What on earth is natural health zen|

What on earth is natural health zen?

Natural Health Zen

To start, zen is a term that refers to a personal form of

enlightenment that allows you to reach your own form of

perfection.

Natural health zen is an approach to health using your

education, information and your values in a natural, or

nature-based way in order to reach your most perfect state

of health and wellness!

Part of this approach can also include meditation as a

daily practice.

Meditation is well-known to reduce stress, your heart

rate, your blood pressure, blood sugar levels and even

asthma and pain! (See last month's newsletter "Meditation

and pain relief - is there a link?" for more information.)

Meditation can also help you be more productive at work

and have improved concentration to study and focus on

tasks more effectively.

If you are an athlete, or even someone who has just

started a fabulous new exercise program, it might interest

you to know that meditation can also improve your physical

reaction time, your stamina, and your self-discipline!

On top of all those benefits, any form of zen meditation

can also help improve your mood, your sense of empathy for

others and your self-esteem!

So how can you incorporate some form of meditation into

your natural health program?

Start by finding a good time to do it. Pick sometime

during your day that you can reserve and preserve just for

meditation, like the first few minutes of the morning or

last moments before bed.

It should also be in a very comfortable place, where you

can relax and be at ease.

If you can find a place outside to meditate, that is

great! Sometimes, especially in a big city, that isn't so

easy; if you can't go outside, try to find a spot that has

fresh air circulating through.

Some people like to meditate in silence while others

prefer some music in the background. Either way is fine,

and there are certainly loads of guided meditation CDs out

there that may be very useful to you.

For beginners, most meditation teachers emphasize focusing

on the breath. One way to approach this is to breathe with

your abdomen. If you watch a baby breathe, their stomach

expands and lowers. Opening up in this way pulls down the

diaphragm, a muscle that lies below the lungs. This allows

your lungs to expand and get full of fresh air.

This is also the way professional singers and speakers are

trained to breathe because it increases the efficiency and

the power of the breath and the voice.

Once you have gotten the correct breathing pattern down,

you will want to stay focused on your breathing. How do

you do that? By counting.

Count to four on your inhalation, and then gently hold

your breath for a count of eight. Count again to eight as

you slowly exhale.

Repeat this for as long as you are meditating.

Many meditation teachers suggest you inhale through your

nose and exhale through your mouth. But why focus on your

breathing at all?

Breathing deeply allows you to inhale all the oxygen you

can - and thus blow out all the carbon dioxide you can.

That helps to clear your body AND to recharge it! After

all, every cell in your body needs oxygen to survive and

tries to clear out all the carbon dioxide it can.

Don't forget, your brain cells need oxygen too!

The deep breathing ensures that your brain is fully

supplied with oxygen.

The other reason to focus on your breathing is that so

many people who are trying to learn to meditate have a

problem with the concept of "emptying the mind" which is

pretty central to meditation.

If you focus on just your breathing, it is one way to at

least almost empty your mind.

With practice, the breathing becomes automatic and you

already know that you can keep focused on a single

objective, so the next step - focusing on a single object

like a flower or a candle - is much easier.

Natural zen health also has to do with your food and your

environment.

It's a simple concept: live as much as possible within

nature and use only natural ingredients for your food,

natural medicines only when you need them and natural

materials everywhere you can.

Now, we all know that it is more complicated than this...

Unless you decide to become a hermit on top of some

mountain, you have to earn a living and interact with

people!

The key here is to have your own space as close as

possible to nature.

Studies have shown that the more in touch we are with

nature, the healthier we all tend to be.

Find a space, and allow nature to come into it! Or, go out

into nature as often as you can. This doesn't have to be

the wilderness; you can benefit by going into the

neighborhood park or into your own backyard!

While it is not always simple, it can be done. And, the

rewards can be a healthier, happier and more fulfilled

life.

Use as many natural products as you can: 100% cotton, hemp

or silk for your clothes, hemp rugs for your floor, and

natural wood for your furniture. Eat as many natural,

whole foods as you can; if it is processed or ready-made,

don't eat it!

Living as natural a life as you can, following the day and

night cycle as much as you can, eating natural foods,

practicing meditation and going into nature as often as

possible is not always easy. But, the more of these things

you are able to do, chances are good you will see the

effects in a healthier body and mind!

That seems like a goal worth striving for, doesn't it?

Kind regards,

P.S. Did you know that super-foods are the world's best

natural health supplements?

Try them to find out for yourself here:

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