Meditation and your Physical Health
November 1, 2023 at 6:00 AM
by 29 Intentions Mediation Studio
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The practice of meditation has been known to have a deep impact on the mind and body.

Meditation is a practice that dates back thousands of years. It's been shown to have a deep impact on the mind and body, helping you relax and reduce stress while improving your overall health.

Meditation can help you sleep better by reducing nighttime anxiety or insomnia caused by stress. When we're stressed out, our bodies produce higher levels of cortisol--a hormone that makes us feel more alert but also increases heart rate and blood pressure. Over time this can lead to serious health problems like heart disease or obesity because our bodies aren't able to recover from the constant high level of cortisol production during waking hours (when we should be resting!). By meditating regularly (even just for 10 minutes each day), we can train ourselves not only how best deal with stressful situations but also how recognize when it's time take action rather than sit around worrying all day long!

Over the years, researchers have found that meditation can lower blood pressure, improve immune system and reduce risk of heart disease.

The link between meditation and physical health is one of the most studied. Over the years, researchers have found that meditation can lower blood pressure, improve immune system and reduce risk of heart disease.

Meditation has also been shown to help with stress, anxiety and depression; which are all factors that can contribute to poor health (including heart disease).

But did you know that it can also help with obesity?

You may have heard that meditation is good for your physical health. It's true: studies have shown that meditation can reduce stress and help you manage chronic conditions like high blood pressure and heart disease. But did you know that it can also help with obesity?

  • Stress is a major factor in many of our country's most common health problems, including obesity. Stress leads to weight gain by increasing appetite, increasing cravings for comfort foods (like ice cream), interfering with sleep patterns and encouraging sedentary activities such as watching TV rather than getting active.
  • Meditating helps reduce stress by slowing down activity in the brain's limbic system--the part responsible for emotions like anger or sadness--while boosting activity in areas associated with self-control, attention span and problem solving abilities. This means that when we meditate regularly (even just five minutes per day) we become better able to manage negative emotions without resorting to unhealthy behaviors like overeating!

That's right! A recent study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings found that meditation helps people lose weight more effectively than dieting alone.

You're not alone. A recent study published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings found that meditation helps people lose weight more effectively than dieting alone. In fact, researchers found that participants who meditated for just 20 minutes a day lost an average of five pounds over a 16-week period--about double what the control group was able to accomplish without any extra effort!

If you're skeptical about how meditation could possibly help with something as concrete as weight loss, there are several reasons why it might be effective:

  • Meditation helps you relax and reduces stress. When we're stressed out, it's harder to make good decisions about our health or our bodies because our minds are preoccupied with other things (like how we're going to pay rent this month). Meditation can calm down your mind by helping you focus on one thing at a time instead of worrying about everything else going on around you at once; this allows for clearer thinking which ultimately leads us towards making better choices when it comes down to eating well vs eating poorly.*
  • Meditation helps cope with cravings.* We've all experienced those moments where we want nothing more than some ice cream sundaes or french fries from McDonalds after work -- but sometimes those cravings can get out of hand if they aren't controlled properly! Through regular practice sessions where practitioners learn how become aware of their hunger signals before reaching fullness point (and potentially overeating), sometimes referred to as "mindfulness-based interventions" (MBI), these types of situations become less frequent over time because we have developed healthier habits through practice.*

How exactly does this happen? Here's how...

When you meditate, your body releases more of the hormone cortisol. Cortisol is what helps us cope with stress and deal with negative emotions. But too much cortisol can make us feel anxious or depressed, so it's important to keep levels in check.

When we meditate regularly, our bodies become better at regulating the production and release of cortisol--meaning that we experience less stress overall! Meditation has also been shown to reduce insulin resistance (a condition related to diabetes) by improving blood sugar control and reducing inflammation in the body.

It turns out that meditation may help regulate metabolism by increasing fat burning through improved muscle tone while decreasing total body fat percentage over time (1). This makes sense when you consider that many people who practice meditation report feeling less hungry after practicing for a few weeks or months...

Meditation induces relaxation by reducing stressful thoughts and emotions.

Meditation is a great way to relax and reduce stress. It can help you cope with negative emotions, get a better night's sleep, focus on the present moment and not worry about the future as much.

When you meditate your brain waves slow down into a state of deep relaxation called alpha waves (a state similar to when you're asleep). This helps reduce stressful thoughts and emotions which in turn lowers blood pressure, reduces muscle tension and increases feelings of calmness.

When you're relaxed and calm, your body is much more efficient at burning fat than when you're stressed out or anxious.

When you're relaxed and calm, your body is much more efficient at burning fat than when you're stressed out or anxious. The reason for this is that when we're under stress, our bodies produce cortisol--a hormone that increases insulin resistance (the opposite of insulin sensitivity). This means that our bodies have a harder time processing carbohydrates as they would normally do if they weren't being affected by cortisol; this makes it easier for the body to store fat instead of burning it off.

When we meditate regularly and reduce our overall stress levels, however, we can improve our insulin sensitivity: meaning that now carbs will be able to enter into our cells more easily without having to fight through all those nasty effects caused by high levels of cortisol! This means fewer cravings because you aren't constantly fighting against an overactive hormone system in your body."

In fact, stress is known to increase cortisol levels which is bad for weight loss because it creates insulin resistance, causing the body to store fat rather than burn it for fuel.

In fact, stress is known to increase cortisol levels which is bad for weight loss. It creates insulin resistance, causing the body to store fat rather than burn it for fuel.

Cortisol is a hormone that increases in response to stress and other negative emotions such as anger or frustration. When you experience these feelings repeatedly over time (for example by constantly worrying about work), your body becomes desensitized to cortisol's effects on metabolism; therefore it doesn't know when it should stop producing this hormone so that you can calm down again. As a result of this desensitization process:

  • You may start storing more fat around your middle area (known as "central obesity") and less fat around other areas like hips or thighs;
  • Organs such as kidneys will begin malfunctioning due to elevated blood sugar levels caused by too much insulin secretion from pancreas cells damaged by high cortisol levels in bloodstreams;

So if you're feeling stressed out about your weight loss goals, try doing a few minutes of meditation each day to decrease stress hormones in your body and give your metabolism an extra boost!

Meditation is a great way to relax, reduce stress, and feel better about yourself. If you're trying to lose weight or improve your health in general, meditation can help with that too!

It's important for people who meditate regularly (or want to start) not only because it helps them feel better about themselves but also because it reduces their cortisol levels - which are linked with weight gain.

Conclusion

So if you're feeling stressed out about your weight loss goals, try doing a few minutes of meditation each day to decrease stress hormones in your body and give your metabolism an extra boost!

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