Blog

Reclaim Your Attention with Reminders

A picture of magzine with an article titled reclaim your attention by matthew tift
I have been thinking a lot about attention recently. "Reclaim Your Attention" is the title of my article in the current issue of MN Yoga + Life Magazine and the workshop I will be offering at the MN Yoga Conference next month. With both of those, I focus on using techniques such as yoga, meditation, breathwork, and chanting to improve attention. Here I'd like to mention one way I have been using software to help pay attention.

January 2023 Yoga Events

A Person Meditating on Snow from pexels.com/photo/a-person-meditating-on-snow-8722676
Yoga is not therapy or a cure for depression. However, scientific studies continue to show that contemplative practices, such as yoga and meditation, can be as effective as medication for treating anxiety. Yoga, in its many forms, can help us redefine our experiences during difficult times. That certainly has been the case for me, which is the single biggest reason why I come back to these practices again and again. Practicing yoga, meditation, and chanting continue to leave a wake of positive benefits in my life and I love to share the practices that I find most helpful.

A Complete End of Suffering

Matthew sitting under trees surrounded by people in a yoga class

On Thursday (October 20, 2022) at 6pm I will be teaching another free yoga class at the Minnesota Arboretum. Whether it's indoors or outdoors, an evening class or a day-long retreat, I always seem to enjoy teaching in the Arboretum. It feels beneficial.

As the years tick by and I continue to go deeper and deeper into yoga, I feel more focused than ever. I prioritize activities like volunteering to teach at the Arboretum and let go of other pursuits. Happiness increases.

Biking Meditation

Bike leaning against a bench in a park

I'm not sure what to call it. Biking meditation. Bike yoga. Meditation in motion. Meditative biking. Maybe just mindfulness meditation while biking.

But I know something happens on my bike. Riding by myself, unplugged, no earbuds, outside in nature feels good. It relaxes me. It helps me let go of concerns about the future or past. If I have a problem I've been trying to solve, I often arrive home from a ride with a solution. Especially if I was not trying to solve the problem.