Meditation FAQ

Many of us struggle with the notion that maintaining a healthy mind is as important to our overall health and well-being as maintaining physical fitness. In fact, recent studies suggest that maintaining a meditation practice might be even more effective than physical exercise in lowering blood pressure, reducing cholesterol levels, improving digestion and strengthening the immune system.

Simply put, meditation refers to a wide range of practices aiming at quieting your mind. This is typically accomplished by training your mind to focus on one thing at a time—your breath, a mantra, particular movement, or visualization, to name a few. Achieving such single-pointed concentration activates your body’s natural relaxation response, resulting in a feeling of calm and well-being. I often get questions from students and employees about the practice, so here are some pointers to help you get started.

Is there a proper position? Many traditional practices strongly encourage meditating while maintaining a particular upright-seated position such as the lotus position. While there is strong evidence to the positive physiological effect these positions have on the body and the process of meditation, being comfortable in your position is your number one priority as you’re starting out; it will increase the likelihood of you reaching that single-pointed concentration and encourage you to meditate more frequently. Most meditation styles can be practiced while sitting on an ordinary chair or a couch, and even while lying down.

How often and how long should I meditate for? Whether you hope to simply reduce stress once a week or become an advanced daily meditator, consistency is key; in the same way it takes an exercise routine to get physically fit, you can’t expect to have your mind fit by sporadically engaging in a practice. Determining in advance which day/s of the week and what time you carve out for your practice can be extremely effective. How long to meditate for is another topic open for debate. Whereas multiple traditional practices call for an hour-long practice, studies suggest that multiple physiological benefits kick in with as little as 10 minutes, when you practice on a regular basis.

I can’t keep my mind quiet… Is it possible that meditation is just not for me? If you could go back to the first time you exercised, you most likely started out relatively easy and gradually built up a routine. This is the same way to build your meditation practice. Having realistic expectations is also an important part of the process, because training your mind takes patience, conditioning, and time. If you keep practicing, you’ll start experiencing that inner calm and, literally, peace of mind.