Hello friends! Early this year I finished a 42-day meditation challenge following the Peace Revolution self-development program. When I started drafting this post about my experience, it got sooo long that I didn’t have any other choice than to break it down into several parts. In Part 1, I speak about meditation overall as well as about the program and the facts. Part 2 is dedicated toall the challenges I faced (there’s a few!). Part 3 covers my learnings and the benefits I experienced. There will also be a Part 4, but I will keep this content a secret for the time being (let there be a little excitement and guessing! :)) Ready for an unfiltered read about my experience?
Meditation has become increasingly popular in the past decade. Monks, mindfulness gurus and spiritual guides have been practicing this for centuries. But thanks to the internet, information about meditation as well as guided practices are now available to everyone. And I really mean EVERYONE here because meditation doesn’t discriminate: one doesn’t need to be a deeply spiritual person or belong to a certain religion (or not belong at all) to mediate. It doesn’t matter how young or old you are or what type of lifestyle you have. It doesn’t matter what have you done in the past or what are you planning on doing in the future. As meditation is all about present moment, it really only matters what do you do (and how you feel) right now.
It is scientifically proven that meditation actually works. Next to the benefits, such as reducing stress and increasing attention, latest research shows it can also reduce pain, improve IBS (Irritable Bowel Syndrome) and even help with psoriasis! No wonder meditation has become a part of various (psycho)therapeutic practices today. If this wasn’t enough to convince you, I just would like to note that numerous successful entrepreneurs, celebrities and professional athletes swear by it, and they can’t be wrong, right?
Having said that, there really doesn’t seem to be an excuse to give it a try. Countless benefits, no sweating involved, free access to guided practices online – all this sounds so appealing and simple. Or is it?
Let’s speak about my meditation experience
I don’t remember exactly, but first time I ever encountered meditation was probably in a yoga class 11 years ago. I have to say there is no better time to meditate than after yoga, or after any physical exercise. This still works well for me even today.
Our yoga teacher dimmed the lights, and we were just resting our exhausted bodies on the mats after doing our downward dogs, warriors, and forward bends. I was almost falling asleep and it was an amazing feeling to be able to float somewhere between a deep conscious rest and non-REM sleep. Even though what I experienced was definitely beneficial for my mental health (I am a chronic worrier and this calmed my nerves), I never managed to implement meditation practice to my daily routine. Never in the past 11 years! Yes, I have tried it here and there for 5 or 10 minutes, but that’s all. A couple of years ago though, I couldn’t just keep it back in my mind any longer (how can I when the books and podcasts that I consume talk about its benefits all the time!) and added a 30-day meditation challenge to my goal list for 2019. Which I failed. New attempt was done in 2020. This time more or less successfully! Here’s what I got out of it and what I learned. Please note: I am by no means a meditation expert; quite the opposite, really – I consider myself a complete novice to this!
Prior to the challenge, I knew I wanted to follow one specific program that is beginner-friendly and then slowly pushes my limits. I also didn’t want to waste any time and effort on choosing between countless guided meditations online every day (this can get overwhelming), so finding one program and sticking to it was sort of a must for me to get started at all. Luckily, one of my good friends recommended me a fantastic meditation program provided by a non-profit organization called World Peace Initiative. They offer a 42-day self-development program for FREE or for a donation. I could track my progress by jotting down my thoughts and observations after every practice to an online journal, which – and this might be the best part of the entire program – were reviewed and commented on by my own personal coach! Yes, they assign you a coach who will be guiding your through the entire journey. That’s pretty awesome, isn’t it? By the way, this is not an ad for Peace Revolution, just writing about my experience here :). I actually don’t have any other connection to this organization aside from attending this program. And believe me, it was not all rainbows, butterflies, and unicorns. As a matter of fact, it was far much harder than I expected.
Facts
I completed the program in approximately 3 months. So, in that sense, I failed a bit as I wasn’t able to do it in 42 consecutive days. But, I am still proud of myself for being able to pull through. In total, I meditated for 763 minutes, and the average meditation time was 18.64 minutes (which is not a lot, read more read on to find out why I say this).
The start was good and I could hold up the pace meditating every day probably for the first 15 days. I believe the reason behind it was my high motivation and the beginner-friendly meditation length that stayed somewhere around 10-15 minutes. Just looking back to my journal, I state on day 11 that a 20-minute meditation is too long for me. Haha! Little did I know, soon the meditations would be extended to 30-, 40- and finally to 50-minute practices!
I also want to mention that I was never able to sit through a 50-minute practice. It was just unthinkable considering that I still have my everyday life going on and have to work full-time at home. The longest meditation I did was 36 minutes long according to my online journal.
Last note I want to make about the program is that they also ask you to follow “five acts of discipline” during the program (I don’t remember the list exactly, but among things like don’t steal and harm others, they also asked to give up alcohol, which, and I have to admit, I did not follow through on some days).
To be continued… Stay tuned for Part 2 that is dedicated to the challenges I faced!
Light and love,
Liis
Yay! Been waiting for this! As a coach I’d like to take the opportunity to clarify that the sitting posture does not have to look perfect but has to be as comfortable as possible (without resting your head against anything, because you that would most definitely end up with falling asleep) . Half lotus position is great, but having some lower back support at the same time is at least for me absolutely essential. With additional knee problems, perhaps sitting on a chair would be a more comfortable option? Needless to say, I’m so proud of you!
Thank you so much Elli for your supportive words! 🙏 To be honest, I have never considered chair as an option, but I will try it out!