What do you think of when you hear the word 'yoga'? Is it flexibility and breathing? Is it stretching and strength? Maybe meditation? I thousand things could come to mind when we think about yoga. While Western culture has been more tuned into the physical practice of yoga, the meditative and pranayama components are just as significant. For some, meditation and the mind-body connection can feel pretty abstract and like it's "just not for them". Something we can do to bring those elements a little closer to us is to incorporate a physical practice of these things... journaling!
I'd like to offer some journal prompts to serve as a guide in your yoga and meditation journey. As someone who really enjoys movement, I found meditation daunting and initially just flat out unenjoyable. Just like the asanas, the meditation took practice. I needed to be gentle with myself and let go of judgement.
Mindset & Mindfulness
Now I like to say mindset AND mindfulness. However, others might think about these things as mindset VERSUS mindfulness. So which one is correct? Are either correct? Well, I think it could be a little of both! Let's back up for a moment and define these words...
MINDSET: the way you think about and perceive things
MINDFULNESS: the conscious effort put in to understanding your thoughts and what it means to have a human experience
Do we see differences and similarities between these words? I mean, they both start with 'mind', so that must mean something! To dig a little deeper into their meanings, I like to think about it like this...
MINDSET is how we currently think or what we want to change about how we think. MINDFULNESS is being aware of what we are thinking without judgement of what it is we are thinking about.
MINDSET = thoughts themselves
MINDFULNESS = awareness of the thoughts
"The best way to take care of the future is to take care of the present moment." - Thich Nhat Hanh
So when it comes to our mindset around yoga and meditation, we can change it or simply become more aware of it through mindfulness practices.
Journal Prompts
Now let's take some action!
Get comfortable wherever you are (or want to be) - a coffee shop, your yoga mat, your bed, your porch - and close your eyes. Take two deep breaths in and out of your nose, then open your eyes. Have your notebook/journal or a piece of paper and your pen close by. The key here for the following prompts is to be completely honest with yourself and to not bring in judgement. They are meant to be able to be completed in ten minutes or less and guide you through your thoughts.
** There are download links to formatted journal prompts if you'd like them at the end of the post, or you can following along with the questions in your own way.
Prompt #1 (Getting Started)
Write down three things you're grateful for.
What do you hope to accomplish from mindfulness practices?
How are you feeling right NOW?
Prompt #2 (Diving Deeper)
Describe a moment in your life when you felt you were especially mindful of things happening around and within you.
How do you remember feeling in that moment and how do you feel about it now?
Close your eyes & take 5-10 deep breaths. Reflect on how you feel during this experience of just breathing and take note of any thoughts that popped into your mind.
Prompt #3 (After an Asana Practice)
How is your body feeling? What do you notice about your breath?
What was especially challenging about this practice? Why?
What did you learn from this practice that you want to carry with you for the rest of your week?
I hope that these prompts can serve as a guide into your meditation practice. I also love using guided audio meditations which can be found on YouTube, Spotify, etc. Just like your asana yoga practice, your meditation practice should be completely YOURS and something that you look forward to doing.
"Mindfulness is a way of befriending ourselves and our experience." - Jon Kabat-Zinn
As promised, here are the downloadable links for the journal prompts if you wish to print them!
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