MDFL CARDIO

-

 


Most mornings I'm on the rowing machine well before the sun rises. With the first few strokes, I set the intention that the time I spend working out benefits not only me but all beings. And with that, the meditation begins. Practice is a cornerstone of my day, and over the years I've come to see that the relationship runs both ways: meditation makes healthy routines far easier to sustain, and healthy routines make meditation more stable and alive.

Approaches to meditation vary widely, but most share three common threads: awareness, compassion, and wisdom. Awareness is our inherent capacity to be present, here and now. Compassion is the warmth we feel naturally toward those we love. Widening that circle of care, as I aim to do each morning on the rower, turns out to be good for both body and mind. Wisdom is seeing things as they are, rather than turning life's molehills into mountains.

Most days I meditate during and after cardio.

My favorite way to weave meditation into the day is to double-dip: practicing while doing cardio. If you're new to meditation, guided apps are a wonderful place to start. I often recommend the free Healthy Minds Program app, developed by my colleagues at the Center for Healthy Minds, as well as Waking Up.

With time, you may find you no longer need the guidance; these days I practice without it. You can recognize awareness anytime, anywhere. Keep in mind that meditation isn't about clearing your mind; it's about being aware in the present, thoughts and all. Whether you're walking, biking, or doing Pilates, bring your attention to the sensations in your body. When your mind wanders, and it will, simply return to those sensations. That's it.

Simple, yes; easy, not always. We're working with what may be the most complex set of circuits in the known universe, and that's a lifetime of practice. Try it on your next walk: even unplugging for 5 minutes can be beneficial.




Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

100,000 Miles on the Tesla

-
Image
I've been a car guy  my entire life. Toy cars were my childhood obsession. As a teenager, I somehow took obsessed  to the next level, and literally memorized tracts of my favorite auto repair manuals. (Yes, I had favorite repair manuals). I slightly downregulated these obsessions in my middle years, though I was still keenly aware of the cars around me, gimbaling to lock in on an unfamiliar model or automotive rarity. This Tesla Model Y has been on many roadtrips. When the Tesla Model S came out in 2012, I was swept off my feet by its aesthetics, performance and the underlying technology. Initially Tesla sightings were infrequent, and I employed the unproven technique of staring/not-staring in an inept attempt to avoid stalking the early adopters. Within a few years, however, the more-affordable Model 3 opened the sales flood gates, and it suddenly seemed like Teslas were everywhere. The "Idiot Book" was my favorite repair manual. By the time the Tesla Model Y (the small ...
Read more

Caring for “higher mileage bodies”

-
Image
Well into middle-age, I harbored the misguided belief that well-engineered cars could last indefinitely. Toiling under the influence of this delusion, I poured untold tens of thousands of dollars into various old European cars. Thankfully I got past this misconception, and came to appreciate that entropy is an equal opportunity law of Physics, and that higher mileage cars simply take more upkeep than newer cars do. As with cars, so too with the human body. I once drove a Saab 9000, and it took an astounding sum of money to keep it running, particularly as it aged. Overall I’ve taken pretty good care of the body that I inhabit. Certain excesses and impulses aside, I’ve eaten well, stayed active and worked deliberately with my mind. And so far the preliminary results have been encouraging - I enjoy mental and physical health, and the freedom to run, bike and ski not dissimilarly to my youth. This being said, aging (entropy) is very real, and I find that this older body takes more upkeep ...
Read more

Yoga on the Road

-
Image
While the glaciers covered much of North America’s midsection and smoothed the land into submission, a tiny sliver of the Middle West managed to escape glaciation. The Driftless Region contains a fascinating rise and fall of the land, in stark contrast with people’s view of a flat and lifeless Midwest. Tucked into a corner of the Driftless Region was a small experiment in communal living, sustainable agriculture, and yoga. Cress Spring Farm was home for an ever-changing array of characters, and even twenty-plus years later many of the meals, practices, and stories remain memorable. Uttered casually in the kitchen one morning, I still clearly remember Roger stating broadly, “if you can’t take your practice on the road, it ain’t worth shit.” Since many of us spent a good deal of time traveling, this comment piqued our interest. I don’t remember if Roger ever elaborated, but I did find affirmation that traveling is one of the best times to maintain, or even deepen, a personal yoga ...
Read more