4 Ways to Start Improving Your Mindfulness
To be able to lose weight we all know we need to do regular exercise to burn energy and ultimately burn fat. However, we rarely put in as much thought and effort into exercising our brain.
I recently received a comment on one of my pictures by one of the girls on my Life Transformer Plan,“I’m desperate to get into this habit”. The picture was me with a book I was reading at the time.
The lady is busy mum who is constantly on her feet running around making sure mama duties are completed. Although she manages to find time to work on her fitness, health and nutrition, she struggles to get into the habit of making time for herself & working on her mindset.
I regularly talk about mindfulness, and the ladies on my Transformer Plan know they are free to chat with me about it.
One of the most beneficial ways I have found to work on improving my mind is to read books. Books are one of the most effective ways of developing your knowledge while enjoying your own time to relax.
Like any habit, it is hard to get into, especially as a busy mum, but the more you do it, the easier it becomes, and soon you won’t be able to imagine your happier, healthier lifestyle without it. Here are my 4 top tips on how to start your reading habit and actually stick to it.
4 Tips to Start Your Reading Habit
1) Decide What Suits You Best
Personally I love a book. It’s the whole experience for me, sitting down either first thing in the morning with a coffee before anyone else in my house wakes up, or later in the day next to nice lit candle. The turning of the pages and reading is very therapeutic for me. However, I know some respond better to listening, which is why podcasts and audible are becoming more and more popular.
So work out what you prefer and go down that route (you may need to try all of them to know).
2) Remove Any Barriers
Its easy to make excuses not to do something, we all do it. If we have more important things to do, time for ourselves is pushed to the bottom of the priority list. It is important to remove these excuses by eliminating any barriers that could be preventing you from making time for yourself. Simple things such as leaving your book on the bedside table or in a convenient place that requires no effort to pick up and start reading. Or make sure you download a podcast or audio book and keep the app on your home-screen to remind you.
All these will be reminders for you to do it regularly and not forget.
3) Create a Habit
Would you rather get up early, have a cuppa and enjoy 10-15 mins of reading before anyone gets up? Do you commute and want to utilise travel time efficiently? Does a snuggle in bed with a book sound blissful? Whichever is best for you, plan it and do it. Choose what days and what time you plan on doing it and stick to it. Its no different to a nutrition plan, take each day as it comes, stick to it, and before you know it you’ll be doing it automatically.
4) Get Something That Really Floats Your Boat
Make sure you choose something you will enjoy. This way you are less likely to avoid it. Similar to a healthy diet – If you cut out all the things you enjoy and only eat dull flavourless foods, your chances of sticking to it are slim.
Extra Mindfulness Support
In the plan I’ve got loads of books and podcast recommendations to follow. You can choose from being more productive, reducing anxiety, feeling inspired, understanding your thoughts and controlling emotional eating. Plus, I’ve got the support group were you can join me and the girls to get motivated and discuss what we are reading or listening to, to help and support each other. You can join here today.