Ivy at Home: A Mindful Meditation Practice from our Spa Director

During this time of distance and uncertainty, we are choosing to focus on slowing down, staying connected and – most importantly – spreading joy. Each week, we will be sharing a behind-the-scenes look into a piece of the Ivy magic for you to recreate while staying at home. From favorite Magdalena recipes, to at-home spa tips, we hope you will use #IvyAtHome as a resource to incorporate some little luxuries into your new day-to-day, whatever that may look like for you.

A Mindful Meditation Practice

By Nicole Colavito, Director at The Spa at The Ivy

Wellness begins with a mental component. Without sound mental health, it is difficult to pursue or create a pattern of good physical health or stick to one’s resolutions regarding better nutrition. Just like your body needing healthy food to extract good nutrition from and exercise to achieve and maintain a strong and healthy physique, meditation is a beautiful way to provide your mind with support it needs and deserves. It can help reduce the effects of stress and anxiety while also assisting with the cultivation of mental clarity as you bring order and space to the deepest parts of your mind.

How to Meditate

You can meditate anywhere. You may sit, you may stand, you may lay down.  You can even practice meditation while stirring your cake batter in the kitchen or taking a run on the treadmill. What is most important is that you are comfortable and that you have removed as many mental distractions as possible.

Find or create a quiet space. It can be your office, your bedroom, your car, the bathroom (sometimes, it’s the only door in one’s home that has a lock on it:), or perhaps you have no place where you can be alone. Noise cancelling headphones are an amazing tool. You could also listen to a Guided Meditation while performing a redundant or monotonous task (like stirring cake batter!)

The most important things to pay attention to are:

1). You are comfortably placed.

2). You are away from distractions, if possible.

3). You have at least 60 seconds of time.

Start by taking a deep breath in through your nose and out through your mouth. Focus on your breath feeling the coolness of the air as it enters your airway and the fullness of your lungs as they inflate. Exhale your breath deeply and completely, bearing down towards your abdomen. Taking 3 – 5 inhalation/exhalations within 60 seconds is all it takes to get started.  Increase your meditation gradually, or don’t. It is important that you practice meditation without expectation or judgement. This time is your gift to yourself.

Make It a Habit

Channeling this famous quote by Earl Nightingale: “Whatever we plant in our subconscious mind and nourish with repetition and emotion will one day become a reality.” With regular practice, meditation can help one to reshape their mind and create space for evolution and personal growth.

These tips were recently featured in a Culture Whisper article, “Top Wellness Tips From Luxury Spa Directors Around the World.”