Often in your yoga class the teacher will say “be grounded” but are they really talking about?
The definition of “grounded” according to Websters dictionary is “mentally and emotionally stable; admirably sensible, realistic and unpretentious”.
In our fast world we are constantly facing new stresses and feel like we are being pulled in many different directions; staying “emotionally and mentally stable” can be very challenging to say the least. This instability can lead to becoming disconnected from our true nature and right to happiness. We end up living our lives unconsciously rather than deliberately.
Have you ever been driving and realized you lost 5 minutes of time as if on autopilot? You can be washing the dishes and thinking about your never-ending to-do list or you can simply fly off the handle at the smallest incident. Yes, those are all examples of being ungrounded
Your body and mind are playing for two different teams. Your body is physically present on the earth, but the mind is lost in space. Your energy is getting trapped in your head without being connected to the physicality of being in your body. This disassociation leads to reactions that you don’t necessarily always like and perhaps don’t honor your true self.
Being grounded in our bodies puts us in the here and now. The present moment is the place where we are at any given time. That’s reality so why try to escape it? When we are grounded we can fully appreciate all that we are and have in life and feel less stressed and anxious about the greener grass on the other side of the fence. Being grounded in the here and now, allows all the thoughts and daydreams we have to actually manifest and become reality.
5 Steps to becoming Grounded!
♥ Turn OFF the technology!
Take a break and disconnect periodically from your emails, facebook, twitter and anything that distracts you. Technology keeps is in our heads not in the here and now of our bodies. Disconnect to Reconnect
♥ Stop and Breathe!
Connecting to and slowing down the rhythm of your breath is the quickest way to bring you into the present moment. Feel your breath come into to your body, graciously expanding your lungs and leaving your body taking with it anything that is not needed.
♥ Do some exercise
Yoga, walking, dancing, yoga, swimming or anything physical that you help you energise your body and make you feel awake and in the present.
♥ Show your feet a little love!
Appreciate and show some gratitude to your feet, after all they connect us with the earth, the physical present, and take us where we need to go everyday. Maybe show them a bit of love with a massage or a pedicure!
♥ Stop reliving the past or fast forwarding to the future
Stop rewriting what happened yesterday and/ or what might happen tomorrow. Look around and see where you are today, in this moment at this time. Appreciate what you have now.
♥ Use grounding and positive affirmations.
Using affirmations can help you develop a more positive outlook on life and stop negative self talk that traps us in our heads. If you are going to “talk” to yourself it may as well be good stuff! A great example is – on your inhale say “Let” and on the exhale say to yourself “go”!
My favourite grounding quote:
Yesterday is history
Tomorrow is a mystery
Today is a gift and that is why it is called the present
Sam is a yoga teacher living and working in Dubai. She founded LoveYoga and specialises in working on a one2one basis with individuals to get the best out of themselves.