Mental Fitness Workouts
August 20th - August 27th
Happy Sunday Folks,
This weeks training will focus on Positive Relationships and Cognitive Defusion.
Positive Relationships have an affect on our lives both personally and professionally. As a critical component to belonging, our relationships shape how we fit into the communities we belong to. Not all relationships that we have are created equal, they will most certainly take rollercoaster rides. What this means for us is we have to actively work on maintaining healthy relationships.
Cognitive Defusion is the process of detaching from a thought when it gets in the way of our own well being. Far too often we get bombarded with negative thoughts. Rather than changing the thoughts themselves, we can develop the skill to separate ourselves from those thoughts. Learning to do so will build our capacity to understand that thoughts are just thoughts not the reality we live in.
Mental Fitness Workouts:
Focus Training: Body Scan
Practice this 15 minutes body scan by Yogi Bryan at least once this week.
Positive Relationships: Interview
Within our close relationships, once we really feel like we know the other person, our interest starts to fade. Something that is completely under our control is our curiosity towards others.
With someone close to you, ask at least 3 of the following questions and make a note of the answers. Your aim is to be an active listener, display curiosity, and utilize one of your identified character strengths in the conversation.
The questions:
What gives you purpose in life?
Do you feel like you are a morning or an evening person?
What activities put you into a state of flow?
If there were a fire in the house, what is one thing would you grab?
What gives you hope?
If you could have a dinner with with five people, past or present, who would they be?
How can I give you support?
Weekly Poll:
What is your why for training your mental fitness? - Click the button below!
Back to the workouts:
Stress Training: Box Breathing
Practice 4 days x 10 minutes
Cognitive Defusion: Ship of fools
Over the course of the next week, notice different aspects of you arising, different patterns of thought and feeling.
Greet them as different people you may see on a ship.
There’s anxious you.
There’s confident you.
There’s joyful you.
There’s lethargic you.
Greet them all.
This practice helps you to not identify strongly with the thoughts that arise within you. We do not have control over who will show up, practice noticing them as temporary aspects of your experience.
The quicker you can do so, the more time you will have to focus on what really matters.
BONUS EXERCISE:
Imagine looking up at the sky and watching the clouds slowly floating across it. Your mind is the sky, allow your thoughts to float away like the clouds.
As always, feel free to contact me with any questions, comments or feedback. I am happy to support you along your journey towards authentic happiness.
Be Easy,
Ryan