Be Mindful NOW

Yesterday I attended the Institute of Integrative Nutrition Conference in Sydney. We had an array of wellness super stars that spoke and one in particular brought up the importance of being mindful. I was really drawn to her talk, I already knew what mindfulness meant, but as she spoke I realized that I was not incorporating mindfulness in my day to day life and with the words flowing out so effortlessly it hit me like a tone of bricks and so I wrote this down on my note pad…

“ I choose to be in the moment NOW, I choose to be Mindful”

With that intention I turned off my phone, I put my note pad and pen down, I took a huge inhale and a super long exhale out and got comfy being in the present moment where all I had to do was listen, open my heart to her words and just be in the NOW.

5 Minutes of Mindfulness:

Do you remember the last time you didn’t do anything for 5 minutes straight? I mean nothing at all. No reading, no phone, no talking, no TV, no eating, no drinking, no cleaning, nothing what so ever. Just being still, being in the moment, being aware, observing your thoughts and feelings from a distance and not judging them good or bad. Noticing how the body is feeling, feeling your breathe in hale and exhale and connecting with our inner self.

5 minutes is not a long time, but for those of you who are constantly on the go, who are addicted to the phone and who only switch of when its time for bed, this may be a bit challenging.

I want you to try it, take 5 minutes to do NOTHING. Just Pause, Breathe and Live in the moment.

Mindfulness is a Choice:

To be mindful it is to be one with the universe, to open up your eyes a little wider and see the beauty that surrounds you, to be living in the now, we give our selves the freedom and let go of emotional baggage. But you have to first choose to be mindful!!

Choose to be mindful and you will over come and relieve depression, fears, blocks, anxiety and limiting beliefs. Becoming aware helps you not to burn out, as you start to decide whats important NOW.

For example: “You jumped onto face book to update a status and little did you know that 15-20 minutes has past and you are now scrolling through your feed and looking blankly at a computer screen. This is an example of not being mindful, however if you choose to take notice of what you are doing and decide to turn off the computer and focus your attention on what needs to be done now or simply just be here in the moment your mind will switch gears and you will feel more clear minded”.

5 Ways to become more Mindful:

1. Take a moment to notice your breath, inhale through the nose and exhale through the mouth. Feel your belly rise and fall.

2. Take notice of what you are doing in the moment. If you are eating, take notice of your food. What is the colour? How does the first bite taste? Enjoy each mouthful and notice how it is nourishing the body.

3. Recognise that your thoughts are just simply thoughts; you do not need to react to them, just let them be.

4. Next time when you engage in a conversation simply listen to the person speaking with out rehearsing what you will say next. Be an intentional listener. 

5. When commuting to work we often zone out and our brain decides to go numb. Instead observe your surroundings, the people and what’s going on in that environment.

P a u s e. B r e a t h e. L i v e.

Enjoy being Mindful…

Nikki x