Another Mindful Check In
Let's Walk Into March, Mindfully
A Great Moment For Mindfulness
I don’t know about you all but with spring right around the corner, sometimes I blink and find myself back in October again.
Where the heck did all of that time go? I swear it was just February last week.
In this case, February was just last week, so let’s make sure to take advantage of this moment and think about the high energy seasons of spring and summer ahead.
Head Out For A Walk
Bilateral stimulation is a great way to process anything from trauma, to a workplace problem that we’re currently stumped with. Not only does it get the blood pumping to important areas in our bodies and brains, but it also allows our mind to wander in ways that often result in a major boost in creative and novel thinking patterns.
Try to find a place in your schedule sometime before the end of the week that you can dedicate yourself to at least a 20 minute walk.
Set Up The Space
If we’re heading out on a mindfulness walk to check in with ourselves, we’ll often get the most fruitful harvesting when we set up some simple parameters before we embark. Follow these simple steps (pun intended) to meet your walking practice mindfully.
Set An Intention Or Hold A Very Specific Inquiry - Take a couple of moments to reflect on what you’d like to be internally intimate with in yourself for your twenty minute walk. Setting an intention is as beautiful of a practice as asking yourself a question you haven’t found the answer to yet and gently holding it as you walk.
Give Yourself Some Time Constraints - This doesn’t have to be limited to 20 minutes, but do make sure you know how much time you have before you go. When we tell our brain to notice and articulate a set amount of time, we’re more likely to give ourself freedom within those parameters.
Identify A Specific Threshold To Cross - Maybe it’s as you leave your front door doorway. Maybe it’s the line in the dirt you draw three feet from your car. Whatever it is, be clear about crossing it when you embark, and crossing it when you get back. These ‘containing’ elements will signal to the brain “Hey—Let loose!” and “Okay we’re heading back towards our real life now”
Allow Yourself to Be Surprised - Once you return from your walk, instead of trying to make a concrete meaning out of anything that may have bubbled up in your head, asking ourselves the question “What surprised me most about this walk?” can help our minds attend to important details and insights that we may otherwise overlook.
Get Out There, Mindfully
What are you waiting for? Get out there!
Share Your Surprises and Insights
My 30-day silent retreat is coming to a close in a few days. As we all steep in a bit of mindfulness together, I’ll be slowly preparing myself to return to regular life (and regular computer checking) again. If something you noticed during this mindfulness practice came up, I would absolutely love to hear it.
Maybe give me a bit of grace on catching up when I come back around, but I’ll definitely respond as soon as I can.
Looking forward to connecting when I’m back. Hopefully with some insights of my own.
In the meantime,
As per usual,
Thank you for being here.
Mindfully,
Dagny Rose
This sub-section of The Art of Rest, is all about—you guessed it—The Rest.
As a trained sleep scientist and mindfulness teacher & researcher, here we explore the everything related to rest. Whether we are unpacking the newest evidence-based sleep health tips, exploring day-to-day tools for bolstering and protecting rest, or diving into a world of dreams, “The Rest” is going to regularly touch into what a restful life is, and how to move towards one5
Looking For A Personalized Way to Optimize Your Rest?
Exciting announcement! My books are now open again for the hibernation season! I am looking forward to giving winter guidance around sleep health & nervous system regulation around stress. I offer individualized 1:1 guidance for those who want to use rest as a way to expand their creativity, folks who just need a tune up, all the way towards people who might be dealing with chronic rest related issues. Shoot me an email at dagnyrose@theartofrest.me to inquire about getting started. Spring appointment slots begin March 10.