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An attitude of gratitude is exactly that; it’s a way of thinking and being, rather than something you “do” here and there. This mindset may not come naturally to everyone, however (it certainly didn’t for me!), so that’s why it’s something we need to cultivate with intentional practice. 

While there are many ways to cultivate an attitude of gratitude, I’m often thinking about somatic practices, which means relating to the body, distinct and separate from the mind. We spend most of the time in our heads, and for good reason—it’s from this place that we make smart and logical decisions in every area of our lives.

There are certain aspects of life, however, that can’t be solved or experienced from the mind. In fact, the body is our greatest memory keeper. While our mind forgets the details, our bodies hold onto them. Even in our tissues. When you make gratitude a whole-body practice the expression of gratitude becomes embodied into a belief held in the tissues, leading to deeper healing and support.

Instead of letting gratitude be another thing to check off your list, it can be something that comes naturally and easily—and feels really good too! 

Step 1: Intentionally Identify Your Gratitude

No one walks around inherently feeling grateful all the time. Intentional gratitude, in the smallest of things, on repeat, starts to build new pathways in your brain that encourage you to find sweetness everywhere more regularly, without thinking about it. 

In fact, as you practice this more, you may even start to feel the sensation of gratitude in your body before the thought even enters your mind. Suddenly you recognize it and think, wow, I’m so grateful for this moment, or whatever it may be.

The first step to cultivating this attitude of gratitude is intentionally seeking it out. For example, you might identify three things in the morning or three things at night—or both—and try that every day for seven days or a month. Make it a part of your daily routine to start building those pathways in your brain. Try it practicing gratitude every day for 30 days—you may be surprised how it changes you.

Most importantly, approach this practice with grace and release all expectations. It’s not about, I should feel this or I should feel that. The more you “should” yourself, the further you actually move away from gratitude.

Step 2: Notice Where You Feel the Gratitude

When you find that thing you’re grateful for, ask yourself: Where in my body do I feel it? Take it one step further, and ask: How does that sensation feel? It might show up in your arm. Maybe in your stomach. It could be totally unexpected and that’s perfect. 

There’s no right way to do this. Your only job is to pay attention to the sensations of gratitude and the surprising ways that this feeling can show up in your body. It may be the first you’ve ever noticed this before. Even more interestingly, it may show up in a different place every time you do it, and that’s fine too. 

Let yourself play with this and explore the sensations without any criticism. Whatever comes up is perfect.

Step 3: Visualize Your Gratitude

Once you identify the gratitude and feel it in your body, ask yourself: Is there a color or a texture that I can see or feel too? You might automatically sense yellow or maybe a gold shimmering light. Perhaps it feels soft. Again, there is no right or wrong—and if doesn’t come to you, that’s okay too. 

Your only goal is to stay connected to the sensation. Other visualizing questions you could ask are:

• Does it have a shape?
• Is it moving?
• What does it feel like? (e.g. tingling or fluttering)

Like gratitude, naming and exploring sensations in your body is not something that comes naturally. Especially as adults, who have been taught to operate from the mind, not the body. If this feels hard, that’s okay. Remind yourself that this is a practice, not something you need to be able to do perfectly.

Step 4: Breathe Into The Gratitude

Finally, take in a slow deep breath and send it to that area of your body. This is how we can practice somatic breathwork, where we connect the breath to the body. Let your breath move the gratitude throughout your body and see how that sensation can go within your body. Can it go up into your head? Out into your arms and down into your toes?

You may want to see if your breath can radiate that gratitude outside of your body or if you can send it to people you love or even strangers you don’t even know. Let this be a fun exercise that starts within your body and pours out of you and into others as it grows and grows. 

Step 5: Remember: Duality Exists

Cultivating an attitude of gratitude may feel hard sometimes. But I want you to remember that it’s totally possible (and normal) to feel gratitude alongside other difficult emotions, like grief, sadness, or anger. 

In times of pain, gratitude is not going to name itself because there are other sensations that are louder and more present. During times like this, the practice becomes finding ways to be grateful for the smallest things. The funny thing is, it’s in the smallest of things that the heart starts to open up. 

For example, I know right now, despite the state of the world, I’m grateful for the changing of the leaves (it’s peak fall as I write this!). I love what it looks like to see yellow and red and it makes me think about the beauty of change and the traditions of fall that I love so much. I can feel the lightness of the leaves falling in my arms, swirling down to my hands. 

For today, gratitude for something as “simple” as fall is enough. My heart feels more open as I think about it. My breath naturally deepens and I feel a wave of peace wash over me. Creating this little pocket of calm and happiness on an otherwise challenging day is the goal—and you can do it in just a few minutes.

Cultivate Your Attitude of Gratitude One Day at a Time

You can’t cultivate an attitude of gratitude in one day, or one breathwork session. It’s a daily practice that you need to choose, day in and day out. The more you notice that gratitude, attune to it in your body, and breathe into it, the more naturally this comes. 

On good days, this makes your happiness even brighter. On challenging days, this gives you a moment of joy or contentment that gives you the respite you need to make it through the rest of the day.

Come practice gratitude with me at Exhale Hour, a live, guided breathwork session, hosted by yours truly! You can also start your free trial of Lindywell and get instant access to 300+ Pilates workouts (like Pilates for Balance and Gratitude), dozens of guided breathwork sessions, and hundreds of nutritious recipes to fill your belly and soul with happiness.

The post 5 Steps to Cultivate an Attitude of Gratitude With Mindfulness appeared first on Lindywell.

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It’s no secret that many of us struggle with mental health during the holidays and for many good reasons, from affording holiday gifts to managing hectic schedules and for some, navigating feelings of grief during what is supposed to be the “most wonderful time of the year.”

You can make a few small changes this year to support your mental health, and as a result, add more enjoyment to your season. These three simple shifts have made the holidays much less stressful for me and my family and I know they’ll be supportive for you too.

1. Practice Breathwork

Breathwork is a supportive practice all year long, but when it comes to supporting your mental health during the holidays, it’s even more important. Breathwork, which is the practice of intentionally breathing in various patterns and speeds, does so much to support your mind and body, which leads to:

• Greater relaxation
• Improved comfort
• Increased alertness
• Reduced anxiety and depression
• Less anger 

All of this can help you manage stress (or feel less of it, in general) while staying more present and content. The best way to get started is with a guided session. This can help you understand how to do it and feel comfortable as you try something that might not feel natural—and we have to free guided sessions for you to get started.

2 Free Breathwork Guided Sessions

That’s why we’ve created six brand-new breathwork sessions for our Lindywell members just in time for the holiday season. Check out two free breathwork sessions below and sign up for your free Lindywell trial to get instant access to all of them!

Breathwork for Holiday Conflict 

Gratitude Meditation

2. Make Time for Movement

Regular exercise reduces stress and when I say “regular exercise” I mean moving your body at least a few times each week. In fact, this study found that people who exercised as few as two times each week were more resistant to the emotional effects of stress. 

In other words, stressful experiences and moments impacted them less than those who exercised just once each week or not at all. Stress isn’t the only thing impacted by movement. Exercise can improve nearly every area of your life, including:

• Mood
• Sleep
• Energy
• Endurance 

That’s why this is so important for supporting your mental health during the holiday season. Plus, we can use a little more of all those things to get through the fun! 

If you want to be intentional about making time for daily movement, and need accountability to do it, start your free Lindywell trial for instant access to 300+ Pilates and strength training workouts, plus stretching sessions, breathwork sessions, and nourishing recipes.

3. Do Three Small Things for Your Each Day

t’s easy to forget your own needs during the holidays. You’re taking care of family, spending more time with friends, and trying to “make the most” of every minute. All of that, as you also run from one thing to the next. This also means you’re probably exhausted, and as a result, frustrated, irritable, and unable to truly enjoy and be present in the experience. 

Instead, focus on three “small” things (think: easily attainable, things you know you can actually do) that you can do each day to support yourself. For example, that might look like:

• Waking up earlier on busy days to get an extra 15 minutes alone.
• Prioritizing 20 minutes of movement (walk, workout, Pilates, etc.) before the day gets started.
• Drinking mocktails (check out our winter mocktail recipes!) or switching between mocktails and alcoholic beverages so you’re more likely to get better sleep and feel better each day.

Remember to keep it simple so you can actually make it happen. Add these tasks to your calendar so they don’t get forgotten in the hustle of the season. If you’re anything like me, if it’s not on the calendar, it doesn’t get done!

Don’t Ignore Your Mental Health During the Holidays

This is a busy time of year that can bring up a lot of emotions. Don’t forget to prioritize your needs, make time for movement, and use your breath to reduce stress. Not only will you feel better, but each moment will be that much better. Instead of feeling anxious or exhausted, you’ll be feeling calm, confident, and energized!

The post 3 Ways to Support Your Mental Health During the Holidays appeared first on Lindywell.

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When you think of the term “wellness journey,” what comes to mind? Perhaps a Rocky-like montage of working out at the gym, pumping your fist in the air, dripping with sweat? While movement is absolutely part of a wellness journey—and sweaty, hard workouts are once what I thought of too—what comes to my mind what I think of wellness now is much different than it was a few years ago. Now I want to help you make this shift too.

After years of releasing perfection, focusing on grace over guilt, and working with my body not against it, I now hear “wellness journey” and feel a sense of vibrancy flow over me. I see and feel all the goodness in my life, my relationships, and my body. 

This is because I see wellness as a holistic experience of health, both in mind and body. While I make time to do Pilates nearly daily, I also focus on breathwork, take care of my mental health, and prioritize strength-building. 

When you broaden the lens of what your wellness journey looks like, to include daily habits, physical strength building, mental health, and much more, you’ll find that life becomes truly vibrant. Here are some ways that this shift can impact you.

1. Stamina for Life

Physical health is the foundational element of well-being, but not just strength-building. Life-long healthy habits such as consistent movement, nutritious eating, adequate sleep, and access to nature will sustain and nourish the body. This, in turn, fills you with the stamina to get through your days, do physically demanding activities, and explore the world. In other words, live a full life!

What’s really cool is that science tells us this physical vitality gives you more energy and enthusiasm levels while also reducing your risk of chronic diseases. We all want those things, don’t we?

2. Mental Clarity and Creativity

A strong mind is like a well-tuned instrument. An intentional, consistent mindfulness practice will enhance your ability to use it, especially when it comes to creative, flexible thinking. In fact, research shows a correlation between mindfulness and:

• Decision-making
• Concentration
• Problem-solving
• Observation skills 

This cultivated mental clarity also helps you formulate new, imaginative ways to flesh out an idea, complete a task, or achieve a goal. In other words, your mind is clear enough to think outside the box and get things done!

3. Emotional Regulation and Resilience

Learning how to process, stabilize, and regulate your emotions leads to more resilience in all areas of life. If you can recognize the emotion, it has less power over you, allowing you to validate yourself and move forward rather than staying stuck in that headspace. 

A holistic wellness journey makes this awareness possible, which in turn makes it easier for you to:

• Adapt to changes.
• Recover from setbacks big and small.
• Form healthy coping mechanisms.
• Maintain a balanced outlook in the face of adversity.

When I talk about making life more vibrant, I don’t mean minimizing the difficult circumstances that will inevitably arise. I mean learning how to persevere in the midst of them, which also happens to be a strong predictor of overall happiness.

Practice breathwork by joining us for Exhale Hour, a live guided breathwork session. This is just one of the many ways to build emotional resilience and regulation. 

4. Deep Relationship Connections

When you prioritize well-being, you create more bandwidth to meaningfully connect with those around you. Think about it: if you’re feeling energized and happy, you want to spend time with friends. If you’re feeling low and burnt out, you’re more likely to crave quiet and alone time. 

While there’s nothing wrong with the latter, high-quality relationships can lower blood pressure, strengthen cardiovascular health, and boost brain function. Your friendships are as vital to your well-being as your workouts, so don’t skip this important aspect of your wellness journey. 

5. Rest and Sleep Quality

Creating healthy habits around sleep hygiene, diet, and physical activity boosts your ability to get restorative sleep, which in turn, reduces the effects of insomnia and chronic fatigue. Think about what habits you want to build to make this restorative sleep possible. I’ve found it helpful to put away my devices an hour or two before bed to reduce blue light exposure. 

You could also start doing our Pilates for Better Sleep workout or Sleep Well, an evening breathwork practice. The small changes can have a significant impact on your sleep—and let’s be honest, we all need sleep to function at our best.

6. The Freedom to Do what You Love

Part of your wellness journey is exploring your hobbies and things that you love doing that don’t involve work or ticking something off your to-do list. When you explore those leisure activities that you enjoy, you also boost your endocrine, immune, cardiometabolic, and central nervous functions.

After years of reading only non-fiction books, I recently started reading fiction again. I’ve found that reading fiction helps my mind truly rest and not force my reading time to be “productive” like most other areas of life. Reading just for the sake of reading has been a much-needed addition to my wellness routine over the past couple of months.

7. Self-Confidence 

Robust physical, mental, and emotional health can boost self-confidence—but confidence isn’t just about feeling good when you look in the mirror. This cultivated self-confidence gives you the courage to step outside your comfort zone, trust in your own capabilities, and chase after your wildest ambition. In other words, create the life you truly want to live!

High levels of self-confidence will also foster a growth mindset to learn and improve after encountering failure or rejection. This shift in your mindset can lead to feeling more confident in every area of your life.

8. Less (And More Manageable) Stress

Stressful moments are inevitable and yet chronic stress can make you feel overwhelmed or out of control. Your wellness journey can make it much easier to manage those moments when they arise and even reduce the stress in your life. For example, exercise is actually a stress reliever—and nearly any form of exercise can help decrease your stress. 

Pair this with some of the other practices mentioned, like breathwork and mindfulness, and you may find you experience stress less and less. Talk about vitality!

Reap the Vibrant Lifestyle Benefits of a Holistic Wellness Journey

Focusing on mental, emotional, and physical health isn’t about checking another health box. It’s about creating a vibrant life that leaves you feeling abundant, strong, calm, and confident. This is exactly how we help our thousands of members across the globe feel with Lindywell. 

If you want to create a vibrant life, while feeling stronger and more confident, start your free trial and get instant access to 300+ workouts, plus nutritious recipes and guided breathwork sessions.

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We are so excited to introduce you to our newest instructor, Lindy Royer! (Yes, her name is Lindy!)

With over 20 years of experience as a physical therapist and Pilates instructor, she is highly trained in movement and pain education, as well as a master Pilates educator (teaching Pilates to teachers like myself!). Lindy has been a long-time friend, teacher and mentor of mine for many years! 

But beyond her many accolades, Lindy is just flatout inspirational. Whether she’s rock climbing or planking around the world, Lindy hasn’t let her two hip replacements hold her back from living her life to the fullest—and inspiring all those around her to do the same! 

Lindy believes movement can be joyful and fun, no matter our age or past history.

She has done a handful of bonus workouts in the app, and has been a top-rated guest on the podcast.

The best part? You can start working with Lindy TODAY by trying her new Build Vibrancy for Life series in the Lindywell app now! 

These highly-requested workouts focus on mobility and balance. Plus, this series is bone-friendly, making it a great option to consider for those with osteoporosis or low-bone density.

With a Lindywell membership, you can get full access to Lindy’s series, but also 300+ on-demand Pilates workouts, breathwork exercises and nourishing recipes. We’ll help you create a consistent workout routine (that you’ll actually enjoy!) in less than 20 minutes a day.

Our members rave about the lasting results of less stress, increased strength, a toned body and regulated nervous system. And you can experience these same benefits too!

Ready to feel powerful and confident in your body at every age? Get instant access to Lindy’s new series with a FREE trial today!

The post Meet Lindy: Physical therapist, pain expert & our newest instructor! appeared first on Lindywell.

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