YMCA Healthy Living Magazine, powered by n4 food and health Summer 2018 | Page 14
FIONA KRIARIS
Fiona is the Health & Fitness Project Director of YMCA Victoria. As a fitness professional and a
teacher of meditation and mindfulness, for the past five years Fiona has been creating an
innovative fusion of these two fields. Studying at the Mindful Awareness Research Centre at
UCLA has added another exciting dimension to her knowledge and skills, all with the aim of
helping the wider community adopt mindfulness as an everyday activity.
A MORE
BALANCED MIND
Meditation and mindfulness expert Fiona Kriaris shares three tips to help you become
more mindfully balanced in your everyday life.
t has become the norm for
people to carry out their day in
the most efficient manner by
habitually being in the mode of ‘doing’
with little time allocated to just ‘being’.
We live in a world that is so connected
with technology that it’s causing a
disconnect within ourselves. More than
ever, people are searching for ways to
bring more balance into their lives. This
is where mindfulness can help. Research
proves that being present is an excellent
predictor of a person’s happiness; it can
also reduces stress, anxiety, and
depression.
I
Mindfulness refers to ‘awareness that
arises, through paying attention, on
purpose, in the present moment, with
kindness and in a non-judgemental
manner.’ Mindfulness has become
popular in the modern world, which is
not surprising since science and
research supports the many physical,
mental and emotional health benefits.
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So how can you incorporate mindfulness
into your everyday life, to help bring
more balance into a world that is so
busy? Here are three simple tips to
introduce more balance into your day.
1. Meditation
Meditation calms the mind and relaxes
the body. Don’t be fooled by myths of
having to commit to an hour a day, or
sitting on the floor cross-legged while
attempting to empty your mind of all
thoughts! There are more user-friendly
approaches to meditation such as: sitting
comfortably in a chair, closing your eyes,
and allowing any distractions such as
sounds, body, thoughts, and emotions to
arise with the intention of being able to
explore them if desired. Aim to start
doing just three minutes a day, and see
how it can cultivate inner peace.
2. The STOP acronym
The STOP acronym can be applied
anytime throughout the day. It stands
for: stop what you are doing, take a few
breaths, observe your experience just
as it is (that is, take note of your
YMCA HEALTHY LIVING MAGAZINE SUMMER 2018
thoughts, emotions, body sensations
and sounds), and then proceed with
what you were doing or with something
different altogether. This can be a helpful
prompt to take a mini or a longer
timeout. You may even want to schedule
the STOP acronym into your daily
calendar, or as a reminder in your phone,
to ensure you take a few moments to be
fully present throughout your day.
3. Gratitude
Gratitude refers to being thankful; it’s a
state of appreciation for all the things
small and big in your life. There is a
beauty in noticing the things that often
get missed, when life is constantly busy.
It can start by just pondering what you
are grateful for, or you can make a more
deliberate effort by keeping a gratitude
journal. This practise can start to change
the way you look at things. Interestingly,
before you know it the things you look at
may begin to change for the better.
The irony is, by purposefully taking time
out to be mindful, you can create more
quality time in your day, as well as
increase your happiness and enhance
your health. Now is a great time to start.
So STOP and ask yourself, what are
you grateful for right now?