Welcome to Aries season - The first and fiery sign of the zodiac that starts alongside the Spring Equinox each year. It’s that time of year when things seem to pick up and move a little more quickly. For many, this time of renewal brings a breath of fresh air and rejuvenation. Arriving shortly after Daylight Savings time, we enjoy longer days and a little more sunshine.
Personally, I am not a fan of Spring or of the Aries season. Controversial, I know…
I’ve never enjoyed the smells of the earth uncovering after winter. The mud and the dead greenery reemerging tends to trigger my gag reflex. Looking back to my school days, Spring semesters always seemed to drag on endlessly - the mandatory drudgery leading up to Summer. And now, especially since moving to the Midwest, March and April have presented themselves as “the dark season,” with a great deal of rainy and overcast days. Don’t get me wrong, the precipitation lends itself to the most beautiful flower gardens! Truly, the flowers out here are like nothing I experienced out West. But boy does it take a toll on my spirit. My Vitamin D regimen has never been stronger. 💪💪
Then there is the sense that the whole world is picking up the pace, and I never feel ready for it. It feels like everyone is committing to waking up for a 5 AM run, while I am hitting the snooze button until 10… Nope! For whatever reason, Aries season starts my least favorite half of the year. But here we are once again, and with each new year I incorporate new tools to help the season pass with a little less impact on my mental health. So I want to share with you some grounding meditations that help quell my anxiety, and keep me moving forward - If maybe a little more slowly than my Spring-loving friends and family.
Below are 2 self-guided meditation techniques (and 1 app recommendation!) which I find you can complete for a desired effect within 10 minutes. Pro tip - Set a timer or alarm on your phone to alert you when your time is up (whether for 10, 15, or 20 minutes). As someone with fairly constant, underlying anxiety, I’ve found setting a timer allows me to relax into my meditation, improving my presence and focus. When I don’t set a timer, often those thoughts of “What time is it? How long have I been doing this? I should really get to… xyz” will ruin the experience and the desired effect. I hope this helps you too!
Meditation #1: Box Breathing
Please note, this technique is not suitable during pregnancy, as it includes breath retention (breath holds). If you are pregnant, you can modify by eliminating the breath holds, and utilizing the count of the breath to lengthen or deepen your inhales and exhales, as you are comfortable.
The Concept - Box breathing invites us to imagine the shape of a box (a rectangle or square), where each side of the box represents a movement or a pause in our breath. As you work with box breathing, in your mind’s eye, imagine tracing the outline of one side of the box with every breath movement and with every breath hold. For example, as you inhale, trace the line up the side of the box, then as you hold your breath in, imagine tracing the line across the top of the box. As you exhale, trace the line down the other side, and as you hold your breath out, imagine tracing the line across the bottom of the box.
Get the Full Walkthrough of Box Breathing Meditation HERE.
Meditation Note - You may find that your thoughts drift throughout this practice - it’s difficult for our minds to slow down! If you notice you are thinking about your to-do list, or a cringy interaction you had a couple days ago, simply become aware, and guide yourself back to the count and back to your square or rectangle. You may have to do this several times during your meditation! It doesn’t mean you suck. It means you’ve been in overdrive mode, and your mind needs more permission and encouragement to slow down. Keep giving yourself that permission, and your mind will follow suit.
Meditation #2: The Body Scan
The Concept - Our goal with the body scan is to find those sneaky areas in our bodies where we hold tension, and to release it. It’s an opportunity to experience your body fully unclenched! We do this by bringing our attention to specific parts of the body and asking two questions:
- Is this part of my body relaxed?
- What do I notice here?
In practice, once you bring a part of the body into focus, you will feel into that body part - maybe wiggle it around, open/close or tighten/release, before relaxing and softening. You will do this all within a single natural breath (inhale and exhale) or less, and then move on to the next body part, no need to linger long!
I find it helps to move in a logical sequence, usually top to bottom, assessing each extremity (arm and leg) separately. In the Full Walkthrough linked below, I provide a sequence you can review and familiarize yourself with. However, perfection is not a part of this exercise! Once you begin your meditation, resist the urge to peek at the sequence, as that will only pull you out of the meditation and defeat the purpose. Simply allow your mind to flow throughout your body. Whatever body part comes to your attention as you scan is exactly where you are meant to focus.
Get the Full Walkthrough of The Body Scan Meditation HERE.
Meditation Note - This meditation can sometimes be difficult to move through without getting antsy. Often, we are so eager to get to the finish line, that the journey itself can seem daunting. Be patient. Allow yourself to see the path ahead, and still move through each check point with curiosity and intention. You may find yourself taking a deep inhale and exhale (almost a sigh) as you refocus and continue to scan the body. At the end, your reward is a body unclenched, sneaky areas where you hold tension now released! The discipline of this practice is well worth the effort. Challenge yourself to see it through.
App Recommendation: FitOn
I have been a FitOn user and huge fan of this app since the Pandemic. First of all, it’s completely F.R.E.E. ($0.00) - AND contains an awesome library of workouts and meditations available to stream on your smart tv or mobile device anytime. Class offerings range from yoga and meditation, to Zumba, HIIT workouts, weights, and more. New classes and offerings are added all the time. I turned to FitOn originally during lockdown, and continue to turn to it when I need a quick reset or don’t feel up for going to the studio or gym.
I have to mention FitOn with this post because self-guided meditation is hard. Even simple techniques, like those I am offering above, require discipline and comfortability with silence. All of which takes practice. So! For those days, when you know you need a little more guidance, FitOn offers a plethora of meditations you can put on, ranging from 5 to 30 minutes.
Check it out, and create your free account HERE.
Final Thoughts - Meditation is exercise for your mind. Sometimes we forget that we are not our minds. Yes, you read that right… You are not your mind.
Your mind is a tool that helps you process experiences, learn and grow. It collects data points from your lived experiences in order to help you make future decisions that will keep you safe, and therefore happy.
But you are greater than your mind. You are the one who wields the tool.
When a tool as powerful as the mind goes unchecked, it can continue working with outdated data. For example, decisions that may have helped keep you safe in the past, may now be getting in the way of your growth.
Meditation gives us an opportunity to keep our minds in check - like running regular system updates. It allows us to be open to receiving new data as we continue to evolve. Through the practice of meditation, we also get to reclaim the driver’s seat - to control the direction of our thoughts, instead of allowing our thoughts to be in control of us.
I hope these offerings help see you through the season!
With love,
Kayla