Health Benefits of Meditation

What if I told you you could do something today (and every day) that would significantly improve your health? What if I told you that it takes just 5 minutes and is completely free…would you do it?

I’m talking about meditation.  Meditation is by far one of the most effective ways to manage stress but it has lots of other amazing health benefits.  The simple act of meditating has now been scientifically proven to improve immune system function, reduce blood pressure, reduce inflammation, improve asthma, reduce hormonal imbalances and much, much more.

But when I start to talk about meditation, the most common objection I get from people is “I can’t meditate, I’ve tried it but my mind is just too busy”.  Well, meditation is really just about seeing thoughts as they come in, and instead of giving them any further attention, letting them go. And lots of very seasoned meditators will admit that they still get caught up in thoughts and also that they still have a constant stream of thoughts coming in.

So where do we start? How do we start meditating? My recommendation is to download a few meditation apps and just schedule 5 minutes per day to listen to a guided meditation.  This will slowly teach you the skills required to become a stronger and better meditator and also transform your health and life.  Below are my top 5 Meditation Apps, some are free, others are a small fee. Either way a great investment in your mental, emotional and physical health. Enjoy.

1. One Giant Mind – this app has meditations for all age groups starting from 7 years old, which is great for young busy minds.
2. Headspace – this one is great for beginners and really helps to teach techniques, plus it has lots of different packs for areas of your life you may want to work on.
3. Buddhify – this app is great for those people who get bored easily or are really busy.  It has all sorts of meditations including ones to do when you’re on the move.
4. Simply Being – I love the simplicity of this guided meditation.
5. Mindfulness – lots of different options but I like the personalised section of this app.

I’d love to hear from you if you start meditating regularly, I know it’s made a big difference in my health and I know it can do the same for you too.