Lately I have found myself in some pretty rockin’ awesome habits. I have been going to bed early and waking up early every morning (by 6:30 am). I start out my day by filling my mind with positivity, I read my daily e-mails of quotes and inspiration. I like to get that positivity on me right away. Like getting dressed for the day, I mentally prepare myself to have a great day by starting on the most positive note.

Soon after I have my 45 minutes to an hour of reading, it is time to get the kids up and ready for the day. Then it’s bed making and downstairs for breakfast. Usually it is pancakes (as you could have guessed), toast or oatmeal all served with some fresh fruit. After breakfast, dishes, hair dos and making Autumn’s school lunch, we are off. I walk Autumn to school every morning and since it has been so beautiful outside these days, I have taken every morning to go for a 2 1/2 mile power walk with Kesa.

This is such a great time for me to clear my mind and let go of all the stress or worry I may be carrying. I call those morning walks my walking meditation. I used to be so uptight and whenever I would be walking, cleaning or doing anything I would be thinking about how I should be meditating. Now I realize that you can meditate no matter where you are or what you are doing. In fact, meditating and keeping your mind in a positive state is easy when you are just sitting there. I find it more challenging and beneficial to practice meditating even when life is crazy and the situation that I am in may not seem like an ideal meditation setting.

What is meditation anyways? To me mediation is just taking the time to separate myself from all of my crazy thoughts and any external circumstances and get in touch with my inner peace. In meditation I just get in touch with my breathing and let everything go. Meditation does not have to be a crazy religious ritual or something you can only do sitting on a meditation cushion with candles and incense going. All of us are breathing all of the time and we can all, at any time use our breath to meditate and clear our heads. Who couldn’t benefit from that?

Here is a definition that I found to be fitting. “The basic idea generally associated with why people meditate is that during our day we are constantly subjected to sensory input and our minds are always active in the process of thinking. We read the newspaper, study books, write reports, engage in conversation, solve problems, etc. Typically, as we do these normal activities we engage in a constant mental commentary, sort of an inner “The Drama of Me.” Usually people aren’t fully aware of all the mental thought activity that we are constantly engaged in. Meditation allows all this activity to settle down, and often results in the mind becoming more peaceful, calm and focused. In essence, meditation allows the awareness to become ‘rejuvenated’.”

As I am walking, doing dishes, sweeping, folding laundry or making beds,  I simply breathe in and out in a relaxed manner and focus on my breath. If ever I start out on a walk all frazzled and find my thoughts racing, after my walking meditation I feel 100% clear and relaxed and able to face the day. I also love to get out first thing in the morning when the air is so fresh and the sun is still making its way up in the sky. I love the cool crisp air and the sounds of the birds chirping.

Two other things I practice on my morning walk (or throughout the day) are gratitude and affirmations. I make a list of all the things that I am grateful for and focus my thoughts on all the good and perfect things in my life. If I am not around people I even say out loud what I am thankful for. It may sound crazy, but it is another sure-fire way to start your day out with a positive attitude and kick negativity out the door of your mind. In your head or out loud simply state to the universe, God or whatever you believe in what it is that you are grateful for. Some of mine look like this.

• Thank you for my health
• Thank you for my daughters
• Thank you for my husband
• Thank you for the sun
• Thank you for this beautiful day
• Thank you for our home

Affirmations are also amazing! I have mentioned before in previous posts how I love Patricia Moreno and her Intensati workouts. Now that I am pregnant, I find those workouts to be a bit strenuous for me, but even though I can’t do the workouts I can still do the affirmations. The idea behind an affirmation is to declare what you want for your life as though you already have it. You can say the affirmations out loud or you can write them out and post them around your house. If the media is always advertising crap to you, why not advertise what you want for your life to yourself? The most powerful affirmations to turn around toxic thought patterns would be to even say them to yourself in front of a mirror, something I am not 100% comfortable with yet.

Some examples of affirmations could be:

• I am strong
• Every Cell in my body vibrates with energy and health
  
• I prosper wherever I turn and I know that I deserve prosperity of all kinds
• I know that I deserve Love and accept it now
• I believe I will succeed
• I am the perfect weight for me
• I choose to make positive healthy choices for myself
• I am my own unique self – special, creative and wonderful
• I choose love, joy and freedom, open my heart and allow wonderful things to flow into my life.

Work on putting on that positivity before you begin your day, just like getting dressed. Try some of these methods out for yourself and see if you don’t feel amazing!

Have a beautiful day! 🙂