{"id":1964,"date":"2021-02-21T18:01:27","date_gmt":"2021-02-21T18:01:27","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/?p=1964"},"modified":"2021-02-21T18:03:12","modified_gmt":"2021-02-21T18:03:12","slug":"9-mistakes-to-avoid-while-starting-meditation","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/9-mistakes-to-avoid-while-starting-meditation\/","title":{"rendered":"9 Mistakes to Avoid While Starting Meditation"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
  1. Don\u2019t expect immediate results.
    <\/strong>
    Maybe because of the way popular culture has portrayed meditation as the \u201cone-stop solution to get rid of your stress at one go\u201d, many people get frustrated when all their stress doesn\u2019t magically disappear immediately after their first meditation session.

    While it\u2019s true that meditation can relieve stress, the results will be seen over time, once you make it a regular habit. Meditation is more of a spiritual practice to get in touch with your inner self. The benefits like stress relief and relaxation are its by-products, not its ultimate goal.

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  2. Embrace distractions.
    <\/strong>
    One of the biggest mistakes beginners make while starting with a meditation habit is that they assume they have to be a completely distraction-free environment to get into it. Unless you live in a house all by yourself at the top of a mountain, that\u2019s not possible. There will be background noise no matter when or where you do it, and guess what, distractions are good.

    Make them a part of your meditation. Do a sound check and try to be aware of where each noise is coming from. This will help you incorporate these distractions into your practice rather than considering them as roadblocks and feeling discouraged.

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  3. Don\u2019t go into it unprepared.
    <\/strong>
    Before starting your practice, take a few minutes to calm your mind and body and reaffirm your intent. This can be as simple as stretching your back, neck, arms, and saying to yourself, \u201cOkay, I\u2019m going to focus now.\u201d Such small steps go a long way in making sure you don\u2019t lose steam mid-way and can ease into your session.

    <\/li>
  4. Don\u2019t seek escape in meditation.
    <\/strong>
    Meditation is not meant to be a way to suppress your negative thoughts. It\u2019s a guiding light to let you be truly aware of what\u2019s going on in your head and sort through all the emotions.

    Don\u2019t consciously try not to think about something negative. Observe all your feelings, let them grow and naturally dissolve.

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  5. Don\u2019t aim for long durations in the beginning.
    <\/strong>
    Experts might tell you they meditate for two hours every day. But what they don\u2019t tell you is that they\u2019ve been doing it for years now, and have built up the practice over time. When starting, don\u2019t aim for long durations. Shorter stretches like 10 minutes can be just as beneficial. In fact, if you\u2019re feeling nervous about that, you can just try taking ten deep breaths in bed. While getting started, even the small steps matter a lot.

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  6. Don\u2019t keep questioning yourself if you\u2019re doing it right.
    <\/strong>
    The truth is, there\u2019s no \u201cright\u201d way to meditate. Different practices work for different people. So, how do you know if yours is working for you? If you can keep your attention focused and be mindful of your body, your thoughts, your surroundings, you know you\u2019re doing great.

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  7. Don\u2019t keep telling yourself you\u2019ll do it \u201csome time\u201d.
    <\/strong>
    If you keep telling yourself you\u2019ll meditate when you find the time, you\u2019ll probably always be too busy or too tired to even give it a try. While building a new habit, it\u2019s important to consciously allot time for it in your schedule. Meditation is no different. Just keep a 10-minute slot in your daily routine each day for meditation and see the results for yourself.

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  8. Don\u2019t be inconsistent.
    <\/strong>
    You\u2019re starting something that you\u2019ve never tried before. Don\u2019t be inconsistent as it will be even harder to keep yourself accountable. Missing a day or two when something major comes up is alright, but missing entire weeks or months in the name of \u201cnot finding time\u201d is not.

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  9. Don\u2019t go into it all alone.
    <\/strong>
    While it\u2019s possible to start a meditation practice alone, having an accountability partner makes it easier. This can be a friend or colleague with whom you decided to start the new habit together. Or it can be a certified meditation coach<\/a> who will guide you through the process and help you on days you feel like you can\u2019t stick through with it on your own.<\/li><\/ol>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

    Don\u2019t expect immediate results.Maybe because of the way popular culture has portrayed meditation as the \u201cone-stop solution to get rid of your stress at one go\u201d, many people get frustrated when all their stress doesn\u2019t magically disappear immediately after their first meditation session. While it\u2019s true that meditation can relieve stress, the results will be… <\/p>\n

    Read <\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":1965,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_coblocks_attr":"","_coblocks_dimensions":"","_coblocks_responsive_height":"","_coblocks_accordion_ie_support":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[96,18,6,30],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1964"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1964"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1964\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1968,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1964\/revisions\/1968"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/1965"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1964"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1964"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/blog.lift.do\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1964"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}