7 Natural DIY Drinks to Help You Sleep Better

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

Trouble falling asleep? While you know the importance of sleeping, it can be easier said than done.

Here are natural DIY drinks to help you achieve quality sleep to help you feel energized in the morning.

A lack of restful sleep is the number one reason for feeling grumpy, irritated and unmotivated, but quality sleep is also needed for healthy digestion, detoxification and maintaining a healthy weight.

If you’re part of the ⅓ of the adult population that suffers from poor sleep, these natural DIY drinks will help you fall into a happy slumber to improve your overall health.

1. Valerian Root Tea

Valerian is known for being used in herbal medicine as a sleep aid and to help relieve stress and anxiety.

Valerian extract can be found in tinctures and capsules, and, of course, sleepy-time teas. While some people swear by the sedative effect of this little pink flower, studies remain inconclusive as to whether or not valerian truly improves sleep quality. Some studies suggest valerian is most powerful when taken for at least 28 days, while others experience better sleep right away.

What we do know, however, is that valerian is safe and gentle to use, has few side effects, and has a calming effect on the nervous system.

How to Drink It:

To make valerian root tea, all you need is 1 teaspoon of loose leaf dried valerian root, a kettle and boiling water. You can also use an infusion device, such as a tea ball, to put the loose herbs in.

Add valerian root to your mug and cover with boiling water. Steep for 10-15 minutes and remove the tea ball, or if you used loose leaf valerian in your cup, strain it and discard.

Valerian has a strong, bitter taste, so you may want to add a touch of Manuka honey or coconut sugar to sweeten it. Some recommend drinking valerian root in the evenings, approximately 30 minutes before bed if you’re using it to help you sleep.

2. Golden Milk

What was once only used as a healing remedy by Ayurvedic doctors, golden milk is now on the menus of most health food stores for its anti-inflammatory and digestive health benefits.

Since golden milk is said to improve digestion function (and therefore the absorption of essential nutrients that help promote restful sleep, such as calcium and magnesium), sipping on a warm, soothing mug of golden milk before bedtime may help you rest easier.

Few studies back up the specific health claims of turmeric and golden milk, but there is evidence of curcumin, the active ingredient in turmeric, having anti-inflammatory properties. Since chronic inflammation can promote sleep loss, getting extra anti-inflammatory nutrients in your diet is never a bad idea.

How to Drink It:

You can make golden milk at home by boiling a non-dairy milk with coconut oil, ground ginger, black pepper, turmeric and cinnamon.

For simple step-by-step instructions, here’s our recipe to make a Golden Turmeric Latte (it includes all of the same ingredients as golden milk).

3. Tart Cherry Juice

Tart cherry juice is said to be rich in antioxidants such as anthocyanin, which can help protect against cancer and cardiovascular disease, but it may also be effective for relieving insomnia.

One study showed that tart Montmorency Cherries contain high levels of melatonin, which helps regulate your sleep and wake cycle. The study measured sleep improvement in healthy adults after drinking tart cherry juice concentrate for 7 days, and found that total sleep time and sleep quality were enhanced compared to those in the placebo group.

How to Drink It:

If you have trouble falling asleep and staying asleep, you may want to start sipping on some tart cherry juice before bed, or try blending it into a smoothie to make a natural night time drink.

To make tart cherry juice, simply add 20 pitted cherries, 2 tsp makuna honey, and 1/4 cup of water to a blender. Blend together and strain into a glass to remove cherry chunks. If you like pulp, however, feel free to leave the cherry skins in the drink for added benefits.

4. Coconut Water

Coconut water is more than a post-workout or summer’s day hydration drink: it may also help you fall asleep easier. This is because coconut water is high in magnesium, the mineral that helps relax your muscles and ease tension throughout your body.

How to Drink It:

Coconut water is low in sugar, so it’s safe to sip on before bed without experiencing a blood sugar spike and crash. To give it a boost, add dried hibiscus flower, chill overnight, and strain out the flower before drinking. Hibiscus has been shown to reduce anxiety and have natural sedative effects.

5. Banana Carob Powder Smoothie

If you haven’t tried carob before, carob powder is like raw cacao’s cousin. It has a mild caramel, chocolate-y taste and pairs well with Paleo-friendly desserts and smoothies.

 While it’s known for being rich in antioxidants, it also contains high levels of calcium, which is a mineral that acts as a natural sleep aid on its own.

How to Drink It:

When it comes to making a natural drink for falling asleep with carob powder, I recommend blending it with ½ frozen banana, almond milk, and cinnamon to make a creamy, satiating smoothie.

Bananas can also help promote better quality sleep because they contain the amino acid l-tryptophan, which gets converted to serotonin and melatonin.

6. Warm Glass of Coconut Milk

Granny was onto something when she gave you that warm glass of milk before bed. Traditionally, dairy milk was the night time beverage of choice because it contains the amino acid tryptophan to help promote sleep. But using a dairy-free milk such as coconut milk and almond milk can still be effective as a natural drink for falling asleep.

As mentioned above, coconut contains minerals such as magnesium, while almonds are rich in calcium, so both options can still promote a sense of calm and relaxation (especially when warmed up in a cozy mug).

Cardamom is a spice with a strong, ginger-like taste, and is said to have been used in Ayurveda to help cure insomnia for thousands of years.

How to Drink It:

Cardamom and warm milk is a traditional Ayurvedic beverage recommended to those who have trouble falling and staying asleep. A teaspoon of raw honey will add a touch of sweetness to your warm milk and cardamom – and some people even swear by having honey before bed to wake up feeling rested (however, there are no reputable studies at this time linking honey to insomnia).

7. Sleepy-Time Elixir

Many herbs, such as lavender and chamomile, have soothing effects and can act as mild sedatives. You can make your own sleepy-time tea by purchasing a variety of loose leaf herbs in bulk at your local health food store.

Here are a few suggestions for the most popular herbs recommended to support the nervous system, relieve stress and anxiety and improve sleep quality:

• Lemon balm
• Chamomile
• Lavender
• Lemongrass
• Ashwagandha
• Passion flower
• Holy basil

How to Drink It:

To make a sleepy-time tea, steep equal parts of each herb (approximately 1 teaspoon each) in boiling water (you may also want to use a tea infuser). Strain or remove herbs and add a touch of honey or cinnamon to sweeten. Enjoy!

Watch this video – The Ultimate Bedtime Drink

The Bottom Line

If you have trouble falling asleep, you may also want to consider adding other calming, sleep-inducing activities to your bedtime routine, such as free journaling, meditation, restorative yoga, or a brisk nature walk after dinner.

Creating a sleep sanctuary in your room (a cozy, comfortable environment that’s only used for sleeping) can also help improve your quality and length of sleep – and, therefore, your health and happiness.

Written by Brandi Black

Author Bio:

Brandi Black is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and the creator of Feel Best Naked, a health blog for women who want to clear up their skin, lose the muffin top and make the bloat disappear. After years of experiencing (and then healing) her own unbalanced hormones, she’s now obsessed with helping other women feel spectacular in their own skin with natural remedies for hormone balance.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook

4 DIY Sleeping Aid Recipes for a Better Night’s Sleep

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

DIY Snore Relief Jelly for a Better Night’s Sleep

Keep this 4-ingredient Snore Relief Gel near your bedside to open up your sinuses and give you a better night’s sleep.

Snoring plagues millions of people and can disrupt sleep for those who share a bedroom with them. While it’s often considered a common annoyance, snoring can be indicative of an underlying sleeping disorder associated with a high body mass, depression, and negative sleeping patterns.

But before undergoing any extreme methods to correct it, try using this nightly gel remedy to gently curb your snoring without any adverse side effects.

Eucalyptus oil is an antibacterial ingredient that can be found in many over-the-counter nasal sprays, humidifiers, and seasonal allergy products. It’s been used for hundreds of years to treat respiratory issues in eastern medicine and is an anti-inflammatory that could help alleviate the underlying causes of snoring.

To make your bedside snore gel, heat water over medium heat until steaming hot.

Add in a green tea bag and steep for two minutes to allow for a stronger potency in aroma and color. Gradually whisk gelatin into the hot water and add in the eucalyptus essential oil.

Pour the mixture into an eight-ounce glass jar, cover, and refrigerate for one hour. When ready to use, remove the lid before bedtime and inhale the aroma from the jar. This will help open up your sinuses and improve your breathing.

Recipe by Jennafer Ashley

Keep this 4-ingredient Snore Relief Gel near your bedside to open up your sinuses and give you a better night’s sleep.

Tools

• Small saucepan
• Whisk
• 8-oz jar

Ingredients

• 3/4 cup water
• 3 T grass-fed gelatin powder
• 5-10 drops eucalyptus
• 1 green tea bag (optional)

How to make:

1. Heat the water over medium heat for about five minutes, or until steaming. Remove from the heat and add a green tea bag. Steep for two minutes and discard the tea bag.

• Gradually whisk in the gelatin. Add 10-15 drops of essential oil and pour the mixture into an eight-ounce jar. Refrigerate for one hour to set. Cover and store near your bedside.

How to use:

Remove the cover before bedtime and inhale deeply to help open the sinuses.

Bonus:

Sleepy time Bath Bomb Recipe by Jennafer Ashley

Ease into a restful sleep with these DIY natural fizzy bath bombs made from calming chamomile and lavender.

Tools

• 2 bath bomb molds
• Medium mixing bowl
• Spray bottle filled with water

Ingredients

• 1/2 cup baking soda
• 1/3 cup Epsom salts
• 2 T cream of tartar
• 1/4 t dried chamomile buds or tea
• 1/8 t dried lavender buds
• 5 drops lavender essential oil
• Coconut oil for greasing pods

Instructions

1. Combine dry ingredients in a medium mixing bowl. Whisk to blend and stir in lavender oil.

• Using a spray bottle, spritz water to moisten mixture as you stir. The mixture should be crumbly, but hold when squeezed.

• Lightly grease molds with coconut oil. Use a spoon to scoop mixture into molds (ice cube trays will work too) and press down firmly. If using a bomb mold, overfill each side slightly before putting together.

• Allow to set in a dry area for at least two hours.

• Loosen bombs from molds and place in warm bath water to dissolve.

Dreamy Sleep Time Drink to Help You Sleep Like a Baby

Recipe by Jennafer Ashley

Drink up this dreamy elixir with soothing chamomile and lavender to help you fall into a peaceful sleep.

Tools:

• Saucepan
• Strainer
• Measuring cup with spout

Ingredients:

• 2 ½ cups unsweetened almond milk
• 2 T chamomile buds
• ½ t dried lavender buds
• 1 T raw honey

Instructions:

1. Combine all the ingredients in a saucepan over low heat. Warm until steaming, but not boiling, for 7 minutes.

• Turn the heat off and allow the flavors to infuse for 5 minutes.

• Pour into a measuring cup with a strainer over it, then pour the strained tea into a mug and enjoy!

How to Make Your Own Sleepy Time Chocolate with Melatonin

Recipe by Jennafer Ashley

Keep these relaxing melatonin chocolates by your bedside to whisk you away into dreamland.

Tools:

• Double boiler
• Candy moulds or 2 ice cube trays

Ingredients:

• 12 oz unsweetened dark chocolate chips
• About 6 t liquid melatonin
• Optional: Small amount of sweetener (stevia, raw honey or coconut sugar)

Instructions:

1. In a double boiler over medium heat, melt chocolate chips. Turn heat off and stir in desired amount of melatonin and sweetener.

• Spoon chocolate evenly into 24 candy mold cavities and place in a dry, cool place to set or refrigerate until solid. Once set, pop out of molds and store in a cool spot in an airtight container.

Watch this video – [Try Listening for 3 Minutes] FALL ASLEEP FAST | DEEP SLEEP RELAXING MUSIC

Written by Jennafer Ashley

Author Bio:

Jenna is a Registered Dietetic Technician and recipe developer specializing in healthy eating. She styles and photographs recipes for her website, Fresh and Fit , as well as contributes to a variety of websites. In her free time, Jenna enjoys trying new restaurants and hiking with her German Shepherd.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook

5 Easy Ways to Create a DIY Sleep Sanctuary

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

5 Ways to Transform Your Bedroom into a Sleep Sanctuary

The average person will sleep for nearly 230,000 hours over the course of their life (assuming they get 8 hours of rest each night).

These hours’ amount to approximately ⅓ of your lifetime, so why not create the perfect sleep sanctuary to make your sleep as restful and relaxing as possible?

Not only is a cozy, comfortable sleep sanctuary something to look forward to at the end of the day, but since your body does most of its repair and regeneration while you’re asleep, it can also benefit your health in numerous ways. 

From hormonal balance, reduced cravings for junk food, stress relief – and even natural weight loss – the benefits of restful sleep can be felt physically and emotionally. And improving the quality of your sleep by creating a sleep sanctuary may also help accelerate your health goals.

What Is a Sleep Sanctuary?

A sleep sanctuary is a comfortable environment that promotes restful sleep for better health. The purpose of creating a sleep sanctuary is to remove distractions from your bedroom that interfere with proper sleep, as well as to improve sleep quality with materials that produce a tranquil, “chillaxed” vibe.

A sleep sanctuary involves more than just good sleep hygiene. While it’s important to avoid factors that prevent you from falling asleep at night (such as scrolling through social media and being stimulated by the blue light from your iPhone), a sleep sanctuary should also be a place that allows you to decompress and feel at ease as you enter your slumber. A sleep sanctuary is your own dark, quiet, cool place to decompress at night.

Here’s how to transform your bedroom into a sleep sanctuary in five easy steps. By optimizing your sleep environment, not only will you wake up feeling more energized and refreshed, but you’ll begin to notice the physical and mental benefits that naturally come with adequate sleep – such as increased mental focus, concentration, and a stronger immune system.

Here’s how to transform your bedroom into a DIY sleep sanctuary and reap the rewards of at-home R&R.

5 Ways to Create a DIY Sleep Sanctuary

1. Create White Noise

Falling asleep to Netflix or an audiobook may seem harmless, but even the slightest level of noise can prevent you from entering the two deepest stages of sleep: non-REM sleep and REM sleep.

REM sleep (or rapid eye movement sleep) is known for being the deepest stage of sleep when we dream, but entering this state is also when our cells repair, regenerate, and restore the function of the mind and body. Our bodies also require adequate sleep for detoxification.

While some noises are easy to control and minimize, others are not. If you live in an area with barking dogs, the sound of sirens and traffic, or the snoring from a significant other, a fan or air conditioner is an easy and inexpensive way to create the white noise that can mask these sounds without disturbing your sleep.

Another way to easily drown out noise is with a white noise sleep machine or app, which can promote a longer, deeper sleep – even if you don’t have any noise to drown out. Most white noise machines allow you to fall asleep to the soothing sound of waterfalls and raindrops, making your bedroom instantly feel sanctuary-esque.

2. Dim The Lights

A sleep sanctuary should have minimal light exposure, which can be achieved by using blackout shades, thicker curtains, or even by wearing a sleep mask.

Light sends signals to your body that it’s daytime (aka time to stay awake), which can suppress melatonin production. Melatonin is the hormone that regulates your sleep and wake cycle, and the less melatonin your body produces, the harder it can be for you to fall asleep at night.  Keep your bedroom dark, as light can suppress melatonin production.

Blackout shades can help prevent natural daylight from creeping in, but there may be other light sources impacting your sleep that you wouldn’t initially think of – such as the glow from your alarm clock or night light.

Studies have also shown the blue light from electronics such as tablets, laptops and smartphones suppresses melatonin production more than any other light source, so be sure to put those bad boys away at least 2 hours before bedtime. Which brings me to the next step…

3. “Coat Check” Electronics at the Door

Aside from being a source of melatonin-blocking blue light, electronics can also be a source of mental stimulation, and in some cases, unnecessary stress (I’m talking about you, social media).

Reading about a distressing event in the news, or seeing something disturbing in your news feed before your head hits the pillow, isn’t exactly effective for winding down – neither is online shopping nor getting lost in the visual vortex that is Instagram.

Your sleep sanctuary should have an “electronics-check” policy at the door so you can focus on relaxing before bed without any distractions. If you can’t fall asleep right away, resist the urge to grab your phone. Try meditating, practice a few yoga poses, or skim through a magazine or paperback book instead.

4. Ramp Up the Comfort

I don’t know about you, but when I think of a sanctuary, I automatically think of comfort. Since we spend hundreds of thousands of hours sleeping, it’s worth investing in a little comfort to make our sleep as enjoyable and relaxing as possible.

A few ways to give your sleep sanctuary a “comfort” makeover include replacing your mattress (some believe Tempur-Pedic mattresses and memory foam can help alleviate back pain) and choosing a pillow that properly supports your neck and forms to your head (whether you prefer soft or firm is up to you).

You may also want to switch your sheets and blankets to a different type of fabric. For example, bamboo fabric is not only soft and comfortable, but is said to have hypoallergenic, antimicrobial and antibacterial properties. 

Even adding a simple, soft rug next to your bed can bring a sense of comfort.  Need a cozier bed? Try bamboo fabric sheets for its hypoallergenic properties.

Lastly, don’t forget about temperature when it comes to creating a comfortable environment. Studies suggest heat interferes with REM sleep and may cause sleep disturbances, which is why cooler temperatures (with blankets, if needed) are recommended for restful sleep.

5. Create Your Own Oasis

As mentioned above, your sleep sanctuary should be a place you can enter and feel relaxed (which is why it should also be used only for the purpose of sleeping). For this reason, it’s important to remove anything in your sanctuary that may cause stress or make it feel like a multi-purpose room – for example, bills, loose papers or textbooks.

If you have a desk in your room, it’s a good idea to move it to another area in your home to prevent these items from accumulating in your sleep space.

In fact, one of the best steps to start building a sleep sanctuary is to declutter your bedroom. Some research suggests physical clutter can cause feelings of being overwhelmed, which elevates stress hormones such as cortisol.

Although it may sound extreme for clutter to have such an impact on your health, elevated cortisol levels are linked to anxiety and restlessness, which can prevent you from being able to fall asleep (which further increases stress levels).

A few other ways to make your sleep sanctuary a relaxation haven include creating a yoga and meditation corner and lighting a few candles or incense before bed (just don’t forget to blow them out before you doze off).

You may also want to experiment with essential oils and aromatherapy. Certain oils, such as lavender, may have stress relieving, sleep-inducing properties, while ylang ylang may help relieve insomnia. Try creating a sleep sanctuary with candles, soothing colors, and an oil diffuser.

Changing the decor in your room to softer expressions, such as soothing paintings with pastels or watercolors (rather than dark, dramatic colors), can also make a big difference when it comes to creating a more relaxed vibe.

How you design your sleep sanctuary is entirely up to you, but most importantly: make sure it’s a space that’s your own and feels comfortable to you.

Want to look for more ways to create a DIY sleep sanctuary? Watch this video – BEDROOM HACKS | Make Your Bedroom Cozy AF on a Budget

Written by Brandi Black

Author Bio:

Brandi Black is a Registered Holistic Nutritionist and the creator of Feel Best Naked, a health blog for women who want to clear up their skin, lose the muffin top and make the bloat disappear. After years of experiencing (and then healing) her own unbalanced hormones, she’s now obsessed with helping other women feel spectacular in their own skin with natural remedies for hormone balance.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook

How to Meditate in 5 Very Sustainable Simple Steps

 

Click HERE to Discover these 80 Keto-Friendly and Healthy Slow Cooker Recipes

Meditation has numerous benefits, but it’s hard to make it part of your routine. Find out how to meditate and also how to stick with the practice.

Modern life has plenty of comfort and convenience, but it’s also stressful. A lot of us feel too scatter-brained or overwhelmed when it comes to meditation. Sometimes it seems impossible just to focus, much less relax.

But meditation can help create peace in your life. You can do it anywhere and at any time. It has incredible (and far-ranging) benefits — everything from decreasing anxiety and stress to improving your memory and even decreasing inflammation on a cellular level.

By removing common obstacles preventing meditation, you can embrace a long-term practice to enjoy more relaxation and focus. So let’s start there. Keep reading to find out how to meditate in five simple steps.

Meditation Doesn’t Have to be Complicated (Despite What You’ve Heard)

Meditation reminds me a lot of healthy eating and exercise. People have been overcomplicating it for decades, but the principles of what it takes to pull it off are actually pretty straightforward.

When you think “meditation,” you might have an image in your mind of a Buddhist monk sitting silently for hours in a temple or on a mountaintop.

But meditation doesn’t have to be like that. All the tools to try it — and make it a regular part of your life — are available to you wherever you’re reading this right now.

In reality, starting a medication practice is like starting any other habit like waking up early or cutting out sugar.

Watch this video – How to Meditate: 6 Easy Tips for Beginners

Here’s a basic five-step framework you can follow to start meditating and (more importantly) keep meditating:

Step 1. Commit to Short, Manageable Sessions Every Day

One of the most formidable obstacles that keeps people from establishing a regular meditation practice is going at it too hard.

You get excited about something, and you want to dive in headfirst (I’m raising my hand here). So you try to sit down for an hour a day and “just focus on your breathing.”

What happens?

You burn out after two or three days! Then you beat yourself up for not having the discipline to stick to your meditation routine.

A far more sane (and sustainable) approach: commit a few minutes to meditation each and every day. Small, consistent steps trump marathon sessions.

Set a daily time quota—around 5 or 10 minutes — that’s easy to hit. B.J. Fogg, a professor and founder of Stanford University’s Persuasive Tech Lab, used this strategy to help people build a regular flossing habit. He had them start by flossing just one tooth a day.

Once you are hitting your daily quota comfortably, you can start increasing your meditation time gradually. It’s like lifting weights; put on a little more weight than before, and keep pushing yourself.

It’s tempting to want to go at this intensely to see faster results, but resist. Set yourself up to meditate months and years down the line — and reap all the awesome benefits.

Watch this video – 5-Minute Meditation You Can Do Anywhere

(Related:  Yoga Poses to De-Stress)

Step 2. Get the Logistics in Place

Starting any new habit takes conscious effort. You don’t have to think about rolling out of bed and brushing your teeth because you’ve been doing it for years. But you’ll have to work a little to make meditation a self-sustaining part of your life.

Willing yourself to meditate can work for a while, but willpower is a limited resource.

You might not have enough left in the tank to force yourself to meditate after a crazy day at work. Good intentions are there, but you just can’t force yourself to follow through.

Instead of relying on willpower alone, you can change your environment to make the transition from conscious effort to habit as smooth as possible.

Carve out a regular time of your day to meditate. The morning is usually a great opportunity because things tend to be quieter and you’re more alert.

Where you meditate can also make a big difference. Find a quiet space to sit down and get away from the world. Cluttered areas can make it harder to focus, so it’s best to find somewhere where things are in order.

The person who meditates for 10 minutes every morning alone in a quiet bedroom has a much better chance of making it routine than someone who squeezes it in “whenever they can” during TV commercial breaks.

Get your logistics set up, and it’s a lot easier to build the meditation habit.

Watch this video – 7 Min Meditation to Start Your Day: Yoga with Adriene

Step 3. Practice

Okay. So you’ve committed to meditate for a few minutes every day and got all your logistics in place…

Now you’re probably wondering how to do it.

People have been practicing and refining meditation for thousands of years. With such a rich history, countless meditation techniques have emerged. There’s seated meditation, walking meditation, chanting mantras, and on and on.

You can (and should!) explore different ways to meditate once you’ve made it a habit. But let’s stick to the basics for now. Keeping things simple gives you the best chance to start a practice without getting overwhelmed.

First, set a timer for the amount of time you plan to meditate. You don’t want to be obsessing about when you should end your session once you’ve begun.

Then sit down in a quiet place. You can sit cross-legged on the floor (a pad or pillow helps) or in a chair with your feet on the floor. If you have back problems, you can lie down. The key is to keep your spine straight and the rest of your body relaxed. Close your eyes if you like.

Breathe. Inhale deeply through your nose, pause for a moment, and then exhale through your mouth. You want your breathing to be slow and deep. There’s no need to force anything here.

Watch. The “goal” of this basic style of meditation is to simply pay attention to your breathing. Follow the inhales, pauses, and exhales. You’ll be able to focus on your breathing for a bit, but it’s only a matter of time before random thoughts enter your mind and throw you off.

Check yourself and refocus. Don’t freak out when you notice your thoughts are wandering; getting angry or fighting your thoughts isn’t helpful. Just keep breathing and refocus your mind on that. It’s a constant process of noticing stray thoughts and checking yourself.

Keep going until the timer goes off. You’re done. Adopting a basic meditation practice is straightforward, but you’ll probably be shocked how difficult it is to stay focused at first. Just keep at it; you’ll only get more focused and aware over time.

Step 4. Cultivate the Right Attitude

Another thing that keeps people from sticking with meditation is their attitude. They get frustrated when they feel like they aren’t “doing it right” or noticing results.

But meditation is a bit different than other healthy habits like eating right or going to the gym. It’s easy to find out if you lost weight; you just have to hop on the scale. But it’s harder to define a meditation “success.”

This can be frustrating, especially if you’re a goal-oriented person. That’s why it’s crucial to change your expectations. You “succeed” at meditation by sitting down and doing it when you committed to do it and gradually lengthening your sessions.

Some days it’ll be easy to fall into a state of perfect awareness. Others might feel like pulling teeth. It’s all part of the process. The key is to keep at it.

And be kind to yourself. Beating yourself up after (or during) the inevitable difficult sessions is counterproductive. There’s no reason to discourage yourself. You should congratulate yourself instead; you’ve already “won” just by showing up.

It’s called a “meditation practice” for a reason…

Show up when you plan to show up. And give it your best. The results might be hard to see sometimes, but they’re piling up.

Step 5. Expand Your Practice into Other Areas of Your Life

One of the coolest things about starting a meditation practice is you can take the principle — total awareness of what you’re doing in the present moment — and carry it over into other aspects of your life.

“Meditation” isn’t limited to strictly the sessions you set aside for it. Throughout the day, you’ll find plenty of sessions for little mini-meditation sessions if you just pay attention.

Working on the computer? Take a second to check in and focus on your breathing.

Riding the train home? Instead of thinking about all the chores you have to do later, pull your mind back into the present moment.

Every dull, mundane part of your day (like washing the dishes) is another opportunity to bring your awareness into the present moment.

If you practice carrying this focus on the present moment into other parts of your day, you’ll find yourself calmer and less overwhelmed.

Watch this video – 10 Min Meditation for Anxiety

Start Today

Almost everyone has heard about the incredible benefits of meditation.

A lot of people have tried it, but most struggle to stick with it and make it a regular part of their lives.

By following the five steps laid out above, you can remove the obstacles that tripped them up. You can enjoy a happier, more fulfilling life for months and years to come.

Start today.

Written by Corey Pemberton

Author Bio:

Corey Pemberton is a freelance writer, Brazilian Jiu Jitsu practitioner, and Paleo health enthusiast. Ever since he discovered the ancestral health movement five years ago, he has explored different ways to incorporate ancestral wisdom into his nutrition, exercise, and lifestyle at large. One of his favorite topics is challenging long-held nutrition myths. Feel free to stop by his website or say hello on Twitter.

A lot of people have gotten results from the Keto diet, and enjoyed the foods that it has to offer. However, many of the people who are following this diet have a hard time finding the recipes that they need, especially ones that are quick and easy to complete.

Fortunately, Kelsey Ale, noticed this problem, and decided to do something about it. She’s found that making recipes in a slow cooker gives you meals which are not only delicious, but also take very little time to make. Mostly you just put a few simple ingredients in the slow cooker, and let it do the rest.

To find out more, click on – Keto Slow Cooker Cookbook