Everyday Mindfulness.

Are you in need of peace and looking for tips to fit mindfulness into your daily routine?

In this post, my goal is to help you find simple ways for daily mindfulness so you can cultivate peace and presence instead of stress and overwhelm.

Mindfulness: The act of paying attention, on purpose, to all elements of our experience with non-judgment and an open heart.

The Power of Mindfulness.

Mindfulness brings us into the present moment. Why is this important? Because it removes the worry about the future and regret of the past.

We’re living in times that feel very heavy on so many levels.

Demanding jobs, strained relationships, financial setbacks, and possibly hostility in your surrounding environment.

Stress puts an amazing amount of strain on our mental health and physical health.

You may have heard of “fight or flight” (or freeze…often in my case).

This occurs when cortisol levels are high. It’s a natural response that is there to keep us safe from danger (originally from saber-toothed tigers).

And while we’re not likely to run into saber-toothed tigers these days, our bodies still produce cortisol and we still have the fight or flight or freeze response in times of high stress, anxiety, fear, and overwhelm.

Long durations of high levels of cortisol can have repercussions on your health, including high blood pressure, weight gain, high blood sugar and a weakened immune system to name a few.

Cortisol affects nearly every part of your body.

So, starting a mindfulness practice can help lower your stress which, in turn, lowers/regulates your cortisol levels and therefore improve your overall health.

It also promotes attentional control where we sharpen our focus and pay attention to new information.

It’s a way of retraining the brain to bring fresh eyes to habits, routines, and overlearned activities.

It can, literally, change your life. 🤯

I encourage you to start small when beginning a mindfulness practice.

Have a beginner’s mindset. If you start off trying to meditate for an hour, for example, you may become frustrated if that kind of time requirement is not logical for your busy lifestyle.

Start slow. Start with one type of mindfulness practice.

Then as you see benefits, you can then add other practices.

Also, let go of any expectations. Practice for the sake of the practice and not to any outcome.

A small, or short, practice done every day can have amazing results on your mind and body.

Morning Mindfulness Rituals.

I have some simple daily mindfulness tips that you can use each morning.

Upon waking, while you’re still in bed, say something you are grateful for.

You can, also, set intentions for the day while you’re still in bed. These can be mental notes, or it might be useful to have a pad and paper next to your bed. That way you can write down what you’re grateful for as well as your intentions for the day.

Two other activities you can do each morning either in bed or right after you get up are mindful breathing exercises and/or meditation.

A simple example of mindful breathing is closing your eyes and take 10 inhales and 10 exhales. Try to have these be of equal length. Bring your attention to your belly and notice how the belly expands on the inhale and contracts on the exhale. Keep your attention on the belly for all 10 breaths.

If you’d like a video on breathwork and how breathwork is beneficial, I have a short blog about it that includes a link to a guided breathwork session. Enjoy!

For the meditation, you can set the timer on your phone for 5 or 10 minutes. Close your eyes and count your breaths from 1 to 10. You just need to focus on counting. If you lose track, or your mind wanders, it’s okay. Begin again, at 1 and continue.

Mindfulness Throughout the Day.

Here’s a fun way you can incorporate mindfulness through your day…

Pick something you do every day without fail. Whether it’s brushing your teeth, washing your face, eating a meal, walking…you get the point.

As you’re doing that activity really pay attention (with all 5 senses) to each part of the activity. Become fully present. How does something taste, smell, feel, sound, and look?

Do this each time you do this chosen activity. Focus on every detail of that ritual. How does the toothpaste taste, smell, feel like on your teeth?

When you notice these things about that activity, how does it make you feel about that activity? Do you appreciate it more?

This takes time to be fully in the moment. Our minds DO like to think, worry, and wander after all. But like anything, with practice it gets easier.

Mindfulness at Work or During Busy Times.

Work can often be stressful and busy.

We’re often asked to multi-task and have multiple deadlines for projects and clients.

So, you may be questioning how in the world you can practice daily mindfulness at your job.

I’m happy to help answer that question for you! 🧘‍♀️

A few ways you can practice mindfulness at work are stretches (really focusing on how that feels in your body), closing your eyes and do some mindful breathing (you can set a reminder on your phone to alert you), when taking a bathroom break notice how your feet hit the floor as you walk to the restroom, and practice “single-tasking” when you are able. Put all of your attention on that one task so you can re-center and quiet the noise.

Another way you can practice mindfulness can be mindful eating while you’re on your lunch break (if the situation allows that is!). Notice the taste, texture, body sensations, smell, and sound of the of the food while you’re eating. 🍎

Evening Wind-Down Practices

At the end of the day, it’s nice to have a daily mindfulness practice of gratitude.

I find it helpful to keep a gratitude journal. So, at the end of the day can you write 5-10 things that you were grateful for that day.

This really helps you to end the day on a positive note which relaxes the mind and body.

Hint: you can use this same journal for your morning gratitude practice. 😉

Another way to wind-down at the end of the day is to do a mindful body scan.

Body scans are a great way to tune in to your body.

Close your eyes and scan from the top of your head all the way to your toes. Notice any physical sensations inside the body related to internal organ function and autonomic nervous system activity.

Bring curiosity to the sensations without judgment.

Is there tension at any location? Focus on that and breathe into that space. Notice the tension dissipate.

Tips for Staying Consistent.

Practicing mindfulness is a journey. It probably won’t feel natural at first. Your mind will wander. When it does, notice it and bring your attention back to the moment. Do this as many times as necessary.

This is why it’s best to start slow with short practices. Even just 5-10 minutes a day is enough to change the mind and notice results.

Set a timer on your phone or use an app (there are many out there). Here’s a link for Calm if you’d like to try this one.

Put notes around your house that you will see every day that act as reminders, or cues, to be mindful.

When practiced each day, it will begin to feel more natural and become part of your daily routine and your life.

Enjoy the process! And if you find that one of the mindful practices you chose isn’t feeling right for some reason, choose another. Test out what feels best for you.

If you’d like to further learn more ways to incorporate daily mindfulness here are a few book recommendations for you:

Think Like a Monk, by Jay Shetty

The Little Book of Mindfulness, by Patrizia Collard

Wherever You Go, There You are, by Jon Kabat-Zinn