3 Great Reasons to Meditate this Fall

The fall can feel like a new year – the freshness in the air, kids returning to school and an overall sense of possibility. Here are three great reasons to take advantage of the season and learn to meditate.

#1: Improved Focus

Picture this: you’re at work on the computer or reading at home and suddenly you notice you’ve become completely distracted. Bingo – these are classic examples of when meditation can help.

Why? Well, like doing anything – sports, music or cooking – skills get better with practice.  Meditation teaches you how to direct and redirect your attention on demand. With practice, the mind can overrule tendencies to become distracted, more of the time.

Replicate this in your home or work environment and say hello to a greater focus, potential for increased productivity and ultimately more control over what you think.

#2: More Energy for Life

According to the Journal of Social Cognitive and Affective Neuroscience, mindfulness-based techniques – which can include seated and walking meditations, as well as mindful eating and yoga – correlate with structural changes in the brain known to play a key role in the stress response.

Two separate studies found that after only four months of practice, participants who learned to meditate had lower levels of stress hormones compared to non-meditators.

Similar research from the Centre for Mindfulness at the University of Massachusetts Medical School confirms that learning to meditate improves the ability to cope with stressful situations and leads to increased relaxation, greater energy and more enthusiasm for life.

#3: Personal Time

For many of us, as parents and professionals, we’re often facilitating new experiences for others. But when was the last time you signed up for a class or workshop that’s just for you?

Maybe now’s the time. Taking a meditation class is a great way have quality time for you.

Lightwork is a Vancouver-based meditation centre geared at training western minds to learn to meditate through simple, step-by-step instruction.

Check out our roster of fall Lightwork Level 1 classes – and keep in mind, more classes are added all the time.