By now you know that having a regular meditation practice is good for you. You know how beneficial it can be to your body, mind, and spirit, yet it’s easy to go days, or weeks, or months without meditating.
Often, we associate negative feelings with meditation. It becomes something we “have” to do, instead of something that inspires us and we feel drawn to. Sometimes, meditation can feel a lot like work. Plus, we’re dealing with our minds, which seem to have an infinite supply of excuses to stop us from adding positive habits to our lives.
If you’ve been struggling to meditate, or it feels too much like work. Then, this post is for you.
Below we offer nine different ways you can reinvigorate your meditation practice and make it fun again. After all, the moment something becomes fun a lot of resistance to the activity drops.
1. Go as Small as Possible
If you jumped into meditation with a lot of vigor, then you could be overcommitting yourself. If you expect yourself to meditation 30 minutes or an hour a day, and you’re just beginning, then you’re going to be in for a rough time. You could simply be overwhelmed with the amount of time you’re making yourself spend…with yourself.
One way around this is to simply shorten the time you’re meditation. You can expand with time.
But, start small. Set a timer for five minutes and that’s it.
These small meditations can help to build the meditation muscle. And you might even begin to enjoy these little mental refreshers you give yourself throughout the day.
2. Take a ‘Napitation’
Who doesn’t love a good nap?
Now, napping can be great for our minds and even our overall health. But, you can actually supercharge your naps, by throwing in a little meditation.
By setting aside a little meditation time before your nap, you’ll give yourself some extra motivation. As soon as you’re done meditating, you’ll get to take a nap!
If you’re planning on taking a 20 minute nap, then meditate for five minutes before that. You’ll probably even notice that meditating before you take a nap will lead to your naps being even more recharging than usual.
3. Prioritize Comfort
If you’re uncomfortable when you’re meditating, then it’s going to be difficult to stick with.
Prioritize comfort, especially in the beginning stages. If you can’t sit comfortably, then try sitting on a meditation cushion, or a stack of pillows.
If your body is still incredibly uncomfortable, then try lying down, or standing up.
Choose a position that allows your body to sink into comfort, and you’ll remove some resistance to letting your meditation practice shine.
4. Make It a Treat
Meditation should be a fun practice.
If you dread your meditation practice, or find it incredibly boring, then it’s time to reconfigure your motivation.
Find that one thing that you truly love about meditation. Maybe it’s how you feel the moment you open your eyes after meditating. Maybe it’s after ten minutes into your meditation when you feel yourself truly relax.
Find that one thing that you love about the practice and do your best to bring that intention to light.
Focus on that and you’ll find it’s much easier to get yourself to commit to meditating.
5. Get Help
If you’re finding meditation impossible, then you could seek out help in the form of audios and guided meditations. Both of these can help outsource the difficult parts of meditation and still give you the benefits of practicing.
Find a guided meditation that you truly love doing and you’ll find yourself committing to the practice much more often.
6. Make It Mobile
You can walk and meditate.
If you’ve found it impossible to sit still while you meditate, then maybe walking meditation is more up your alley. A walking mindfulness meditation can be a very effective and enjoyable practice.
To do this practice find a place where you won’t be disturbed and you can focus all of your intention on your walking and breathing. Notice all of the sensations present in your body, and the immediate world that surrounds you.
7. Take 100 Breaths
It can help you meditate if you give your mind something to hook onto.
If you’re not feeling up to meditation, then take 100 conscious breaths.
This can be some sort of challenge for you mind, which can allow you to more naturally relax. It’s also a way to track progress, which can help you feel like you’re actually getting better at meditating. This can be crucial in the early stages of developing a lifelong habit.
8. Get Accountable
Accountability can help you move mountains.
If you have a friend who’s also interested in taking up meditation, then it can be helpful to start a dialogue with them. Something as simple as a text message that says, “did you meditate today?” can be very effective in helping you stick with your practice.
9. Look for Inspiration
Sometimes meditation can just seem overwhelming and finding the right teacher can be helpful.
If you’re the kind of person who likes to learn a lot about something before they dive in, then we recommend diving into one of the books on this list. A book on meditation can help you immerse yourself in the author’s world. This can provide you with a nice supply of fuel and motivation to bring with you into your practice.
Meditation doesn’t have to be boring and difficult. We hope that by utilizing some of the tips above you can make your meditation practice something you look forward to everyday.
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Image via Allef Vinicius