Mindful Mondays: 1-minute mindfulness exercises

1-minute mindfulness exercises
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Written by Trisha Bhullar

Too busy for mindfulness? That’s not an acceptable excuse, especially with the range of 1-minute mindfulness exercises available. Learn more about 1-minute mindfulness exercises — from stretches to mindful meals.

What are 1-minute mindfulness exercises?

1-minute mindfulness exercises are quick mindful routines you can practice, in order to incorporate the principles of mindfulness into your life. In a perfect world, we would all have the time and energy to practise yoga, meditation, or your ideal mindfulness exercise every day. In reality, most of us struggle to find time for mindfulness. From juggling tasks at work to spending time with your children, pets or loved ones, it’s incredibly difficult to bring mindfulness exercises into your daily routine. 1-minute mindfulness exercises could, therefore, help you inject your day with mindfulness, even if it’s just for a minute.

Do these exercises actually work?

Don’t discount 1-minute mindfulness exercises because of their short durations. The success of a mindfulness exercise is in its quality, rather than length. In this vein, a minute-long mindfulness exercise could be as effective as an hour-long mindfulness exercise.

In fact, you might find yourself preferring 1-minute mindfulness exercises over regular ones. That’s because of the sheer concentration and focus required for lengthier mindfulness exercises. Being in a state of concentration over longer durations requires more endurance, becoming exhausting easily. Shorter exercises, like 1-minute mindfulness exercises, instead require bursts of focus. This is much more manageable, especially for beginners.

1-minute mindfulness exercises for you to practice today

Stretching exercises

Stretching can easily become a play on visual meditation. This is something you can do easily, whether you’re at home or at work. Simply stretch your body slowly and notice the tension easing from your body. Visualize the tension as an energy ball flowing out of your body, from your arms towards your head. Take in the moment and focus on the visualization, then get back to work.

Mindful breathing

We all have time to breathe, so why not breathe mindfully? Check out our guide to mindful breathing exercises you can practice at work. These are quick, easy exercises to follow that will barely take up a minute of your time.

Mindful meals

Mindful eating has become a popular trend with millennials, and for good reason! Most of us can only find time to breathe and relax during lunch. It, therefore, makes sense to incorporate our mindful routines with our meals. How can you practice mindful eating? When chewing your food, take the time to be aware and observe yourself. How do you chew? What does your body feel? View eating with a different lens and leave your lunch break with a better understanding of yourself as a person.

Meditation walks

Taking a break during work is important, and it’s found that office workers benefit from mid-day walks the most. Try using a meditation walk as both a mindfulness exercise and emotional break. You can practice it while on the way to lunch, while walking back to lunch or as you’re commuting home. Explore our step-by-step guide to meditation walks here.

Regardless of which types of 1-minute mindfulness exercises you’ve chosen, you stand to gain plenty. Give 1-minute mindfulness exercises a go today — after all, it’ll just take a minute of your time.