THE ART (AND IMPORTANCE) OF BEING PRESENT
You know that feeling that nothing else matters? You know the one we’re talking about. It’s like when you’re midway through the thigh section and your quads are burning and you don’t think you can make it through another moment but there you are and you’re doing it, and you don’t notice until it’s over, but everything else that was so important five minutes ago, like the emails you haven’t responded to yet, all the things you’ve still got left to do, just isn’t as important anymore. Instead of worrying about the impression you’re making on others, you start to realize the impression you’re making on yourself.
Yeah. That feeling. In psychology, it’s called flow. It’s also called being present.
It’s incredible how easy it is to avoid being present in our daily lives, what with our constant digital connectivity and the fact that wellness has become much more about how you look (rather than how you feel.)
Here’s how to amp up your presence and achieve flow in your mind, according to psychology experts:
-Clearly define one (attainable) goal
-Concentrate. Unplug from your smartphone + enter a focused space.
The benefits of being “in the zone” and achieving a flow state are numerous – research links it to increased self-confidence, less stress, and more satisfaction with life. One of the most common, accessible ways to achieve flow is by exercising – and when you reach flow while exercising, it links directly to optimal performance. (We were psyched about that last one. Bring on the happy.)
So, our advice: be present. Stay there. Reach your fullest wellness potential.
At exhale, we live for this feeling, and that’s putting it mildly. We invite you to invest in being present this spring by making time for yourself and setting a few mindful goals. Invest in your presence + wellbeing by sweating it out in a fitness class, flushing out toxins with a massage, gleaning out the winter gunk with a facial, and noticing how things change when you reach your present state of mind.
