Yoga Folks discussion

Hi Jeanette!

In answer to your question in the other thread, I do have a regular meditation practice. At first I practiced off and on, but in the past two months I've established a daily practice.

I meditate 15 minutes a day. It may not sound like much, but that gives me no excuse not to fit it into my day. Also, even those few minutes are beneficial to my yoga as a whole because it is a daily reminder of what my yoga practice is all about. It helps keep me in a yoga state of mind day in and day out, more so than asana class.

The way I started my regular practice is a bit silly, but it has worked. For every day I meditate, I reward myself with a cute Hello Kitty sticker on my calendar. Once I got going, I really hated to see a day go by without getting a sticker, and I'm always glad afterward that I sat down and did it. Also, I got my boyfriend on board. He himself doesn't meditate, but he encourages me and reminds me to do it. Having another person to support you when you're not feeling enthusiastic can get you to the cushion when you'd just skip it if left on your own.

Time for me to go meditate, actually... Hope you find some helpful information here. :)

~Jennifer

Thanks for sharing that, Jennifer!

Would you mind sharing what sort of meditation you do daily? Is it clearing-your-mind meditation, meditation on an image or word, or what? If you're comfortable sharing, I'd be interested to know!

Like I said in the other thread (I think), I'm planning to join a meditation group...next week! I have a very hard time meditating, but I'm hopeful this group will be helpful.

(Books on meditation would definitely welcome here, too!)

I usually practice what my teacher calls "bare attention." I relax my attention to include everything in my awareness. Any time I notice that I am caught up with a thought, sound, etc., I relax and soften my attention again.

Sometimes when my brain is being particularly talkative, I'll do more of a concentration practice than meditation. Usually in that case I'll count breaths. Each inhalation and exhalation is one, and I'll work my way up to ten and then back down. It gives the mind something to focus on, and if you lose count, you know you've lost your concentration.

Good luck to you in your meditation group!

Thanks, Jennifer. I am having arthroscopic surgery on my knee this wednesday, and the two things I worry about are not being able to drive (of course, it's my right knee, and I have three kids!), and not being able to go to my yoga classes.

I am thinking meditation will go a long way for me, esp. the first few days. I plan to try some seated poses as I feel better; I also plan to feel better very quickly! And I think fifteen minutes is probably a perfect amount of time to meditate - it might be difficult to "hold" it for much longer. Although like most things, the longer you practice, the better you get at it, and the minutes can start adding up!

Emma, definitely keep us up to date on the meditation group.

Good luck with your surgery, Jeannette! I had major reconstructive surgery on my right knee a long time ago, so I feel your pain! That knee still doesn't work properly sometimes, so I have a few yoga poses where I'm quite lopsided. :P

15 minutes is definitely a good time for me. Some nights I'll do 10 if I think 15 will put me to sleep. I figure it's better to do less than none. But there are times when I'm on vacation where I'll let the timer keep running past 15.

I find it extremely interesting to meditate when I have a body part in pain (because of how the mind is drawn repeatedly to that area or sometimes forgets it altogether), so maybe you'll have the same experience after your surgery (not that I want you to be in pain, but you know what I mean!). Just take care of yourself, ok? Hope you're up and about again soon!

Maybe sending my knee good thought vibes will help it to heal, so meditate I will! I'll tell you the results of that experiment as soon as the results are in. I just want to be able to do child's pose again, with my bottom on my heels, like I used to be able to! (Now my heinie is up in the air; I think they call that Puppy pose, and at least it gives me a little grin when I think of that.)

Jeannette - Best wishes with your surgery tomorrow and I hope you have a swift recovery! Be gentle with yourself. :)

Thanks for more thoughts on meditation, Jennifer. Bare awareness sounds like a very interesting practice to try.

I have now done two sessions of my new meditation class...and I love it! It's a combination of meditation (just quiet stillness) and yin yoga. I'd never done yin yoga before and it turns out I really like it. The meditation has also been going well. Apparently we do about 15 minutes of meditation and then some yin yoga and then back to meditation, etc. The time does not feel like it's dragging to me, which is a great surprise.

My mind is not perfectly still and quiet, but it feels quietER during certain times of the meditation. I'm happy with that for a start.

Good luck on the surgery and a speedy recovery.

Thanks, ladies, for the good wishes. My surgery went well and i am recovering nicely. No yoga for a while, though, sigh. I'll keep up with what you are all doing, and do yoga vicariously!

Breathing is also Yoga, Jeannette (wink). Take care with that knee and I'll hope you recover soon.

Glad everything went well!

I returned to yoga class yesterday, and my knee felt better than the rest of my unexercised body! It was interesting to see how yoga, or the lack of it, affected my whole life. My brain started to "go" before my body did; meaning I felt out of it and not centered before my back started to ache from lack of exercise. (That i did not practice on my own was not surprising to me, although disappointing! I just don't have the oomph!)

Hope everyone is well and practicing regularly. I never took my yoga practice for granted, but I do appreciate it more now!

Hi Jeannette - I am glad your knee is doing well!

I'm glad you're able to get back to yoga again, Jeanette! :)