Everyday Mindfulness

As Pangea Founder & CEO, Joshua Onysko says, “Rituals have the power to change our lives.” We can make just about any part of our day into a ritual, and by doing so, we both elevate our lives and calm our minds. Here are four ways to practice mindfulness in your daily life that may have much wider impacts than just changing your behavior.

Mindful workout - Workouts can be a time to tune in to our bodies and feel what they are doing in very interesting circumstances. What does it feel like to find the place where you can’t push further? What does it feel like to do an endurance workout with ease? Take one workout and try paying attention to your breathing, your muscles, your heart rate, and your skin. What new feedback do you get? What do you learn? What can your body tell you about pleasure and pain?

Mindful driving - The opposite of road rage is mindful driving. And it is a way to turn a chore into a special time in your day. You can rock out to kirtan music, listen to your breathing, or take in the sights and sounds of your commute. Making the experience of driving into mindfulness practice may even make you a better driver, more aware of your circumstances and less on autopilot.

Mindful eating - When we eat, we can make the experience more enjoyable, satisfying, and introspective every once in a while. Our bodies have so much innate wisdom that comes to us through feeling and sensation. When we decide to pay attention to the experience of eating we can learn so much about what our bodies love, what they crave, and what they do. According to Evelyn Tribole, try following a craving or a desire you have for a food. Whatever it is, no judgment. Just eat it with awareness of how good it tastes, what happens in your body, and how it makes you feel. It works as well with a PB&J as it does with an apple. And by training our minds to pay attention to our bodies, we are reinforcing a very simple way to care for ourselves: eat with joy.

Mindful skincare - We wash our faces, put on products, and stare at ourselves in the mirror at least twice a day. Our skincare routine can become a mindful ritual if we decide to make it one. Take the time to use all your senses: feel the temperature of the water, smell the aromatherapy in the products, listen to the sounds, and feel your skin with your fingers. One of the things that becomes clear when we use our skincare as ritual is pleasure. Your nose takes you on a trip with the scent - where do you go? Your skin feels all plump and moisturized, how does that make you feel? For a sample mindful bathing rituals take a look at this blog.

Try practicing mindfulness in your daily life and see what that practice brings to you. You may find that your life is never quite the same.