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How to use Meditation and Yoga to Increase Your Willpower

Dec 30, 2022

Yoga and meditation are two popular methods of relaxation, stress relief, and overall mental and physical wellbeing. Though they share some commonalities, there are also significant differences between these two practices.
 
Most notably, yoga is a physical practice that involves movements and postures, while meditation is primarily mental or emotional in nature. However, despite their differences, both yoga and meditation can be highly effective in enhancing willpower. 
 
Here are six ways in which both these practices increase willpower. 
 
 
IDEAS FROM ME
 
Yoga and Meditation Promote Self-Awareness
woman doing yoga meditation on brown parquet flooring
By increasing your awareness of your thoughts, emotions, and physical sensations, you become better able to control them. As a result, you are less likely to be controlled by impulses and cravings.
 
Yoga and Meditation Help You to Become More Mindful
 
Mindfulness is the practice of paying attention to the present moment without judgment. When you are mindful, you are less likely to be distracted by thoughts of the past or future. This way, you can focus on the task at hand, which can help increase willpower.
 
Yoga and Meditation Teach You How to Control Your Breathing
 
Breath control is an integral part of both yoga and meditation. When you can control your breathing, it also makes it easier to control your thoughts and emotions. This can lead to increased willpower.
 
Yoga and Meditation Help You to Develop a Positive Attitude                     
person standing on grass mountain during day
By practicing yoga and meditation, you can learn to let go of negative thoughts and cultivate a more positive outlook on life. This positive attitude will help you have more self-control and willpower in all areas of your life.
 
Yoga and Meditation Increase Your Self-Discipline
 
The more you practice your yoga and meditation skills, the more self-disciplined you will become. This is because you will be better able to control your thoughts, emotions, and actions. Consequently, you’ll notice that sticking to your goals and making good choices become easier. 
 
Yoga and Meditation Can Help You to Develop a Stronger “Willpower Muscle” 
man standing beside rock formation
Willpower is like a muscle that can be strengthened with use. With continued use and resistance, it becomes stronger. Practicing yoga and meditation regularly can gradually increase your willpower muscle, making it easier for you to resist temptation and stick to your goals. 
 
Yoga and meditation are powerful tools that can help you increase your willpower. Practicing these disciplines regularly can help you develop willpower, become more self-disciplined, and build a more positive outlook on life. These benefits will help you in all areas of your life, from achieving your goals to making better choices.
 
 
WHAT THE PROS ARE SAYING 
 
“Yoga is the journey of the self, through the self, to the self.”  — The Bhagavad Gita
 
“Yoga practice can make us more and more sensitive to subtler and subtler sensations in the body.  Paying attention to and staying with finer and finer sensations within the body is one of the surest ways to steady the wandering mind.” — Ravi Ravindra 
 
“Meditation speaks. It speaks in silence. It reveals. It reveals to the aspirant that matter and spirit are one, quantity and quality are one, the immanent and the transcendent are one. It reveals that life can never be the mere existence of seventy or eighty years between birth and death, but is, rather, Eternity itself.”  ― Sri Chinmoy
 
HOMEWORK:

Have you ever tried doing yoga and meditation before? How was it?
If not, what are your thoughts about it after reading the benefits? Do you think you can incorporate it in your lifestyle?

I'll see you in class
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-Dante

This column was published by the author in their personal capacity.
The opinions expressed in this column are the author's own and do not reflect the view of Cafetalk.

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