Mindful Pause

First thing in the morning:

• Close your eyes and connect with the sensations of your seated body.
• Take three long, deep, nourishing breaths—breathing in through your nose and out through your mouth. Then let your breath settle into its own rhythm,
• Ask yourself: “What is my intention for today?” and then set that intention.
• Throughout the day, check in with yourself. Pause, take a breath and revisit your intention. 

• Breathe before eating. 
• Listen to your body and measure your hunger.
• Eat according to your hunger. You can more mindfully choose what to eat, when to eat, and how much to eat. 
• Practice peaceful eating. It’s not easy to digest or savor your food if you aren’t relaxed.
• If you don’t love it, don’t eat it. Make a mindful choice about what to eat based on what you really enjoy.

• Trip over what you want to do. If you intend to do some yoga or to meditate, put your yoga mat or your meditation cushion in the middle of your floor.
• Refresh your triggers regularly - add variety or make them funny so they stick with you longer.
• Create new patterns. You could try a series of “If this, then that” messages to create easy reminders to shift into slow brain.

• Be clear about your aim. Bring purpose to your activity by consciously envisioning how you want your guide your session. 
• Warm-up (5 minutes). 
• Settle into a rhythm (10 to 15 minutes). 
• Challenge yourself (10 to 15 minutes). Try faster speed, more repetitions, or heavier weights, depending on what you are doing. 
• Cool down (5 minutes).
• Rest (5 minutes). 

• Take a deep breath. This simple, yet profound advice helps bring more oxygen into your body and widens the space between the stimulus of the traffic and your heightened stress reaction. In this space lies perspective and choice.
• Ask yourself what you need and give that to yourself. It may be in that moment that you need to feel safe, at ease or you just need some relief. 
• Look around and recognize that all the other drivers are just like you. Everyone on the road wants the same thing you do—to feel safe, have a sense of ease, and to be happy.