Top 3 Mindfulness Exercises For Busy People

How to be mindful on the move

It’s the catch-22 of wellbeing. If you’re busy, stressed and overwhelmed it’s likely you already know that practising mindfulness would be fantastic for your mental and emotional wellbeing. 

But it’s also likely that every time you intend to meditate something else pops up in your to-do list or you spend the entire meditation stuck in your head overthinking about all the things you haven’t done on your to-do list yet. Sound familiar?

The good news is that mindfulness doesn’t always have to be sitting silently for 30 minutes and meditating your busy brain away. A lot of mindfulness techniques can be practised in under 5 minutes whilst you’re on the go.

So the next time you’re feeling under the pump and you’d like to slow your mind and body down without sacrificing hours of your day then give one of the following exercises a go.

Before you jump into the exercises we wanted to let you know about our Overcoming Overwhelm 7 day challenge. It’s filled with strategies and techniques designed to help you manage stress and overcome overwhelm. Find out more and begin your 7 Day Overcoming Overwhelm Challenge here:

CLICK HERE: https://bucoaching.org/stressed-out-challenge/

1. Box Breathing1

This technique is actually used by special forces soldiers to calm their mind and body during combat situations. So if it’s able to calm people down in literal life and death scenarios chances are it’s going to help you navigate the busy-ness of your day to day life.

To box breathe all you need to do is take a moment to consciously and intentionally breathe deeply. 

Aim to draw your breath all the way down into your diaphragm. 

At the peak of your breath in take a moment to hold the breath, then slowly release the breath through your mouth and pause again before starting the next breath.

The reason it’s called box breathing is that there is even timing at each ‘section’ of the breath. For example:

  • 4 seconds breathing in
  • 4 second hold at peak
  • 4 second breathe out
  • 4 second pause
  • REPEAT

2. 5-4-3-2-1 Method2

This mindfulness technique focuses on engaging each of the 5 primary senses to help you become far more aware of the present moment. It’s fantastic at getting people out of their head and back to reality.

To complete this method all you need to do is point out:

  • 5 things you can SEE
  • 4 things you can FEEL
  • 3 things you can HEAR
  • 2 things you can SMELL
  • 1 thing you can TASTE

By the time you’ve gotten to the taste part, your mind will be far more present and focused than it was at the start of the activity.

3. Brief Body Scan & Tension Release

This is a micro-technique of a more in-depth mindfulness technique called body scanning.

The reason this technique works so well is that we tend to spend the majority of our day disconnected from our body. There are so many external things demanding our attention that it can be easy to overlook the importance of checking in with ourselves physically.

To complete a brief body scan take a moment to become aware of how your muscles are feeling. Where, if anywhere, is your body holding tension?

Common areas are the lower back, shoulders, jaw and hands.

Wherever you find tension during your body scan the next step is to take a deep breath in and image the tension melting away from the muscle as you breathe out. Let the muscle relax first and enjoy as the mind begins to follow.

By the way, there are some great guided meditations on PocketCoach

So there you have it, 3 simple mindfulness techniques for you to use on the go. Now you can never say you’re too busy for mindfulness. Let us know how you find them, you go-getter!

PS: If you want to unlock more tools to help you prevent stress and overcome overwhelm then you will LOVE our 7 Day Overcoming Overwhelm Challenge. Over 7 days you’ll get access to 5 proven strategies to help you feel calmer, more focused and more in control of your mind. And the best part is you’ll get them all for only $7. Find out more and begin your 7 Day Overcoming Overwhelm Challenge here:

CLICK HERE: https://bucoaching.org/stressed-out-challenge/