The benefits of meditation are truly endless. If you have to choose one daily habit to influence positively every aspect of your health (and life!), that would be it.
Meditation calms our minds and brings us into the present moment and helps us detach from everything that no longer serves us (physical, emotional, or energetical).
For instance, some extra pounds.
As if meditation’s effects on our minds weren’t valuable enough, studies show that mindfulness can also help with losing that extra weight. And that’s quite a combo for our health!
Breath in, breath out, and let it all go
Meditation clears not only our minds but also our bodies! That’s why the process of losing weight, which means letting go of any surpluses your body accumulated out of stress, can be catalyzed by practicing meditation. Losing weight can be a highly stressful process for your body if done the wrong way, which may cause some extra stress and anxiety for your body.
And bingo! Here is where weight gain strikes again.
Although you can hardly count on the meditation process to burn any calories, meditation is proven to break this vicious cycle and help in your endeavors to bring your body (and mind!) in shape.
Curious? Let’s jump right into them!
No. 1: Meditation helps to relieve stress
Stress. Here it comes in the spotlight again. Not only does it compromise your overall health and resilience, but it is also in charge of some extra pounds.
Think about it: stressfully intense moments trigger our bodies to indulge in stress-eating. Besides, tension makes our bodies produce more cortisol – the stress hormone. In excess, this hormone messes with our blood sugar and insulin levels, which ultimately leads to weight gain (among all the other side effects).
On the other side, meditation invites a sense of peace in our minds & bodies and calms our nervous system, thus reducing cortisol levels.
No. 2: Meditation improves your sleep
„A good sleep helps you get fit!” – we heard that so many times, we might start to think it’s overrated.
Oh well, it is not.
You see, sleep is essential to every single aspect of our health. When we meditate, we reduce the cortisol and adrenaline levels, while naturally increasing our melatonin levels. Thus, the natural balance of our circadian rhythms invites the so-much-needed restful sleep in our bodies.
Ultimately, this helps our bodies avoid storing fat and promotes mindful eating.
No. 3: Meditation surrenders to mindful eating
Mindful eating is a trend that has recently exploded. In our fast-moving, chaotic world there is little to no time left to mindful engage with the food we intake. When the focus is everywhere but on the food we eat, we tend to eat more, unhealthy, and with no satisfaction for the process whatsoever.
Yet eating is the beautiful process of nourishing and giving your body the nutrients it needs to heal and function at its best.
Mindful eating represents being present in the process of eating, observing the way food feels, tastes, and makes us feel. When we develop an eye for such subtilities, we reconsider our eating experience, slow down and start to listen to our bodies. And that’s when the magic happens: when we start listening to our body and giving it the best nutritious food so that it can recover, heal, and serve us the best.
No. 4: Meditation improves will-power and intention
Behind every diet, there is an intention. Whether it is to look & feel better, improve our health, or increase the quality of our lives altogether, an intention it is. Once this intention is crystal clear, consistency is the name of the game.
In the end, health is all about those small right choices repeated until they become our natural routine.
Have you ever gone through these shifts? Then, you must know consistency takes unshaken willpower. And that’s what meditation is all about.
Unwavering focus. Intention. Presence. Once you start incorporating these principles in your daily meditation practice, you will be surprised by how easy it is to apply them in achieving every single goal of yours.
No. 5: Meditation raises consciousness
Meditation trains our focus and helps us calm the so-called „monkey mind”. When we get to slow down the never-ending flow of unraveled thoughts, we create space. Space for observing and prioritizing our higher well-being and space for self-awareness.
When we align with our inner self in a space of calmness, we start to easily let go of what doesn’t serve our best: those cookies, that burger, that drink.
Instead, we start to find fulfillment in nourishing our bodies and sculpting their best shape. Meditation teaches us to think twice, stay present, and make conscious decisions in every aspect of our life.
And honestly, it is all it takes to keep us on track on the main track of getting in our best shape.
Key takeaways:
- Meditation not only improves our overall wellbeing but also helps with losing weight.
- When meditating, our bodies sleep better and reduce the levels of cortisol and adrenaline, which cause weight gain.
- Meditation increases awareness and consciousness, which creates space for mindful eating.
- Meditation is all about connecting to our bodies and letting go of what no longer serves us. So is healthy weight loss.
Daniela Writes 