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At Liquid I.V., we’re all about optimization, and we know that meditation does for the mind what proper hydration does for the body: IT MAKES IT WORK BETTER! That’s why we’re sharing our favorite guided meditations for each part of the day.
Raise your hand if you’ve tried meditation but “just can’t do it”!
We’ve heard the story over and over again: would-be meditators across the world have TRIED. You’ve closed your eyes. You’ve breathed deep. You’ve sat cross-legged with your palms facing up, trying desperately to emulate the highly-convincing meditation photos you saw on Instagram. Nothing has worked! After approximately 35 seconds, you got up, frustrated, convinced that this whole “mindfulness” thing isn’t really for you.
Even if you’re familiar with the many benefits of meditation (better sleep, a calmer mindset, heightened self-awareness and improved focus, to name a few), it can sometimes seem impossible to sit still for more than a few seconds. Where’s the bliss and serenity? Isn’t this supposed to feel good?
The answer? No!
At least, not at first. Think of your mind as a really strong, but really wild monkey that’s constantly jumping from thought to thought. The goal of meditation is to tame the monkey—to make it work for you, rather than letting it run the show. At first, it’s really hard, and it can be incredibly frustrating. But once the mind learns who’s boss, it behaves. Now, you’ve got the full strength of the mind behind you to use as you see fit.
Disciplining the mind is a long and sometimes difficult process. But there’s a meditation hack that’s rarely talked about, and we’re going to give you the hookup. The hack? Guided meditations!
Guided meditations can be found in the form of videos or audio clips—usually on YouTube or apps like Insight Timer or Headspace. Generally, a soothing voice will give you instructions like, “breathe in and out through your nose,” or, “focus on the sensations you feel as you breathe.” Commands like this help guide you into a state of deeper focus and presence, so you don’t have to take on the monkey mind by yourself.
So what’s the purpose of all this? If you saw our post on the 4 Stages of Sleep, we talked about brain waves and how they influence our sleep. But brain waves can influence our waking life as well. One of the goals of meditation is to slow our brain waves from beta to alpha states. Beta brain waves tend to reflect a stressed-out, limited state of mind, while alpha brain waves tend to produce a calm state, as well as creative solutions to problems.
We know you’re super busy, so the first two meditations are only about 10 minutes long. The last meditation, intended for bedtime, is 38 minutes long, but don’t worry—you’ll most likely fall asleep WAY before the end of it.
Here are our top pics for morning, afternoon, and nighttime meditations:
Kick-start your day by setting an intention. This morning meditation focuses on gratitude and positivity—and who couldn’t use a healthy dose of that?
Stressed out after your mid-day strategy meeting? Sneak off to your car or an empty conference room and listen to this little gem. You’ll be walking back to your desk a new person.
This meditation is a body scan—a popular format for sleep videos. Bringing attention to each part of your body is actually a great way to relax muscles—you’ll be dozing off in no time.
PRO TIP: One of our favorite things to do is take a Liquid I.V. Sleep right before beginning our nighttime practice. There’s nothing yummier than easing into sleep to the sound of a soothing voice.
Good luck, LIV fam!