Add More Zen To Your Life With These 6 Tips

Modern lifestyle trends encourage everyone to do more and do it quickly. Everyone is praised for completing more work and getting less sleep, even when the cost is often detrimental to overall health. If this standard is wearing you down, you may be in need of more zen in your life. Here are just a few ways to do it.

1. Eat Well

Your gut health impacts the health of all the other systems in your body. You need to eat well in order to get the greatest benefit from a zen lifestyle, but it's okay if your work schedule makes this difficult. If you're on a time crunch or are a picky eater and still want to feel your best, you may benefit from supplementing your diet. You can start a personalized Thrive Experience to get the specific nutrients your body needs. While you should still try to fit in healthy food choices, don't feel like your diet has to look like everyone else's to succeed.

2. Plan Ahead

Rushing around and stressing about your daily schedule is the opposite of zen. Starting your morning calm and relaxed is the key to a calm and relaxed day. Plan your schedule at least the night before, and be very stringent with your time. Formulate a schedule that has gaps for walks and stretches, or even just sitting calmly. Take the pressure off your time table whenever possible, even if it means accomplishing a little less with your day.

3. Remove Clutter

A cluttered space can quickly result in a cluttered mind. When mess surrounds you, you become distracted more easily, thinking of how you need to organize your desk or take out the trash instead of living in the moment. These messes can also make it difficult to complete daily tasks, adding more time and frustration to a full schedule. When your surfaces are clear and everything is in its place, you can complete your work with less resistance.

4. Use Your Sense of Smell

Air fresheners and candles are often used to mask smells or give drab rooms a lively scent, but they rarely do anything good for your body. Switch out these synthetic scent cocktails with essential oils. You can mix them and customize a scent you enjoy while experiencing all the benefits. Some examples of what these oils can provide is mental focus, relaxation, and improved sleep. You can also use them in hand sanitizers or diffuse them to help with congestion.

5. Meditation

Adding more zen to your life is all about practicing mindfulness and existing in the moment. Meditation can actually change the structure of your brain, resulting in better sleep and impulse control. If you want to strengthen your willpower muscles and manage your stress in healthier ways, you need to make this a habit. Feel free to start slowly. It'll take some time to quiet your mind, and many people quit before they give meditation a real chance. Create a calm space you want to use just for meditating, and practice there at the same time every day in order to establish the habit.

6. Find Your Mantra

Meditation can be difficult at first, so try slipping in some mindfulness throughout your day. Thoughts tend to spiral even when you're not stressed. How many times have you gotten distracted on your way to the printer or on your way back from the bathroom? Mantras, even if they're just repeated words, help to keep your brain on track until the task is done. Find a word or phrase you like and repeat it every time your thoughts start to wander.

Living in a fast-paced world can make zen and mindfulness seem like impossible fantasies, but the effort is well worth it. By introducing some of these tips into your daily life, you should quickly be able to add moments of calm where you need them most.