Mindful Additions

So like in most cases I can't help but make my post be some sort of response to Patrick's last post. Patrick you really come up with some good stuff man I don't know how you do it but you always deliver some food for thought. So in response to your post I want to discuss mindful additions to our daily routine that makes non-beneficial activities contributive to our health.

I once read a list of 100 things Parkour to do at normal times during normal activities. Everything from sleeping on your back to promote ankle flexibility and posture, to walking around your house on all fours all the time, to guessing how many steps it will take you to reach something. I took away one thing from it all, mindfulness. Mindfulness is the key to EVERYTHING. Seriously. Without it you will never have good health, spirituality, happiness, a successful career, or reach the limits of your creativity. 

Mindfulness is the catalyst for growth.

So what are some things you can use as mindful additions to your daily life to promote good and lasting health?

1. Posture - Patrick really hits this one a lot and it's so true, while sitting, standing, or mobile mentally check your posture and correct it.

2. Visualization - Try to visualize everything. Make some mindful checks of your surroundings throughout the day, notice changes, remember them and react. Visualize what hard task or goal you are going to work at next if you are in the middle of an easy task. All great athletes, artists, and businessmen alike visualize constantly.

3. Do it the hard way - When your brain is on autopilot all the time it means it's doing the easy way every time. You are forming ruts in your brain that will become the chasms that lead to a lack of mindfulness, inability to adapt or learn something new, and poor mental and physical health. Mix things up! Do them differently or do them the harder less direct way. That way you are getting better all the time, challenging yourself to make things more engaging, and when you have to rush you will be more proficient than ever at the easy way. Even if it's something small. 

For example when I have to ring out customers at work I ask the same questions every time. "Picking up? Last name? First name? How many? Address? Any questions?" In that order. So it's a huge mindfulness check for me when I get so ingrained in that order that when someone gives me the data up front "I'm John Smith on 123 Peak Dr picking up 3 prescriptions" I find myself sometimes still saying after I go grab them "Address?" followed by "Oh, sorry you already said 123 Peak Dr."

So mix it up and break the habits that make you ineffective at adaptation.

4. Exercise 24/7 - Every simple, boring, or sedentary activity can be made into a fun, beneficial, exercising activity. While standing around, stand on one foot, improve your balance. While sitting stretch and improve your posture. While driving squeeze a grip with your free hand instead of that McMuffin. Eat standing up. Eat sitting on the floor, back-straight. Don't walk around your couch, go over it. Do yoga while watching TV, or better yet cut out the TV, do yoga (forward-bend) while writing your shopping list. Make everything engaging.

5. Breathing - This is killer. We all suffocate ourselves with shallow, short breaths. Checking your breathing and making sure you have controlled regular breathing all the time is amazing for your health. Teaching yourself to breath the right way takes time but once you create better breathing habits you will be a more relaxed, healthy and refreshed individual. Correct breathing is also something you can't do with incorrect posture.

Try it out! Tell me what you think.