Morning meditation practice can be an incredible way for you to start your day. It helps us shake off the drowsiness of sleep and start the day in a state of focus, purpose, and awareness.
Meditation helps us be more compassionate, less judgemental, emotionally calm, and more conscious of our thoughts and actions. Building this practice into our daily morning routine provides a much more deliberate and positive start to the day than grabbing our breakfast and rushing out of the door on auto-pilot.
WHY MORNING MEDITATION:
To be honest, meditation is beneficial at any time of day. It helps us bring our focus to the present, and to notice what we are doing, thinking, and feeling at any given moment.
When we shift our focus from the constant rushing and chattering of our mind, to the here and now, we are better able to observe the things that are making us happy, stressed, calm, anxious, excited, nervous etc, and the way we perceive these things changes.
Meditation also gives us a break from the frantic wave of thoughts and ideas that we normally experience day to day.
The reason why morning meditation is beneficial is because it helps you start your day in a positive frame of mind. It helps you go about your business in a state of focus, awareness, calm, and presence.
Evening meditation can help us reflect on the day gone, but morning meditation has a greater chance of making sure that day went smoothly to begin with.
EXAMPLES OF MORNING MEDITATIONS:
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Breathing meditation: This meditation, as the name suggests, involves focusing on the rise and fall of the breath. Breathing meditation helps quieten the mind and remove the frantic feelings that can come with a busy brain. When we do this in the morning it can help us carry a feeling of relaxed awareness into the rest of the day.
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Mantra meditation: This meditation involves repeating a word, or series of phrases to help promote desirable perspectives, or feelings, such as compassion, gratitude, understanding, peace of mind, or inner strength.
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Guided meditation: If you prefer following on with a meditation, guided meditations can be a great way to start your morning meditation practice. You can learn more about guided meditation here.
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Walking meditation: Walking meditation can be great if you have the space, or have to walk in the morning. Here you focus on the sensations of walking as a focus. Your feet on the ground, the air against your skin, the things you hear and see.
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Mindfulness meditation: Mindfulness meditation is one of the most popular forms of meditation practice. You focus on what is happening now, in the present moment. This can be the observation of thoughts arising and passing you by, the feelings of the body entering your awareness, or the emotions you feel in that moment. These things are observed without attachment, and without judgement. They come and they go.
BARRIERS TO MORNING MEDITATION:
These are common concerns when people think about beginning a morning meditation routine:
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I don’t have time
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I can’t concentrate for that long
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I don’t know how
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It seems too “hippy” for me
All you need to start off is this:
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Set a time to meditate
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Find a place where you can focus
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Sit in a comfortable position with your back straight
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OPTIONAL: Download a guided meditation app
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Set a timer
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Begin
That’s it. All you need to start your morning meditation practice. You have nothing to lose, but the potential for a huge quality of life improvement. Try it for a few days and see how you feel. Maybe an evening or lunchtime meditation is better for you, or maybe a morning meditation is just what you need!