As a busy caregiver, you might feel as if one more activity could be the one that makes you keel over. But it doesn’t have to be that way. In fact, if you add mindfulness to your daily walks, you might find that you feel less overwhelmed by life in general.
Caregiver Yonkers NY – Adding Mindfulness to Your Walks
What Is Mindfulness?
Mindfulness can seem like an awfully big word when you first hear it. But it’s a really simple concept. At its core, mindfulness is about simply paying attention to what’s happening right at this very moment. When you’re eating, it’s about enjoying each bite of the food and how it smells and looks. On a walk, you might notice how the air feels, how it smells, and all of the different sights. Mindfulness is very much about the present and the here and now.
Exercise and a Mental Break
Walking is terrific exercise and when you combine walking with mindfulness, you’re doing something for your body while you give your brain a break, too. You don’t realize that your brain is constantly going, especially as you’re solving problems that come up in your life as a caregiver, but those times that you can let your brain wander and rest are golden.
Talk to Your Doctor if You’re New to Walking
When you haven’t been exercising regularly, it’s important to talk to your doctor before you fire up a new exercise routine. That’s to make sure that you’re not going to make any underlying health issues worse by starting up an exercise plan. If you haven’t been to your doctor in a while, this is a perfect opportunity to have a quick checkup, too.
Don’t Force Anything, Just Walk
As you go for your first few mindfulness walks, remember to just let everything flow. Don’t worry about what you’re thinking or whether you’re “doing this right.” Go ahead and walk and just enjoy yourself. As you think about doing anything, try to just think about what you’re seeing, hearing, and experiencing right in that moment. Walking with mindfulness is a lot easier than it might seem at first. It’s not intended as an activity that will be difficult or that will add to your to do list.
Mindfulness doesn’t have to be as complicated as it might sound to you at first. It’s really very simple and is just a way for you to settle your mind a bit. The chaos and busyness that you experience as a caregiver can take a toll on you and adding mindfulness to some of your activities can help a great deal.
