60 Days of 60 Minutes of Meditation - Let's Not Do Anything Together

[Sheens]

Lol @ZCP and @MTF ... can only imagine the report back from Z after this

Day 23 also completed!

In keeping with current theme of how it affects our SO's ... mine is enjoying this challenge much more than my trial runs in fasting and diet changes. He's great about not starting a conversation or anything during the 60 minutes... he's even better at finding me directly before I plan to start or right after! Each of those have distinct benefits that include the rush of oxytocin, dopamine, and serotonin before or after the session. Including your loved one in this creates a stronger bond and it's just really fun : )

 

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[Barracuda]

Day 18 completed
Today was the best for me so far, my arms were too heavy to pick up, i could "feel" my body. I found that simplicity is key. Having various methods of meditating tends to be overwhelming and confusing. My goal was to be calm. In order to hear my thoughts clearly, i have to get my body under control. I know there's power when you can control your breath. Your breath keeps your emotions, thoughts e.t.c in check. It's only when you're calm you can see situations or thoughts clearly. I just breathed today. I made sure everywhere was quiet, i closed my eyes. It was smooth

 

[XxThelionxX]

Day 18 completed
Today was the best for me so far, my arms were too heavy to pick up, i could "feel" my body. I found that simplicity is key. Having various methods of meditating tends to be overwhelming and confusing. My goal was to be calm. In order to hear my thoughts clearly, i have to get my body under control. I know there's power when you can control your breath. Your breath keeps your emotions, thoughts e.t.c in check. It's only when you're calm you can see situations or thoughts clearly. I just breathed today. I made sure everywhere was quiet, i closed my eyes. It was smooth

Have you been studying mindfulness? I have a couple books on it. And will be studying tonight.

 

[MTF]

Day 24 completed.

Yet again in a half-awake state. It's hard to go deeper when you're worrying that if you do that, you'll fall asleep.

My problems are most likely related to the weather. My body can't handle winter. I haven't seen any sunlight since December 26th, so it's been 11 days already. It's gray every single day. The local forecast shows no sunlight for another 10 days so in the end it's possible I won't see ANY sunlight for three weeks straight.

I now need to set 5 alarm clocks bothering me for a full hour with a 10-minute interval just so I can get up before 7 (and still be so groggy I can't meditate properly). Meanwhile, in the summer, I usually wake up naturally before 6 every day.

I'm trying not to let the external world affect my internal one but it's hard to fight with biology.

 

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[Olimac21]

Day 29 done.

Super good, I just repeated a mantra (kind of like TM meditation) almost the entire time.

@MTF Sorry to hear that, where are you at the moment?

 

[redshift]

I now need to set 5 alarm clocks bothering me for a full hour with a 10-minute interval just so I can get up before 7 (and still be so groggy I can't meditate properly). Meanwhile, in the summer, I usually wake up naturally before 6 every day.

This is actually something you should avoid, both from a sleep quality and mindset point of view as well (you are telling your subconscious you don't want to wake up and it will carry into the day). It's better to just have either one alarm or none at all.

I am currently in a pretty cold place as well (sun rises around 8), but here is my setup - Smart light goes off at 5am (including weekends), followed by dance/energetic music in the living room a minute later - has to be in another room else I'll just turn it off. I just go there, have some warm water, do a few stretches + yoga followed by zen meditation (eyes open, lotus pose). Even after making it past the stretches, it is usually pretty hard to go back to sleep since your body will wake up and get heated. You don't have to do 5am but its better to pick a time and stick with it everyday. After a month or so, it will become fairly easy.

Check out the book "Sleep Smarter" by Shawn Stevenson. It has a bunch of tips to improve sleep quality, and has some tips for S.A.D as well iirc.

 

[MTF]

@MTF Sorry to hear that, where are you at the moment?

Poland.

This is actually something you should avoid, both from a sleep quality and mindset point of view as well (you are telling your subconscious you don't want to wake up and it will carry into the day). It's better to just have either one alarm or none at all.

I am currently in a pretty cold place as well (sun rises around 8), but here is my setup - Smart light goes off at 5am (including weekends), followed by dance/energetic music in the living room a minute later - has to be in another room else I'll just turn it off. I just go there, have some warm water, do a few stretches + yoga followed by zen meditation (eyes open, lotus pose). Even after making it past the stretches, it is usually pretty hard to go back to sleep since your body will wake up and get heated. You don't have to do 5am but its better to pick a time and stick with it everyday. After a month or so, it will become fairly easy.

Check out the book "Sleep Smarter" by Shawn Stevenson. It has a bunch of tips to improve sleep quality, and has some tips for S.A.D as well iirc.

Thanks for the tips. Some are impossible (my gf would kill me for smart light, let alone dance music at 5 am LOL). Waking up early is natural for me, but it's not natural during the winter. That's the problem.

I'll do some light exercise before yoga to wake me up and maybe try cold showers again. I know all the tips included in this book (just checked the table of contents) and it's the same stuff everyone's saying and the same stuff that just doesn't work for me or is outright annoying (get some sunlight - good luck with that! Even a SAD lamp doesn't come anywhere close to waking up to bright sunshine in the summer)

 

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[metallon]

DAY 3 completed.

I am doing this practice for past three days. I set alarm for 4.55 AM in the morning, wake up to the first alarm sound, brush and meditate for an hour. My plan - Initially, I start with focusing on my breath then I just try to notice my thoughts and whatever.

WHY AM I DOING THIS?

I was meditating with the Waking up app (10min) earlier. But in the past three months, since I started working on my idea, I couldn't able to meditate because I was anxious and think about the idea all the time. Usually, I wake in the middle of the night and not able to sleep for hours because of my mind chattering and fearing the future.

Today when I was working on my web design, I was laser-focused like never before. I didn't even think about taking a break or surfing Fb. I was also able to get hold of my negative emotions.

HOW WAS THE EXPERIENCE?

I sit and meditate in a cross-legged position. Here in India, most of the sages meditate cross-legged and Indians are habituated from childhood to sit cross-legged. Initially, My mind would resist and urge me to do something else. As time passes, the mind will gradually become quiet and one hour time files quickly.

Whenever a feeling of discomfort or pain comes, I watch that feeling and the mind's attempt to make me move or quit (chattering). After a few moments, they stop bothering.

Big Thanks to @MTF for starting this thread. Reading your first post, I got convinced to try it out. Consistency is what I need now.

 

[redshift]

Thanks for the tips. Some are impossible (my gf would kill me for smart light, let alone dance music at 5 am LOL). Waking up early is natural for me, but it's not natural during the winter. That's the problem.

haha, in that case you can set the smart light in your living room and make it a game to turn off the music before she wakes up (forgot to add, I have a fitbit alarm on the wrist too) . Also, it doesn't have to be 5, could be 6 or 7, whatever you want but the main point is to wake up intentionally instead of the snooze loop. The consistent time helps regulate the circadian rhythm which is especially important in winter with less natural cues.

the same stuff everyone's saying and the same stuff that just doesn't work for me or is outright annoying (get some sunlight - good luck with that

One thing he mentioned which I wasn't aware of is that 30 mins of outdoor exposure to direct sunlight (via the retina) is enough to trigger serotonin/melotonin production *even in cloudy/overcast weather*, i.e - it doesn't have to be sunny. Also had some insights about winter which I can't remember now.

 

[Matua]

Day 24

I had some amount of mental chatter today, but I grounded and re-centered myself through breathing.
Mental chatter was mostly about a decision I must make today, which got me both excited and anxious at the same time. So I had to constantly remind myself that I'm not my own thoughts during and after meditation.

When I make a decision, it all comes down to only two things: You do an action or You don't do an action.
Any thought after these two things is purely overthinking a decision. Either you make it happen or you don't make it happen. After you make a choice, let life handle everything and take you from there as you continue to make simple decisions along the way.

I'm currently reading The Surrender Experiment at the moment, so I'm inspired by just reading a couple chapters.

I now need to set 5 alarm clocks bothering me for a full hour with a 10-minute interval just so I can get up before 7 (and still be so groggy I can't meditate properly). Meanwhile, in the summer, I usually wake up naturally before 6 every day.

Go for it! Try out what you're experimenting with and see the results. Perhaps this is what you need to get you through the winter and on rainy days / cloudy days to sit comfortably through meditation and not feel sleepy.

Big Thanks to @MTF for starting this thread. Reading your first post, I got convinced to try it out. Consistency is what I need now.

Welcome! A 1-hour session of meditation is large amount of time for watching your thoughts, your self, and your environment. The more time you spend with yourself, the more you learn to accept things over time.

 

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[Ma.Gico]

Day 22 completed ( ive skept 2 days since i started)

Since my first failed day and then just much worse after my 2nd ive had thoughts of quitting or at least reducing the time. But then always comes to mind every time ive been in a situation where i exclaimed to my self:" omg this is working! omg ive been so cool in that tense situation, omg i havent had any discussion with my mother during my vacations! etc" and then i just shut up and sit in my chair and set the timer again...

 

[Barracuda]

Have you been studying mindfulness? I have a couple books on it. And will be studying tonight.

Not really. Anytime i get anxious, I used to consume tons of media on how not to be anxious. Obviously it never worked.
But i did discover some gurus and experts in the process. Dandapani, Eckhart Tolle, Sahdguru. Eckhart is my favorite....i generally ignored anyone with a Phd in psychology because of their lack of practicality

 

[SteveO]

Yet again in a half-awake state. It's hard to go deeper when you're worrying that if you do that, you'll fall asleep.

Many revelations have come to me in this state. I don't feel that you need to worry about it.

 

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[MetalGear]

• Does anyone here set an intention for their meditation?
• I am focusing on listening to myself and releasing negativity lately
• Why are certain muscles tight?
• It is amazing how I can release the "tightness" at times

 

[MTF]

Big Thanks to @MTF for starting this thread. Reading your first post, I got convinced to try it out. Consistency is what I need now.

Welcome! Glad to have you and looking forward to your future updates.

One thing he mentioned which I wasn't aware of is that 30 mins of outdoor exposure to direct sunlight (via the retina) is enough to trigger serotonin/melotonin production *even in cloudy/overcast weather*, i.e - it doesn't have to be sunny. Also had some insights about winter which I can't remember now.

This guy surely doesn't know what a proper gray winter looks like LOL. I'm half-kidding.

If this were true, my SAD lamp would work fine as it provides roughly 10,000 lux.

Very dark overcast day (normal here in the winter for days on end) provides just 100 lux and overcast day 1,000 lux so that's 10-100x stronger or roughly the same or weaker than full daylight but not in direct sunlight.

Alas, I most definitely don't feel the same as during the summer. But that's been a problem I've been struggling with for ages (sadly I'm an "expert" in it, but without any real solutions to offer) so I don't want to talk too much about it in this thread.

Day 22 completed ( ive skept 2 days since i started)

Since my first failed day and then just much worse after my 2nd ive had thoughts of quitting or at least reducing the time. But then always comes to mind every time ive been in a situation where i exclaimed to my self:" omg this is working! omg ive been so cool in that tense situation, omg i havent had any discussion with my mother during my vacations! etc" and then i just shut up and sit in my chair and set the timer again...

It's "working." There's no question it's working. But it's a practice with ups and downs. In the end, that's helpful to remember: it's a practice and you WILL get better at it. It's not a skill that requires a teacher or constant feedback from someone else. It's just you removing stuff to get to the core of who you are.

Many revelations have come to me in this state. I don't feel that you need to worry about it.

As long as I don't fall asleep it's okay but I prefer to be more awake when I meditate so I can have more control.

• Does anyone here set an intention for their meditation?
• I am focusing on listening to myself and releasing negativity lately
• Why are certain muscles tight?
• It is amazing how I can release the "tightness" at times

• No intention for any specific session. The only intention is to see the mind as something separate from me.
• Who are you? As in, what do you talk about when you say "listening to myself?" That's a pretty good question to meditate on.
• Some people say it's because that's where you store unprocessed emotions. A less "spiritual" answer would be that each of us tenses different muscles when they're stressed out. For example, I have a tendency to have a tight jaw.
• The power of consciousness!

 

[S.Y.]

• Does anyone here set an intention for their meditation?
• I am focusing on listening to myself and releasing negativity lately
• Why are certain muscles tight?
• It is amazing how I can release the "tightness" at times

What do you mean by intention?

Before this challenge, I was sitting down and just focusing on my breath. Now, the goal is to not focus at all and just be a witness. If I think I think, if I don't, don't. When I get too carried away, I focus on my breath and then get back to be a witness when my mind is still enough.

In the Headspace meditation series (on Netflix), they have a guide for reflective meditation. The idea is you ask yourself one question before starting. And then just be a witness. The goal is not to engage with the question, but rather see what your mind will come up with.


I am getting a project off the ground. I am realizing that my thoughts are now centered around it when I meditate. I have also noticed that I have certain behaviors I default to when I want to avoid doing a task I anticipate to be tedious. It is now clear as day. I can literally feel the sensation coming up and then the thoughts crossing my mind.


So @Sheens and @ZCP are loved buds? hummmm

If this were true, my SAD lamp would work fine as it provides roughly 10,000 lux.

November and Dec are rough here for me as well.

Loading up on Vitamin D (4000BTU per day) and working out harder help me feel better.

 

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[SteveO]

What do you mean by intention?

The one question you are talking about is an intention. Anything can be. And yes, you set your intention and then forget about it. As you say "be a witness".

I started with am intention of learning how to communicate with myself. My answers came in a visual form in my mind. Symbols mostly. So I focused on visual.

Another thing that I learned since then is that physical feelings and sensations play a big role in my communications. Don't want to go into a great deal of detail here as I might be deemed a lunatic.

All in all, your meditation should be open and flowing. You should not be directing it once you begin.

 

[MTF]

Loading up on Vitamin D (4000BTU per day) and working out harder help me feel better.

I'm taking 5,000 a day

Another thing that I learned since then is that physical feelings and sensations play a big role in my communications. Don't want to go into a great deal of detail here as I might be deemed a lunatic.

I, for one, don't mind lunatic views

 

[MTF]

Day 25 completed.

Took a cold shower and did some exercises before meditation. I was a little more awake but still in that weird dream-like state where sometimes I wasn't even sure if I was having an opinion, imagining that something happened or someone said something, or if it really happened or was said.

Which, incidentally, is actually a pretty good insight to, as Michael A. Singer calls it, "live without preference." If I couldn't tell which of my opinions, preferences, and "facts" are real, I'd be more capable of living without resistance to reality (we ourselves resist by identifying ourselves with our opinions and other stuff).

 

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[Olimac21]

Day 30 done.

Some dark thoughts for a while but overall very calm. It is crazy how now I am at 50% of the challenge and I feel very good about it

 

[MTF]

Some dark thoughts for a while but overall very calm. It is crazy how now I am at 50% of the challenge and I feel very good about it

Congrats on the 50% mark. Not that you'll be "done" when you hit 100%, but just as a milestone.

 

[redshift]

Very dark overcast day (normal here in the winter for days on end) provides just 100 lux and overcast day 1,000 lux so that's 10-100x stronger or roughly the same or weaker than full daylight but not in direct sunlight.

I don't know much about lux but yeah, the table in the books seem to be corelating to what you said, probably worse in your area: "1,000 lux Overcast day; 10,000 to 25,000 lux Full daylight (not direct sun); 32,000 to 100,000 lux Direct sunlight".

Alas, I most definitely don't feel the same as during the summer. But that's been a problem I've been struggling with for ages (sadly I'm an "expert" in it, but without any real solutions to offer)

Since you mentioned this, thought I'd offer - what does the weather have to do with meditation ? As Michael Singer said it in his course - "everything". He called weather the gateway to spiritual growth. The point of meditation/surrender really is to get rid of your blockages and free up your energy for more important things. According to him the easiest way to do this is the weather, he called it "low hanging fruit". It's basically something completely out of your control, you can either complain about, try and change the situation (eg: move to a warm place or wait for spring/summer) or just accept it and find the positives in it. Complaining will just bring you down, moving to a warmer place will only be temporary (your mind will up come up with the next problem as soon as you move, maybe its too hot now). Accepting it is the only real solution and path to freedom.

Personally, I used to have winter depression my whole life as well, but this year, has been the best winter ever. I learned to let go of the part of me which was looking for problems and look for the positives instead. For me, its the ideal situation - get to be indoors without any external distractions and work on my business or cozy up and read a book. I finally realized the weather doesn't really matter and there is no such thing as bad weather. I traced it back during meditation and realized it was just societal conditioning, everyone complains about how depressing winter (or the rain) is etc and I just ended up believing it without giving it much thought. Now I just see it as it is - another beautiful day and chance to work on improving myself and the moment in front of me

 

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[MTF]

Since you mentioned this, thought I'd offer - what does the weather have to do with meditation ? As Michael Singer said it in his course - "everything". He called weather the gateway to spiritual growth. The point of meditation/surrender really is to get rid of your blockages and free up your energy for more important things. According to him the easiest way to do this is the weather, he called it "low hanging fruit". It's basically something completely out of your control, you can either complain about, try and change the situation (eg: move to a warm place or wait for spring/summer) or just accept it and find the positives in it. Complaining will just bring you down, moving to a warmer place will only be temporary (your mind will up come up with the next problem as soon as you move, maybe its too hot now). Accepting it is the only real solution and path to freedom.

I'm fully aware of it and am actively working each day with this. Trust me, if I didn't work with this, I wouldn't be even meditating or doing much at all other than contemplating suicide because winter absolutely crushes my spirit each year (and I'm not exaggerating, it really f**** me up and drives to do stuff I wouldn't normally do).

The weather in itself is now neutral to me - or I try to look at it this way, accepting it's a cycle that has nothing to do with me. But there's also my body's natural response. This IMO is not dictated by my inner world in the same way as you can't NOT feel exhausted if you get 4 hours of sleep. My body's response to winter is something I can't control, just like you can't control sleepiness when your body doesn't get enough of sleep.

This year I'm not letting it ruin my mood but it'll continue ruining my body because that's how it reacts to it whether I like it or not. Mentally I'm much more okay than before but physically nothing changes.

So yeah, in the end I can either accept the struggle as part of the reality (winter equals exhaustion, problems waking up, little sunlight and it has nothing to do personally with me; it's my body's natural response to a huge force I have nothing to do with) or I can move which is possibly what I'll do depending on the travel restrictions (another thing I can't control).

By the way, as I read the second paragraph of your post, I DID feel resistance inside. It's almost as if I feel offended that someone says that winter can be good. It literally makes my heart beat faster in anger. I even get angry when I talk with someone who says that they like cold weather. It's a great example of how my dislike is running my life. I still have a lot of stuff to process about this.

 

[sparechange]

Not sure if this counts as meditation, but stood on a bridge overlooking the city and mountains while watching the sunset for 30 mins or so in silence then proceeding to induce myself into a food coma from multiple slices of pizza and having a nap.

Blue, purple and pink skies out today with snow capped mountains, magical experience.

 

[MTF]

Not sure if this counts as meditation, but stood on a bridge overlooking the city and mountains while watching the sunset for 30 mins or so in silence then proceeding to induce myself into a food coma from multiple slices of pizza and having a nap.

Blue, purple and pink skies out today with snow capped mountains, magical experience.

The experience of awe is meditative.

Not sure about the food coma part.

 

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[Matua]

Day 25

One event yesterday got me anxious and slightly depressed, which I knew I had to meditate on this today.
So after my morning routine, I sat there and did mental chants, positive affirmation, and mantras to resolve whatever is bothering my mind:

"I am okay." , "It's okay."
"I can handle this."
"I am not my thoughts."
"Who am I?" , "Who is the one that comes up with this thought?"
"Om" (mantra)

I saw how my ego was really hurt from that event, so I essentially kept reminding myself that life goes on and there's yet to be new things to experience that it gives us. Life is a gift for us to be present.
Just the ability to feel and experience things as humans is a gift we all take for granted.
So I will continue living, experiencing as many things as I can, while dealing and coming into terms with myself.

• Does anyone here set an intention for their meditation?
• I am focusing on listening to myself and releasing negativity lately
• Why are certain muscles tight?
• It is amazing how I can release the "tightness" at times

It really depends on the day. Sometimes I am taken to focus on breathing, sitting in silence and observe my thoughts, or doing mental chants / mantras.

Another thing that I learned since then is that physical feelings and sensations play a big role in my communications. Don't want to go into a great deal of detail here as I might be deemed a lunatic.

Tell us, I'm interested! Even I sometimes doubt myself if a post I'm making is "worth it" and people may not care, but I also question: What about those who may benefit from my post regardless of what I think?
Personally, if there's even a small few that see value in what I written, then it's worth sharing.

 

[Sheens]

• Does anyone here set an intention for their meditation?
• I am focusing on listening to myself and releasing negativity lately
• Why are certain muscles tight?
• It is amazing how I can release the "tightness" at times

Day 25 Completed!

Hey @MetalGear! There are some days that I do set intentions. Usually a gratitude, healing, quiet/peace, or deep focus on a certain subject.

Yesterday, there was a design I needed that I've never seen before... so I used that hour to turn the object all around in my mind and build the pieces together. After the 60 min, I had it and drew it out on paper. Pretty cool!

I even get angry when I talk with someone who says that they like cold weather. It's a great example of how my dislike is running my life. I still have a lot of stuff to process about this.

I understand the visceral response your body has to a passing statement @MTF! Mine isn't to weather, though certainly present in other situations. I've actually noticed improvement over the past weeks.

This mind training nearly gives me another level of 'spaced out'. I can just be present and let things easily go by.

It also touched my inner level of joy... which I am lucky (or blessed, or thankful, or learned, or whatever a proper term might be) to have a natural level of happiness that can hardly be contained. I love being in my own head : ) And this meditation practice has one upped it. If it 10x's it by the end ... I can't even imagine

So @Sheens and @ZCP are loved buds? hummmm

Lol! I read this as 'love bugs'... so @ZCP .. could be another fun nickname? Hahaha

Z is one of the best people I've ever had the pleasure to meet. He's a force unlike any other. And he's even graceful at coming in at second place in our challenges... Lol

who do i know i would have sex with? .... this degenerated into a lot of yes / no's that went in all directions. then to fastlane forum members .... 'no, not @MTF . probably not @Sheens .

.. pretty clear @MTF and I are rockin' at the same level of 'loved buds' for Z

 

[MTF]

So after my morning routine, I sat there and did mental chants, positive affirmation, and mantras to resolve whatever is bothering my mind:

Be careful with positive affirmations. Michael A. Singer explains it better in his course but to make long story short:
spirituality is not the law of attraction (get what I want and resist what I don't want). It's the complete opposite. It's letting go of preferences. This would include NOT using positive affirmations because that's like identifying yourself (your consciousness) with your likes and dislikes.

.. pretty clear @MTF and I are rockin' at the same level of 'loved buds' for Z

I was very sad when I read ZCP's brutal rejection. To this day I have a trauma when I merely see the letter "Z." I'm now scarred for life (unless meditation helps me deal with this sad, sad, mental scar). @ZCP you monster.

 

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[ZCP]

@MTF, sexybeast, you were super nervous when i 'approached' you the first time after climbing that mountain in AZ barefoot. then when i said i was coming to 'see you' in Poland, you said you wouldn't open the door. rejection and scars are all on THIS side, brother! probably why i have been focused on business and you've been writing all the romance novels, right? lol

@Sheens i read 'love bugs' too. let's go with it!

i have a shot at 3rd this year, @Sheens . @SteveO has been 'butt building' for two months now. said he's giving us a run for our money.
------
By the way, bullshit like this is why i shouldn't be left to 'meditate' ...... can we get this thread back on track?

 

[ZCP]

Day 0
try to meditate. can focus for a few minutes. crazy shit rolls from there or i fall asleep.