t see the change you want soon enough, be sure not to set too many goals that are unrealistic.
- So let’s do the opposite of what most people do, let’s set THREE realistic goals 1.2.3., not 20 goals, and let’s be patient…
- This is easy. You already have two goals, just add a third!
Your goals:
1. Keep meditating a few times per week or daily.
2. Keep doing some form of yoga regularly (I recommend 1-3 times/week).
3. Set ONE goal for yourself that you’d like to work on for the next 6 weeks.
Heads up! If you don’t stay with it, there will be no change
More recently, yoga and meditation are going more and more mainstream. It’s becoming part of more and more people’s lives both at home and in the workplace.
Fewer eyebrows are raised when someone says that they’re into yoga and meditation.
People say “Great, good for you! How can I learn it too?”.
In summary, here are the three steps to combine for lasting change:
1. Practice meditation – simple guided meditations are provided here.
2. Practice yoga – simple desk-yoga practice provided here.
3. A realistic routine – step 1 and 2 plus ONE other goal.
4. Need an entire step-by-step program with coaching, yoga, and meditation to stay centered every day? Join our Beyond the Mind Membership!
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So, how can you make Your change last FOR GOOD?
Related:
The Essential FIRST Step to Change Your Life
How to Forever Close the Gap Between Your Reality and Dream Life
