4 Intentions To Start The Day

A few weeks ago I was looking for a guided meditation on the Calm app, as sitting in quiet mindfulness just wasn’t working that day. I had a laundry list of to do’s and not enough time to do them. We’ve all been there, and often try to do too much without realizing the gifts of a pause. As yoga teachers, we always begin classes with time for students to settle in and be still. This is how we create sacred space for you to breathe mindfully and fully ~ and expand your awareness. To notice the sensations you’re feeling in body and mind, and allow your thoughts to slow down as the breath begins to deepen.

“Sometimes the most productive thing we can do is nothing at all.” – – Amit Kalantri

Upon researching guided meditations on my app, I came across one of Deepak Chopra’s most popular videos. His message was simple, and the meditation was short and sweet. It centered on the following 4 Intentions to Start Each Day:

* To have a joyful, energetic body *A loving compassionate heart  

*A reflective, alert mind *And a lightness of being

It’s hard to have a joyful, energetic body if you’re tired, overwhelmed or feeling ill. We have to honor our need for ample sleep, take time away from work and treat our body like temples to live with zest. We are what we eat, and how we move – or don’t move – affects every fiber of our being. If we eat too much we’re sluggish and can even be in pain. If we don’t eat enough we loose focus and have a lack of energy. When we don’t take time to move our body is restless and it’s hard to sleep. On the flip side, when we exercise too much our recovery is slow and we may be sore. BUT if we treat our body with kindness it pays off in droves! We feel light, alive and energetic – which is how we all want to feel each day.

 When we are rested, we have more space and patience to be loving and compassionate. Every new day offers fresh opportunities to extend kindness and grace to others. If we place that intention at the forefront of our minds, we can sprinkle a lot more joy around.

Part of having an alert and reflective mind is taking ample time to reset; to disengage from our busy day. We do this at the end of our classes in Savasana. When we rest in complete stillness we give our mind time to process and reflect. Savasana is a time to seal in the benefits of a physical practice and return back to life with more clarity and peace. We can offer ourselves this gift with mini mediations throughout the day.

To harness a lightness of being, we have to learn how to live with more presence AND try to begin each day with gratitude. A friend of mine recently created a Facebook post about the importance of noticing glimmers throughout the day. She said glimmers are the opposite of triggers. They are micro moments of happiness, peace and gratitude. The more you train your brain to lookout for them, the more you experience each day. I loved this! Noticing glimmers is key to turning towards the light in order to maintain a glass half-full, joyful state of mind.

I’ll leave you with a poem from yogi Danielle Willis on the importance of rest to start each day the best possible way.

This is a reminder for when the day closes…

Destroy the idea that you always have to be grinding, that you always have to be working or helping someone or fixing something.

Even the sun covers its face at night, just as the moon does each morning.

And you are no different.

So when you glow, glow completely.

And when you rest, make it just as complete.