All posts tagged: meditation

Ecophilia – a Sprinkle of Wellbeing Magic

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Ecophilia is the suggestion that humans possess an innate tendency, in fact an innate desire to connect with nature. Perhaps the result of millions of years of evolution in a natural environment, long before the industrial revolution and urbanisation took hold. Apparently spending time in nature, surrounding ourselves with all things green and mother earth (think hugging trees and running barefoot in fields of Barley) makes us feel complete, happy and satisfied. In fact, just ten minutes in nature can reduce stress, boost our mental health and improve our overall sense of wellbeing. And occasionally make us snotty and irritable during hayfever season! So if you’re feeling inspired and want to take full advantage of this glorious weather, grab those antihistamines and read our top 10 ways to spend more time outdoors and boost your mental health and wellbeing; Visit your local city farm  Buy a new plant and keep a photo diary each week as you care for it and watch it grow  Grow plants on your windowsill – a pleasure for you and …

Improve your Focus, Reduce Stress and Boost Creativity

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Can you find 10 minutes this weekend to begin your meditation journey? Scientists have proved that meditation enhances mental performance by improving focus and concentration. It also boosts our creativity and self-acceptance, encourages empathy and boosts our immunity. Counterbalancing the detrimental effects of stress and anxiety. (For more benefits see here). If you’re keen to kick-start your learning and want to see how meditation could impact your life, we’ve created a 10 minute audio guide to help you navigate one of the trickiest first steps – learning to focus the breath. Those with highly active, inquisitive minds will know just how difficult it can be to silence the endless chatter, but with a little help and a lot of patience, it can be done! And if you feel like you’re ready to try a 5 minute mindfulness meditation, why not give this one a try.  

What’s the Big Fuss about Meditation?

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Evidence suggests meditation has been around since 1500 BCE, making it well over 3500 years old. But what is about this ancient art form that’s survived the test of time and what are the current scientific studies telling us about the benefits of meditation? When the first New York marathon was run in 1970 there were only 127 competitors. A time when little was known about the benefits of physical exercise for our health and wellbeing. Nowadays these are widely publicised, and 46 years on there were over 50,000 runners in the 2016 New York marathon. Exercise has become an integral part of our daily lives, and at Technotox, we believe it’s only a matter of time before meditation follows the same route. After all, now the evidence exists, why shouldn’t we spend as much time and money looking after our mental and emotional health as we do our physical health? If you’re still not convinced, or simply need reminding of meditation’s plethora of benefits, we’ve chosen our top ten to share with you – Boosts positive emotions
 Meditating stimulates activity …

12 Ways to Nourish Yourself

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A reoccurring theme I hear throughout my coaching sessions, is an ongoing struggle with nourishment and clients who just don’t know how to nourish themselves. Some clients see it as an indulgence, some don’t even know what it means or where to start. More often than not, it’s the first thing to fall by the wayside when we’re busy or feeling stressed out. Instead we opt for the easy, go-to solutions of comfort food, alcohol, switching off for hours in front of the tv, withdrawing from social engagements and the killer, procrastination. So in an effort to help you reduce your stress levels, boost your happiness and improve self-esteem, here are my top 12 ways to nourish yourself. Aim for at least one a day: Switch off all technology (and I mean completely switch it off, don’t just put it on silent!) for an hour Put your comfies on, snuggle up and read a book you love Meditate Do a pilates or yoga class (there are plenty of great ones on YouTube – a very mindful way to use technology btw!) Light some candles, lie down and think about loving …

Reset, Connect and Create for 2016

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Introducing Reset, Connect & Create – Technotox’s inaugural urban retreat to nourish the mind, body and soul at the start of 2016. Reset your mind, connect with your body and enrich your soul during this one day urban retreat in the heart of Soho on Saturday 23 January (9.15am – 5.45pm). A day of personal growth, pilates, nutrition tips, mindfulness meditation and creativity, you will be left feeling balanced, nourished and inspired, and ready to make 2016 your best year yet! We’ll kick start the day with a pilates class and energizing smoothie, followed by a session on realistic resolutions from our expert nutritionist and Sport Stylist ambassador, Ruth Tongue. After a short break (with snacks provided by Whole Foods), take part in a values and meaning workshop to help you reassess what fulfillment and happiness really look like for you. After lunch, we’ll start the afternoon with a guided meditation to clear the mind, help reduce stress and promote positive emotions – held by wellness coach and founder of Technotox, Lucy Faulks. Round off the day with a …

It’s So Quiet Here!

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Technotox is honoured to have the support of Mind Space and its founder Adam Dacey, who today becomes our first guest writer with an article about cultivating a quiet mind and the art of mindful listening. It’s So Quiet Here! At the live evening classes that I teach it’s common for participants to say at the end of the first class, ‘I had many thoughts and was so distracted when I was trying to Meditate’ The experience of peace, calm and inner quiet does not arise simply because we decide to start Meditating. Sometimes through making too much effort to attempt to quieten the mind, we can push the experience even further away. One teacher I have, spent 12 years in retreat. When he had finished he concluded that the most effective method to quieten the mind, was to sit and observe what is happening, the sounds around us, the thoughts in our mind. Mentally step back and observe. Not to add more, to what is already there. Or to try to control what is happening. The mind …

Redefine Success and Create a Happier Life

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When Arianna Huffington collapsed from exhaustion in 2007, she was forced to take a long hard look at her life and redefine what success meant to her. With her health so visibly deteriorating, the classic notions of success as money and power, were irrelevant. If she wasn’t alive, both would cease to matter. In her book THRIVE, we are introduced to a third metric of success. A metric that consists of four equal pillars. The pillars represent Wellbeing, Wisdom, Wonder and Giving and they make up the four chapters of her excellent book. An impassioned read, Arianna encourages us to look within ourselves and build a more meaningful and fulfilling life, aligned with our values. Touching on the importance of sleep and meditation to nourish our minds and bodies. We are also introduced to the power of giving back to our local communities and the joys of delighting in wonder. Something we rarely give ourselves the time to do. “Disconnecting from our technology to reconnect with ourselves is absolutely essential for wisdom.” Arianna Huffington Each page is filled with wisdom and insight, and I would …

10 Benefits of Meditation

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Evidence suggests meditation has been around since 1500 BCE, making it over 3500 years old. Yet the art of meditation only spread to Western society thousands of years later, and has only really gained household popularity in the last decade. What is about this ancient art form that’s survived the test of time and why do so many religions and gurus swear by its healing properties? We’ve chosen our top 10 benefits – It boosts Positive Emotions
 Powerful contemplative meditations like loving-kindness act as triggers for positive emotions. When we recall and allow ourselves to cultivate loving feelings, not only does it boost our mood, but we can more easily access those feelings after the mood has passed. Positive effect on our Physical Health Meditating encourages us to relax and therefore helps to reduce our stress level and boosts our immunity. It has also been proven to boost our immunity. Helps fight Depression Results now show that MBCT (Mindfulness Based Cognitive Therapy) is just as effective as anti-depressants in fighting mental illness. This is revolutionary for those who are …

The Mindfulness Revolution

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No doubt you’ve heard the word Mindfulness being thrown around a lot recently, it’s the Number One wellbeing buzzword and everyone from Ruby Wax to Goldie Hawn is singing its praises. But what is Mindfulness and why is it so beneficial? In essence, Mindfulness is purposefully paying attention and being aware in the present moment. Intentionally observing (but not clinging onto) your thoughts and feelings without judgement. This can be experienced at any moment, in any situation, but is best practised in a quiet room without distractions. Meditation is a great way to begin learning the Art of Mindfulness, just 10 minutes every day (preferably at the same time each morning) can make a big difference. What does Mindfulness actually do? Mindfulness improves focus and levels of concentration. Two incredibly important skills in this information age when we’re continually bombarded with enormous amounts of information and endless digital distractions. Mindfulness provides clarity of thought. In essence, once you slow down your mind and begin to understand the landscape of your thoughts and feelings in more …

4 ways to conquer negative thought

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We all experience negative thoughts – be they fleeting or circling patterns of misery, they are almost always uninvited and can affect everything from our close relationships to work life, depleting energy stores and exhausting our productivity. The same destructive neural pathways are visited, patterns emerge and habits are formed. Often there appears to be no escape. We will accept the wave of negativity and some even learn to relish in it, feeling increasingly sorry for themselves and becoming more and more isolated from reality. The good news is, with a little effort and discipline we can learn to break these patterns. Thoughts are just thoughts, they are not fact or reality. We have thousands upon thousands of them every day – random, creative, bizarre thoughts and just because we have them, doesn’t make them an accurate reflection of the way things are.   Choose Sunny Whatever the weather forecast for your inner world, unlike the outer world, we do have control over our minds. Our thoughts and moods can be influenced and we can …