TSit comfortably. Close your eyes and focus on your breathing for 10 seconds. Then take a deep breath. Hold your breath for 4 seconds. Exhale for 4 seconds. See? You’re meditating! If you’re like me, those 18 seconds were hard.
Meditation has always been a struggle for me. I’ve been a HIIT instructor for seven years, so slowing down is not something I’d really consider. Recently, however, I’ve become more and more interested in meditation and its many benefits, and I started thinking about how I could incorporate it into my lifestyle in a way that I actually enjoy.
Wanting to learn more about meditation, I reached out to Peloton instructor Kira Michelle. She currently teaches meditation and yoga, but there was a time when she didn’t enjoy it. Who better to get tips from than someone who shares the same feelings about meditation as me?
With a background in dance and rhythmic gymnastics, movement comes naturally to Michelle and has always served as a way to process emotions, so when it came to meditation, she says, “I had never imagined how sitting would help me, since I’d always been taught to move to work through mental and emotional tension and problems.”
“Meditation helped me to stop and realize that not all the thoughts I’m thinking are real and to be present with my emotions, rather than being pulled by my mind and emotions.” — Kira Michelle, Peloton instructor
Michelle began meditating when she became curious about her own mind and wanted the tools to better understand it.
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“I’m a very emotional woman,” she says, “so instead of being dragged along by my mind and my emotions, meditation helped me to stop, realize that all the thoughts I’m thinking aren’t real, and be present with my emotions.”
One of the challenges I always have with meditation is not being able to stop thinking. As instructed by my guide, I start by focusing on my breath, but then I find myself making a shopping list, or wondering how high a grasshopper can jump.
I’d always thought the aim of meditation was to completely empty the mind, but Michelle explains that meditating while thinking isn’t a bad form of meditation. In fact, the mind can never be completely empty, so that there are no thoughts at all. According to Michelle, the mind is designed to think, plan, and solve problems.
“One of the exercises I often use when teaching someone to meditate is to take two minutes to write down everything you’re thinking, everything that comes to mind. Your brain is all over the place,” she says.
One of the challenges I always have with meditation is not being able to stop thinking. As instructed by my guide, I start by focusing on my breath, but then I find myself making a shopping list, or wondering how high a grasshopper can jump.
The benefits of meditation will motivate you to try it (again)
According to Michelle, the benefits of meditation include:
- General self-awareness
- Emotional Ownership
- Calms the nervous system
- Lower levels of cortisol (the stress hormone)
- Better organization
“These benefits don’t happen overnight,” Michelle says, “and I think of it like going to the gym: you know it’s good for your health, and it won’t accomplish the goals you’re trying to achieve today, but if you keep going, you’ll start to see some of these benefits.”
Want to start meditating without hating it? Follow these pro tips
If you’ve been wanting to practice meditation but are having trouble getting started, Michelle shares some of her favorite tips.
Michelle says that although meditating may be uncomfortable right now, the benefits of coming to your mat each day and practicing kindness and compassion for yourself are worth it.
1. Start small
Michelle suggests starting with meditation in manageable increments – you don’t need to meditate for long periods of time to get the benefits.
“You could start by sitting for five minutes, but longer periods of time will also help, and eventually you’ll work your way up to sitting for longer periods of time,” says Michelle.
2. Try habit stacking
Another way to make meditation a part of your daily life is to connect it to a habit you already have, like brushing your teeth. This is known as habit stacking.
She knows that she has to brush her teeth every morning, and when she does, that’s her cue to start meditating. Michelle says she meditates as soon as she wakes up.
“I don’t check my phone, I meditate, and if that doesn’t work for me at all, I usually miss my meditation,” she says.
3. Find your vibe
There are many different types of meditation, including metta (loving-kindness meditation), transcendental meditation (mantra-based meditation), visualization meditation (visualizing things in your mind), mindfulness meditation (focusing on your breath), etc. Not all meditation forms are suitable for everyone, so it’s important to find one that works for you.
It’s also important to find a therapist you like.
“I hated yoga until I found the right teacher, and when I found one I could relate to, I was so excited,” Michelle says. “And he had to have that bad boy look to make me think, ‘Yeah, I can relate, he’s outspoken, he’s swearing, and yeah, let’s do this!'”
