International Yoga Day: 5 Ways to Ground Yourself While Improving Focus & Productivity

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As the Covid-19 pandemic continues to disrupt lives and shake people’s foundations all over the world, it is crucial for individuals to find ways to bring harmony, peace and alignment to their mental and physical well being in healthy, uplifting ways. 

June 21st is International Yoga Day - a day to focus on how the practice and philosophy of Yoga can promote the holistic health and mind body soul wellbeing of every individual. And what is more central to yoga and wellbeing than being grounded? 

Amelia Vogler, grounding expert and energy medicine specialist, highlights how the practice of grounding can help improve focus, clarity and productivity - something we’re all struggling with right now.

“Grounding is not just a spiritual exercise, but also a highly practical one that can improve anyone’s ability to focus, be clear-headed and even get more done. When you’re grounded, you’ll feel more at peace with yourself, more patient with others, and balanced when tackling what the day throws your way,” says Amelia Vogler.

Here are Amelia’s top 5 ways to ground yourself:

Find your feet 

Spend some time getting reacquainted with your posture. Grounded, safe postures start (not surprisingly) with the ground. Feel your feet on the ground and let the Earth come to you - then bring the Earth into you and fill yourself with that energy. Try walking barefoot on the ground - this helps reconnect your with mother nature and your connection to the earth.

Find your breath
Try a full-body breath. Focus on connecting your breath to your feet. Everyone has their own unique breathing pattern which can be expanded on. Learn to breathe deeper and focus that breath down into more parts of your body, including your feet. This helps remind us that we are more than the mind, and that we have support underneath us (literally and metaphorically) at all times.

Get moving
Think of the difference between a lake that is fed by a stream versus the one that sits stagnant.  The lake fed with moving water remains clear and balanced whereas the lake that has no flow gets congested and murky.  Take some time walking in nature, or even a few extra rounds around the kitchen island and keep the energy moving in your body.

Drink water
Nothing can live without water, including you.  Water nourishes your cells and it also acts as a conductor for electricity in the body.  Did you know that the brain uses electricity and chemicals to communicate? Ensuring proper hydration can actually keep your mind thinking clearly and your body running optimally.  Water helps you to regulate your temperature; keeps oxygen and nutrients moving through the body; and energetically speaking channels vitality throughout the tissues of the body! 

Call a friend 
There is nothing more grounding than a deep and enriching conversation with a good friend.  Yes, we are all coming out of our COVID isolations a little shaky in the sphere of communication, and no better time than to pick up the phone and invite a friend for a walk outside (or a walk and talk, if they live somewhere else) and share heart to heart.  If you are curious about a good ice breaker, try the question, “What did you learn most about yourself during the pandemic?”  

Find Beauty 
Beautiful things inspire us, make us smile, and keep us grounded in inspiration.  Beauty doesn’t have to be in art (but it can be). Beauty can be found in the colors of a blooming garden; the perfect baseball pitch; a gorgeous car; your child laughing at a movie; a beautiful sunset or sunrise.   Take that one moment to see beyond the everyday mundane and look for what is beautiful hiding just a little deeper.