What is mindfulness? Mindfulness is the quality or state of being conscious of something. It is also defined as a mental state achieved by focusing one’s awareness on the present moment, while calmly acknowledging and accepting one’s feelings, thoughts, and bodily sensations, used as a therapeutic technique.
Mindfulness also involves acceptance, meaning that we pay attention to our thoughts and feelings without judging them, without giving thought to a right or wrong way to think or feel in a given moment. When we practice mindfulness, our thoughts tune into what we are sensing in the present moment rather than concentrating on or rehashing the past or imagining the future.
It has its roots in Buddhist meditation yet has entered the American mainstream in recent years. Many studies have documented the physical and mental health benefits of mindfulness in general, while inspiring programs in schools, hospitals, prisons, veterans centers and more.
As most of our lives run on autopilot, we often have wandering minds and are not present in our own lives. It is so easy to lose ourselves in this autopilot state for most of the day, and every day. Thus, we fail to realize the beauty surrounding us, we don’t listen to warning signs from our own bodies, and we are stuck in our constant state of action in life that we are just getting stuff done and not really living. Mindfulness is taking our lives back, taking a big step back and counting our blessings and the beautiful parts of our life that we fail to see as we are running to the next activity.
Being engaged in the present moment is a hard task to achieve. Many of us who enjoy yoga have attempted this for the brief time of our class and our meditation in a calm setting. Besides yoga and meditation we can extend mindfulness into the rest of our life. Seeing everything with full awareness every day can lead to a more peaceful existence.
As I continue on my wellness journey, I think of mindfulness and how hard it is for me to concentrate on a moment in time without drifting in many different directions. I have practiced mindfulness in my yoga and Pilates classes. I am now striving to add more mindfulness to my daily life, just one moment at a time. When you watch your daughter dance in a recital, don’t recall the shopping list you want to remember, but rather embrace the beauty of that moment as it will soon be gone and just a memory. It is difficult to get out of autopilot so let’s try it one moment at a time…….
Just Me..... 
I’ve struggled wit mindfulness myself. And I practice it in yoga although not as often as I should. This post in itself helps put a person in a mindful state. I love this post! I’ve never considered Pilates cause it always seems too intense. Can it be calming enough to help promote mindfulness? Getting out of autopilot is super hard, but definitely important!
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With Pilates you have to focus on your move and it increases your ability to concentrate on what you are doing “in the moment”. I find it helps getting into a mindful state. And of course you can really feel that workout the next day.
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I’ve never tried Pilates before but I may give it a shot!
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I love Pilates and I recently tried Piloxing which adds some kick boxing in it. Good relief after a long day….
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Thanks for this reminder of how to slow down and pay attention to the present. I agree that yoga is powerful. Time to get back into it!
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Yes and when you do you will start to feel different each day. I have made it a point to take charge of my day and make it count for what I want to accomplish!
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Elaine, thank you for this beautiful explanation of mindfulness. Practicing moment to moment presence is a mindful way to experience life – fully present and available to the nuances that occcur in the space the space. 💗 Meta, 💕 Xo, Evelyn, PathofPresence.com 🦋
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I have recently been working on trying to be more mindful. It’s so true how life can get away from you while your mind is wandering all over the place. This post is a great reminder, thanks!
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Awesome! Thank you so much for this reminder. Its so true. I know when I’m more mindful for the current moment I am so much happier. I want to soak up every moment. Thank you!
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Great post, I needed a little reminder of how to more mindful in my waking life. You are right social media and constant instant gratification makes us forget that beautiful and joy id all around us. I recently became more mindful of my own health as it had been put on the back burner with so many other things.
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I am happy to hear you are paying more attention to yourself and your well-being.
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You are right, most of the day I spend it on autopilot! This is a new concept that I need to train myself on. like you put it concentrating on a moment at a time. Thanks for the reminder to live in each moment.
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I have been working on mindfulness — it is creating self control in my life.
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It is often difficult and we have to get back on track. I am trying this with my students now 😊
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Being active & aware in your present moment is so important! It’s a process, but so worth it!
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I have become so much better at taking time to plan my diet, going to my Zumba classes and focusing on me !!!
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Mindfulness is hard. I agree is really important though. I love to pause, relax and soak up the surrounding beauty and warmth of the sun.
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We often have to remind ourselves to take time out for ourselves and focus on what is important
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Thank you for this post! I love it! I struggle really bad, taking it one step at a time, it’s always nice to have a reminder and a little push! 💜
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I know it’s hard but you have to make yourself a priority !! When you get busy sometimes you have to refocus and start all over.
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So true!💕
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Loved reading this! I blog about mindfulness too 😊 you definitely made some good points.
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I loved this post! I’m a workaholic and always take on too much, so I’m often in autopilot! The past fews years though, I’ve really focused on being present, and mindful of life and whats going on around me!
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I definitely know that feeling. Now that my daughters are grown I try to be more aware of myself and my healthier lifestyle — taking time for myself and saying no without guilt!
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