I’ll be the first to admit complete skepticism about this ancient cross-legged activity but through a little reading and practising it’s probably the simplest and most effective way to reduce and/or manage stress in my life currently.

The benefits are numerous and if you don’t have a daily practice established yet, I strongly encourage it based on the following reasons:

During meditation the heart rate and breathing slow down, your blood pressure normalizes, you use oxygen more efficiently, and you sweat less. Also, your adrenal glands produce less cortisol, your mind ages at a slower rate, and your immune function improves. It is also known to help improve creativity (think Steve Martin as the new age Boss in Baby Mama)!

So, now that you know the benefits, you have no excuses to not give it a try?

5 Easy Steps to Meditation:

During times of stress, our health can be severely affected depending on how intense we are feeling by these external stressors. These events can alter our entire body including our appetites, energy levels, breathing quality and especially our sleeping patterns. So what can we do to stay calm during these stressful moments? One of the best things we can do for ourselves is to prepare for these inevitable moments and get a minimum of 7 hours of quality rest each night. If we feel rested, we’re less likely to be exhausted and apprehensive during the day so that we have the energy and clarity to resolve our problems. Here are 4 tips to help you achieve this restful sleep.