Mindfulness exercises

What daily meditation can do

Just nine minutes of meditation before going to bed leads to a restful sleep, brings rapid relaxation and brings the day to a close.

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Breathe in. Breathe out. Sit still a little every day. We show the benefits to our body, brain and subconscious when we meditate regularly. All you need is a little time and the willingness to let go. 

Remember the twelve boys and their 25-year-old coach who were stuck deep in a dark cave with no sense of time six years ago? They were starving and freezing. So they began to meditate, and thus maintained their inner peace. Instead of panicking, they spent their time doing the Buddhist meditation "Anapanasati": closing their eyes and concentrating on their breathing. Conscious breathing is the basis of this technique. It is intended to anchor us in the present. As soon as thoughts and feelings arise, concentration is gently returned to breathing.

Staying present - directing mindfulness inwards
An old saying goes: "You should meditate for 20 minutes every day. Unless you don't have time. Then meditate for an hour." Excuses are becoming a thing of the past, as there are now apps and podcasts that can be used to learn how to meditate. Meditation is a central component of Zen Buddhism. It serves as a tool for achieving clarity and peace of mind. The central element of Zen meditation is "zazen" - sitting on a meditation cushion.

Thoughts stop and you find inner peace, which leads to a deep understanding of life with increasing practice. In Zen Buddhism, the regular practice of meditation is more important than reading the holy Buddhist scriptures. This type of mental training teaches you to always be in the moment and not be distracted by thoughts. However, you don't have to change your life and beliefs in order to integrate regular meditation into your life. As different as we humans are, there are just as many ways of calming the mind and body.

Hectic, everyday stress and a full schedule? An old saying goes: "You should meditate for 20 minutes every day. Unless you don't have time. Then meditate for an hour."

(Bild: stock.adobe.com/Andrey Popov)

After all, it's about "coming to me". What do you need to do this? Wonderfully little: you only need two things: a little time and the will to let go. And the best thing is: it's completely free! Meditation provides the right focus and can help us to become more relaxed. It makes us appreciate the little things and gives us a more loving view of ourselves. Regular mindfulness exercises also help us to become aware of our inner voice and to listen to it in a non-judgemental way can silence the inner critic over time.

Thoughts revolve around yesterday and tomorrow
Our mind is constantly oscillating between the past and the future: circular thoughts obscure our view of what is. If we become aware of this, pay attention to the moment and ourselves and stop the flood of thoughts, we reduce stress. Not yesterday, not tomorrow - but now!"Deep down, realize that the present moment is all you will ever have. Make the now the focal point of your life," writes the German author Eckhart Tolle in his bestseller "Leben im Jetzt" (Living in the Now), published in 1997.

A guide on how to get off the permanent carousel of thoughts and get rid of entrenched patterns of behavior. Self-reflection not only brings serenity, it also activates our body's self-healing process. Stress acts like poison on the heart and brain. Meditative exercises calm the central nervous system, have a beneficial effect on the cardiovascular system, increase body awareness and boost the happiness hormone serotonin.

How meditation works

All you need is time and the willingness to let go.

• Sit up straight on a meditation cushion or a chair. You can also meditate standing up or lying down.
• Find a quiet, undisturbed place where you feel comfortable.
• Be aware of your breath. Observe it. Count your breaths from 1 to 10 and back again. If your mind wanders, start again at one.
• Another option is to repeat a mantra during your breaths.
• Important: After the first few attempts at meditation, keep at it!

Even after a short time, the body will have a positive reaction: "Just nine minutes of meditation before going to bed leads to a restful sleep, brings rapid relaxation and brings the day to a close," explains Gerhard Eggetsberger, biofeedback trainer from Vienna. 20 minutes a day of self-reflection regulates blood pressure and thus reduces our risk of heart attack by almost 50 percent! The more we pause, the better for our brain: researchers at the Max Planck Institute for Human Cognitive and Brain Sciences in Leipzig were able to show that frequent introspection increases the activity of brain regions associated with positive emotions.

Other studies also show that meditation has a positive effect on the age of the brain and can reduce the risk of dementia. At the same time, our fear center, the amygdala, shrinks. As Eckhart Tolle describes: it's about accepting what is right now. Recognizing the unique moment, understanding life and its connections and feeling contentment in it. And finally, to take a little of this calmness with you into your everyday life and keep it. Try it and see for yourself what happens. PS: Certainly a lot of good things!