How To Have Less Anxiety, Greater Fitness And A Better Connection With Yourself
- Sep 9, 2021
- 5 min read
Updated: Sep 13, 2021
Written by: Graham Wheatcroft, Guest Writer Brainz Magazine
The simple steps to achieve this that takes as little as 30-minutes per week including time-efficient fitness, and meditation creating more resilience.
In these challenging times, many people experience varying levels of anxiety, lower levels of fitness, and lack of connection with the self. Many people say to me that they do not have the time for themselves…
I ask you this, "Have you thought that it’s about how you use the time to its greatest efficiency?"
We cannot create more time as we have all have the same in a day: 1440 minutes. In this article, I will be introducing you to some strategies that take as little as 30 minutes to action collectively but will change your level of power and productivity for the day significantly.
How To Have Less Anxiety
When I was battling my own anxiety, I had been offered medication to help me through. I made the personal choice that I could work through this using the tools and tactics that I was already accustomed to without medication: I chose physical, mental and spiritual meditation. This helped me connect back to my mind and body.
Taking simple actions in these three areas, achieving small hits and achievements became the game-changer. An outline of each stage is below:
Physical Meditation: The Vertical Lift “Dragan’s”
This is a simple, unconventional but highly effective lift, created by Dragan Radovic, involving just a pair of dumbbells and nothing else. Ideally weighing in at a minimum of 10% of your body weight, maximum 20-25% of your bodyweight.
Firstly warm up with air squats until your body feels warm for two to five minutes or 100 repetitions.
Stand comfortably with feet shoulder-width apart, slightly wider if necessary.
Lower into a seated position, back straight, eyes forward.
As you lower, your hands come in front of the face, not the chest.
How To Dragan Lift And Have Greater Fitness:
Stand with your feet shoulder-width apart and comfortable.
Hold a dumbbell in each hand with the weight in front of your thigh.
Start with one arm: bicep curl, then move into a shoulder press taking the arm vertical but not locking out the arm. Natural movement is key.
Bring the arm back down and repeat on the other arm.
You may find you naturally have a slight forward or sideways lean as you move the weight and engage the core. This is fine, but should not hurt the back in any way.
As one weight goes above the head, the core muscles on the opposite side of your body will engage, helping you raise the dumbbell upwards. I would encourage deep controlled breathing on each rep. You will find your heart rate increase steadily as you lift, so you get the added benefit of strength, cardio, and an endurance workout simultaneously… saving you time.
I would encourage you to start small and build up. Aim for one hundred without a break, but if necessary increase in increments of fifty or less depending on your own level of fitness. The lifts should take approximately ten to minutes to complete one hundred. With practice, you’ll be able to complete three hundred and more in one go. Synchronise your breathing and lifting rhythm. I recommend exhaling as you push the weight up, you will naturally inhale as you lower the weight.
This is a great way to focus your mind and body allowing you to block out any outside distractions and be truly present. As I lift I like to imagine I am following a pathway that is taking me forward in all I do. It’s a useful visualisation. Staying calm and relaxed throughout your lifting session is highly recommended. It’s not about rushing them. Become present and focus on one lift at a time at a steady rhythm.
The Dragan lifts will help you connect with yourself physically and mentally, for some people it can become a spiritual experience the longer you lift.
My client shared this about the Dragan Lifts:
“I wanted to say that Dragan Lifts are very meditative for me. The flow of the lift is very calming.”
How To Create Connection With Yourself
Rather than the word “meditation” I prefer to use the word connection.
Connection is very much centred around breathing, being present and having an awareness of oneself.
The traditional approach is to sit cross-legged with a straight back or lie down, close your eyes and then try to clear your mind. This does have its merits and gives you the opportunity to go deep within, however, I recommend also trying these alternatives:
Take yourself for a walk in nature, barefoot if possible, become aware of your surroundings, touch the floor, the trees. Find a spot just for you.
Go barefoot on the grass in your garden, feel the grass on the soles of your feet. Ground yourself.
My favourite though is something I learned called Zen Swings: Stand with your feet just wider than shoulder-width apart and begin swinging your arms across yourself from left to right. You will naturally know what rhythm feels right for you. As you sway side to side go up lightly onto your tiptoes. You can also allow your neck to gently move side to side.
The swings allow your body to loosen off, a bit like stretching (which also has its benefits, I stretch regularly) but also brings a sense of calm and fun, they have a childlike quality. Zen swings originate from Qi-Gong. I first discovered these through a guy called Troy Casey. Five minutes will make you feel great, but I encourage you to aim for 20 minutes to feel a deeper level of change, physically and mentally.
By choosing to take action consistently you begin the process of growth and change, physically, mentally, and spiritually. By choosing change you will become resilient. It can seem daunting at first but it’s never too late to start. The time investment to achieve the actions above is small, but with a little commitment, not just motivation, you can get there. If you feel that I can help you reach out through my social media links.
As you go into the day consider using this little mantra:
“I choose to feel ease, to breathe, to flow and grow. I am resilient.”
Book your Acceleration call to apply for my 12-Week Acceleration Program or to learn more.
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You can also listen to his podcast here!
Graham Wheatcroft, Guest Writer Brainz Magazine
In 2016 I was overcoming the challenges of a relationship breakdown and, on reflection, a very unfulfilled life. I faced untold anxiety issues that led me to feel in a dark place and a very low point in my life. I was determined to break free from this downward spiral.
My journey into the deep work of physical, mental and spiritual meditation began and would change the course of my life forever as I found my new life balance.
The beauty of my journey was that I discovered how to do all this in a time-efficient way. It gave me the opportunity to professionally increase my levels of focus and productivity in a way that I never thought possible.
I promote the use of simple tools such as your bodyweight and dumbbells. I also introduce other factors into the mix as I believe meditation, breathing and focus have a significant part in obtaining an overall feeling of accomplishment. Through this, I like to think that I bring something new and dynamic to the table.
As a Remote Resilient and Fitness Coach, I am passionate about helping individuals and businesses globally to bring this method and mechanism of training to their lives and workforces.
