How to Practice Body Mindfulness Meditation

Body mindfulness is one of the forty Buddhist meditations. It is a meditation designed both for investigation of the body and its nature, as well as being a basis for concentration building. This meditation is excellent for people who have an anatomical, medical or health interest in the body––familiarity with the body helps in building concentration.

On the other hand, it's often hardest for people who are the most sensitive towards the body, either in regards to its appearance, or because they are uneasy with the body's biological processes. In spite of this dislike, it's recommended that such persons try this style of meditation because they're likely to get the greatest rewards from it. Of course, starting gently and building up experience will help ease newcomers into it. Here's how to start the meditation and develop it further.

Method 1 of 3: Preparation

1.Select a quiet, comfortable place to meditate. Choose an appropriate time when you feel able to meditate, free from distractions. Select a posture comfortable for you––for this meditation, all postures are suitable. (The How to do mindful meditation page describes the four main postures in a little more detail to help you choose one that is practical for you.) Ensure your head and torso are positioned to allow for ease of breathing and awareness. Having a stiff posture will cause discomfort and a too-soft posture will encourage sleepiness.

2.Relax any tension. Spend a few moments developing awareness of what you are doing, such as sitting, breathing and relaxing. Spending a few minutes this way allows the mind to build more focus and awareness as it examines the body for tension. Allowing the body to relax also lets your mind become calm and quietened.

• Give yourself a few minutes for this to occur and let go of distractions, agendas and other subjects of thought.

Method 2 of 3: Meditation Practice

10 tips ... that will improve your golf game

Five local professionals and PGA-certified instructors tell you how to become a better player

Not every player gets to practice before every round with his teacher hovering behind him, watching his swing, checking for malfunctions, making sure everything is working just right. Just those on the PGA Tour.

And not every player has the luxury of going for a lesson or visiting an instructor on a periodic basis, usually because the cost can be prohibitive.

So, how do you become a better player? What is it that you need to know to improve your game and lower your scores, which is the desire of every player who has ever teed a ball, hoisted a club and tried like heck to make the ball go high, straight and, yes, especially long?

Well, short of having a certified PGA teaching professional on your payroll, or taking one to the golf course every time you play, the Post-Gazette has asked five local professionals and PGA-certified instructors to provide a list of the top 10 tips a player should know and work on to become a better player.

Consider it the PG's version of Harvey Penick's "Little Red Book," a compilation of teachings, lessons and musings designed to help players understand the work, preparation and execution that is required to lower scores and make golf a more enjoyable game. Or just less frustrating.

The participating professionals are John Aber, head professional at Allegheny Country Club; Eric Johnson, director of instruction at Oakmont Country Club; Kevin Shields, teaching professional at Rolling Hills CC; Sean Parees, teaching professional at Quicksilver GC and Robert Morris University Island Sports Center; and Jim Cichra, director of instruction at the Robert Morris University Island Sports Center.

The tips are designed for players of all skill level, but primarily are geared toward the average player. And, with the average score in this country over 100, there are plenty of players in search of lessons to improve their game. 

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How to Repair Ball Marks

Why It's Important to Repair Your Ball Marks on the Green.

Ball marks - also called pitch marks - are the bane of smooth-putting and healthy greens on golf courses all over the world. They're the little depressions, or craters, sometimes made when a golf ball descends from the sky and impacts the putting surface.

Repairing those little depressions is very important. Equally important is doing it the right way. Because while many golfers fail to repair ball marks - and shame on you if you are one of them - there are also many well-meaning golfers who do "repair" the pitch marks, only to do so incorrectly.

A ball mark can cause the grass in the depression to die, leaving not just a scar but also a pit in the putting surface that can knock well-struck putts offline. Repairing a ball mark restores a smooth surface and helps keep the grass healthy. But "repairing" a ball mark incorrectly can actually cause more damage than not attempting to repair it at all, according to a study done at Kansas State University.

The KSU researchers, whose conclusions were reported on Cybergolf.com, found that incorrectly "repaired" ball marks take up to twice as long to heal as those that are properly repaired.

So golfers, lets all start fixing our ball marks, and doing it the right way. And if you have a moment - if there isn't another group of golfers behind you waiting for you to clear the green - fix one or two other ball marks, too, if you find more of them on the green.

Repairing ball marks isn't just important for the health of the greens, and for smooth-rolling putts. It isn't just a matter of golf etiquette. It is our obligation to help take care of the golf courses we play. And repairing ball marks is a big part of that obligation to the game.

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Golf Increases Life Expectancy

It sounds too good to be true, but playing a round of golf can add years to your life. Why?

Think about it: A round of golf takes about 5 hours to play. The whole time the golfer is outside, he is walking, taking in the sun and burning calories. In fact, 18 holes of golf burns 306 calories per hour (is you carry your own clubs –- 292/hour if you use a pull-cart for your bag and 238/hour if you ride in a golf cart). Could all this add up to a longer, healthier life?

The Swedish Golf Federation has more than 600,000 members (membership is required for playing almost everywhere in Sweden, so the list contains almost all of Sweden’s golfers). Here’s the great thing (if you are a statistician): Sweden also maintains a record of all the deaths that have taken place in Sweden for decades. Researchers were able to link the two databases to learn about the impact of golf on mortality. They compared the golfers and non-golfers and found that golfers were 40% less likely to have died than non-golfers of the same age.

Not only is golfing, in general, good for your life expectancy, but the more someone golfs, the greater his increase in health. When golfers handicaps were put into the equation, golfers with the lowest handicaps (indicating a better golfer who, in theory, plays more) had greater reductions in their risk of death.

Why Golf Improves Life Expectancy and Longevity

It could be that the increase in exercise for golfers explains the effect that researchers saw. Unfortunately, the analysis could not compare the exercise levels of the non-golfers. We don’t know for sure that the increased exercise explains the benefit. There could be other explanations like:

• People with certain illnesses and certain health conditions cannot golf, therefore golfers only include healthy people.
• People who golf are wealthier on average than people who don’t golf.

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Everything You Need to Know About Zen Meditation

The art of Zen meditation is a simple one. You don't need any prior experience. The meditation is the experience. You don't need to have read any books about it. The wisdom you receive from a Zen practice is original. It comes from the quiet space in your soul.

You don't even need to know what Zen means. It's not mystical or rare or even necessarily spiritual. It's the simplest and most natural thing in the world.

Zen meditation is not a religious thing. Atheists practice and benefit from it in the same way Christians, Buddhists, and Muslims do.

Zen meditation has nothing to do with where you live or where you're from. You can be anywhere in the world and benefit from it. Peace of mind is not geographically specific.

I believe even animals practice Zen. I have seen cats, monkeys, lizards, dogs, and many other animals behaving as though they were meditating. Not just staring intently at food bowls, but genuinely looking like they were actively seeking the quiet spaces within themselves.

I urge you to give it a try. Sit comfortably in a chair. Gently close your eyes. Bring your attention to the breath moving effortlessly in and out of your body. Feel how it ebbs and flows, like water lapping at the shore of the ocean.

If other thoughts come into your mind, simply acknowledge them and bring your attention back to your breath and how your body feels. Pain, pleasure, comfort, discomfort; just feel them. Experience these sensations without judgement about whether the sensations are good or bad.

Zen allows you to be aware of how your actions affect the world around you. This allows you to be more productive. A cluttered mind is like a cluttered desk. Makes it hard to be fully productive. Meditation clears clutter from your mind. 

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The Anatomy of a Zen Habit

This post, The Anatomy of a Zen Habit will explain why we have made Zen Habits, (the website) part of our lives and the whys and hows of habit breaking and making.

Through his website and books, Leo Babauta has shown us that a regular person can do extraordinary things. As a husband and father of 6, Babauta quit smoking, lost weight, ran a marathon, adopted a vegetarian diet, turned his blog into a business, tripled his income and quit his job, and through all of that taught us how to do it too.

Zen Habits has more than 210,000 subscribers and even more readers. There is no doubt that Leo worked hard, especially at first to grow his blog. He worked a full time job, while writing morning, noon and night and then some. Even so, there is more to the success of Zen Habits than luck and hard work.

Top 5 Reasons (in my opinion) for Leo Babauta’s Success

1. Leo is relatable.

2. He writes good stuff.

3. He keeps learning and sharing his secrets.

4. The information he provides is helpful & honest.

5. He’s a good guy.

In order to really break down the anatomy of a Zen habit, I went straight to the source. Leo was kind enough to answer a few questions to help break down the importance of Zen, habits and procrastination.

What does Zen even mean?

Leo: It means different things to every person. For me it is simply a way to learn to be present, to live in the moment. That’s a very simple thing, but it turns out it changes everything.

Why are we so attracted to developing better habits?

Leo: There is an optimist in most of us, who despite evidence of failed attempts throughout our lives, believes we can become better. This optimist wants us to be the best version of ourselves that we can possibly become. 

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How to Make the Most of Your Life: 50 Wise Tips

Life is precious.

But how to make the most of your life?

Here are fifty wise tips by readers on how to make the most of your time on earth.

1. It starts with being present and in the moment. Really appreciating the ‘small’ things in life – the smell of the morning, the feel of flannelette sheets, the warmth of a hug, the gift of a smile. And gratitude.

2. Follow your passion and you can create a life you can be proud of. The formula is really simple: find what makes you useful and happy.

3. Speak for those who have no voice. Make a difference in someone else’s life.

4. Help others, love fully, judge less, and take care of your body and your mind

5. Help your family and make sure they are okay.

6. Heal, if you need to be healed, forgive if you need to forgive, learn to love if that is your lesson.

7. Strive for a healthier, more purposeful life to get to the bones of existence.

8. Listen, breathe, and seek for the answers to who you are and what you are meant to do, as they are unique to all of us.

9. Face and accept pain and hurt, and to act in spite of fear.

10. Discover who we truly are – and live that life.

11. Use your own sense of self to look at others without judgment, see them with clear eyes and exercise compassion.

12. Remember to be present in each moment, see what beautiful thing is here now, no matter how small.

13. Take the time to really look carefully and contemplate.

14. Stay in the present and know we are where we aresupposed to be.

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3 Great Buddhist Meditation Techniques

How to Meditate — Three Different Buddhist Meditation Techniques

Discover how to meditate using the path that best suits your personality. You can successfully practice meditation many different ways. Choose the method below that best suits you, or combine the practices.

Buddhist Meditation Technique One: Empty Mind

Vipassana, or Anapanasati, is the classical Theraveda Buddhist meditation technique. Buddha reached Enlightenment under the Bodhi tree in North India using this empty mind meditation practice.

The method is very simple. There are only three basic components. The actual practice is very difficult.

• Sit in a meditation posture. Full lotus is best if you can do it without discomfort. Other postures that work well are the half lotus and Burmese postures. If you’re uncomfortable on the floor, sitting comfortably erect on a chair with both feet flat on the ground will work better for you.

• Use diaphragmatic (abdominal) breathing. Observe the feel of your breath coming in through your nose and going out through your mouth. Breathe deeply, gently and regularly. This will soon become an effortless habit.

• Observe your thoughts without following them. Simply  watch each thought arise in your mind and then disappear.

After some time, your thoughts will slow. You’ll notice a small gap between thoughts. Rest your mind in these gaps of ‘no thought’ as long as possible, making them longer and longer, until no more thoughts arise. Your mind becomes empty and calm.

Buddhists liken the untrained mind to a drunken monkey leaping about. There’s absolutely no way to predict or control a drunken monkey’s next wild antic. The same is true of your mind. Wild, crazy thoughts leap about in an ever shifting landscape of stories that continually stir up your emotions.

Many years of dedicated, daily Vipassana practice can be necessary to tame your ‘monkey mind’. But the wise understand that the path is the goal.  

Buddhist Meditation Technique Two: Loving Kindness

How One Zen like Man Changed my Life – And Can Change Yours Too

Can you remember that one major thing you did that transformed your work and ultimately your life?

When you look back on your life, will you remember some of the key people that really made a difference to you?

In our lives we often make decisions that can radically change your life forever.

We also meet people who somehow make a much bigger impact on our life than they even realize.

In these days of social media, it is possible to have such life changing encounters with someone on the other side of the world, whom you may never meet in person.

Today I would like to share one such encounter and why it made such an impact on me.

And if you are a blogger, I would also like you to consider joining me at a very special virtual Bootcamp, starting this Sunday – “How to Make Your Blog Pay the Bills”

Regular readers will know that I have been blogging now for over 3 years, though I have only treated my blog as a serious venture in the last 8 months or so.

During recent months, my subscriber numbers have shot up to more than 1,000 and I have created a wonderful community of people around my blog.

My blog and my writing style was dramatically transformed last August after I took part in a Blogging Bootcamp run by Leo Babauta and Mary Jaksch, both of whom I now consider to be friends.

If you haven’t heard of Leo Babauta, where have you been?!

Leo is a world leading blogger whose blog Zen Habits now has over 170,000 subscribers and is transforming the world with his message of simple productivity.

So how has this Zen like man changed my life?