We all know how difficult it can be to meditate, especially if you’re a particularly busy or stressed out person. But whether you’re new to meditating, or if you’ve been having some trouble meditating as of late, here are six tips that will not only help you meditate, but help you feel more relaxed as well:

1. Be consistent

Try scheduling in some meditation time every day, or even twice a day if your schedule permits. Also, try to meditate early in the morning before you have your coffee rather than late at night or after you get off work as you will tend to be in a quieter and more relaxed state of mind. This may mean you’ll have to wake up a half hour earlier just to meditate, but desperate times call for desperate measures.

2. Listen to instructional CDs or podcasts

There are countless CDs and tapes that are available to purchase that can help provide you with a step by-step process on how to meditate, and you can also check out some podcasts that are available on iTunes as well.

3. Focus on different parts of your body

One of the most effective methods in helping with the meditation process is to focus on the various parts of your body, starting with your toes, feet and legs, and then working your focus up to your torso, chest, neck and forehead.

4. Stretch before meditating

Before you start meditating each day try to stretch beforehand to help loosen your muscles and tendons before you sit for a long period of time. This will force both your body and your mind to become more relaxed and thus make the meditation process incredibly easier.

5. Focus on your breath whenever you get frustrated

If you find yourself starting to get irritable and frustrated when you’re trying to meditate, then be sure to bring your focus back to your breathing to help you feel more centered.

6. Listen to music

Try listening to some relaxing, soothing music, or you can even try listening to your favorite band or musician. You can search around online or in a music store for CDs that play sound of nature, or you can even try listening to some classical and/or instrumental as well. If you’re going to listen to a song by your favorite band or artist, then try not to pick a song that is too upbeat and heavy and pick something that is more relaxing and mellow instead.

Yoga is a type of meditation that contains mental and physical exercises designed to help you gain a sense of relaxation and well being. It is estimated that the practice has been around in India for about 5000 years. It is thought that the creation of yoga was inspired by watching animals stretching and noting their increased energy and alertness.

The word yoga means “union” in Sanskrit, from the word “yoke”. Yoga helps increase total self awareness by uniting the mind, body, emotions, and spirit. Yogis view the mind and the body as one, and believe that if it is given the right tools, it can find harmony and heal itself.

Hatha yoga, the most popular form of yoga in the west, teaches techniques of physical control through postures known as asanas, and breathing techniques known as pranayama. The postures in asanas help the body to be more supple, whereas the breathing exercise in pranayama help increase the body’s energy.

Regular practice of asanas and pranayama will help you have a more balanced mindset. You will be less prone to mood swings, and have a more positive outlook on life.

Yoga can also help you become more aware of your body’s posture, alignment and patterns of movement. It makes the body more flexible and helps you to relax even when in stressful situations.

Yoga is not a contest. Instead yoga favors quiet, consistent application over superficial accomplishments. Yoga begins by accepting our limitations, and working with this as a base to improve upon.

Try this really simple yoga technique right now…

Stand up and take a long slow deep breath and hold it in. Now stand on your tip toes and make yourself as tall as you can, with your hands reaching as high as you can, with your fingers stretched wide apart. Hold this pose for a few seconds…Now breath out slowly as you return to a normal standing position. Repeat this again. Stand on your tip toes and make yourself as tall as you can, with your hands reaching as high as you can, and your fingers stretched wide apart. Hold this pose for a few seconds…Now breath out slowly as you return to a normal standing position. You can repeat this as many times as you wish.

You should notice that you immediately feel happier, more energized yet also more relaxed even after just a few repetitions. Congratulations, you have just experienced the benefits of yoga!

If you decide to continue practicing yoga, you can enjoy the benefits of feeling fitter, more energetic, happier and more at peace at all times in your life – not just when practicing yoga.

Almost everyone has heard about meditation, but very few actually participate in the practice. Most people simply do not know how to meditate, and don’t really know what exactly what it is. Here we will show you how to meditate, and will try to describe what it is.

Anyone can benefit from the healing powers of meditation. You don’t need to be some spiritual guru to do this, and it doesn’t need to be complicated. You do not need to sit in those complicated yoga positions, unless you really want to. Simple is often better, especially if it encourages you to participate.

Meditation is all about clearing the mind of conscious thoughts. Removing that mental chatter so that your mind is clear. Being able to rest the mind like this is great for both mental and physical health in almost every way imaginable.

It is also great for gaining insight about your own mind, and even generating creative thoughts, as it allows the powerful intuitive subconscious mind to take charge. Your productivity can also soar as your mind becomes less cluttered and more efficient.

There are many methods people use to help them meditate and clear their minds. Some people simply sit in a comfortable position with their eyes closed and think about nothing. However this is not so easy for most people, unless they are quite experienced at meditating.

Many people find something to focus on in order to help them clear their minds.

You may wish to focus on your breathing – breathing slowly and deeply, and concentrate your mind on your breathing.

Some people like to repeat a mantra, either out loud or in their head, over and over again. The mantra can be any words or even a sound. It could be just the word ‘relax’, or the traditional ‘ohhmm’ sound for example.

You can even focus on an object to help you clear your mind. This does not necessarily have to be a religious or spiritual object. Some people like to focus on a flickering candle flame for example. You can even focus on an imagined object or scene.

If you are at first having difficulty, then you may wish to try some guided meditation audio sessions to help get you going. They will talk you through the process of meditation as you are doing it, and will help you to find that inner stillness. Once you have experienced this a few times you will be far more able to do it for yourself in the future.

Like any other skill, your meditation powers can be improved with practice. The more you do it the better and easier it will become.

If you want to experience meditation for yourself right now, then try this quick and simple breathing meditation. If you are having difficulty remembering this, then you may wish to use the video instead. Forward it to the 3 minute mark, and you will get a nice audio guide of the following meditation.

 

Get yourself comfortable, either led down, or sat up with good posture that you can sustain for some time. And when you are ready, close your eyes.

…All you need to do is focus on your breathing…Breath slowly and deeply…and focus on your breathing…For a few minutes, notice the coolness of the air as it enters your nostrils…and notice how much warmer it feels when you relax and breathe out…

…If at any time your attention wanders…simply refocus again on your breathing…There is no right or wrong…just enjoy the process…

…Any stray thoughts…simply allow them flow through you…as you continue to focus on your breathing…This is your meditation time…and you can deal with these things later…

…To help you focus on your breathing…I would like you to now begin to count your breaths…Once you reach the number 10…start back again at zero…Breathing slowly and deeply…Keep repeating this pattern over and over…for as long as you wish…Enjoy!