Does The Word "Meditation" Scare You?

People tell me they don’t have time to meditate, “It takes too long.” Or “I don’t get it” or “It sounds nice but its not for me”. 

If it’s not for you who is it for?

Last week I wrote about mindfulness and being present in everything you do.

This week I want to tell you how you can be more mindful, at peace with yourself and the world, and maybe even more energetic. How? Meditation.

Meditation can help you reconnect with yourself; it slows your brain waves down and relaxes the mind. A relaxed mind allows energy to flow through. Life energy is like water running through a hose. When the hose is kinked the water trickles out. In our daily lives, these kinks are fear, doubt, frustration, and stress. Tension and negative feelings or thoughts release toxins into our body. Meditation allows you to un-kink your hose and let the energy flow through you.

First let’s begin with the basics - breathing. How do you breathe? Go ahead, take a big breath. Now, did you fill your chest first or your stomach? Most people fill their lungs and expand their chest without engaging their diaphragm. You should learn to belly breathe.

Belly Breathing - breathe in through your nose and use your stomach and diaphragm muscle to pull air into your lungs. Your stomach will push out and then you will fill your lungs. Then as you exhale your stomach will pull back in and the air will exit through your nose.

To perform a Focus Meditation you will Belly Breathe and count your breaths. Each inhalation and exhalation counts as one breath. If I count from 1 to 100, that is 15 minutes of meditation. And if I want to meditate for 30 minutes I count backward from 100 to 1...and so on.

Now here’s the catch. And this is IMPORTANT! Ideas and thoughts will flow into your mind. Do NOT resist them. Allow them to come and go as they please. You may be surprised how many ideas flow in and out. Let them. And focus on your breathing and counting...1, 2, 3….

Now if you are struggling with a problem, you may experience an epiphany. Then it’s ok to stop your meditation and write it down before continuing.

In fact, the idea for my book, “It’s Not About the Belt” came to me during a meditation. Pick up a copy and you can read more about meditation and living a Black Belt life.

So stop reading and practice ten breaths right now! Reconnect with yourself, be present, and feel the energy!

Thank you for this opportunity to serve you.

Master Chris Berlow, 6th Dan

Professional Martial Artist, Owner, and Author

UMAC Briarcliff

https://www.facebook.com/UMACbriarcliff

http://itsnotaboutthebelt.com/

http://empoweredmastery.com/