March Mindfulness 2019: Gamers take their turn

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


Previously on March Mindfulness: We took the sport of Competitive Meditation to what you might call professional meditators at a local meditation center and Silicon Valley’s top meditation app. This week’s round brings the tournament to two groups of people more concerned with video games than mindfulness. 

Will the competitive aspect, the drive to win, work in a meditation game — or does the knack of calming your mind and not really caring about the result matter more? Let’s find out. Read more…

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How to make Mondays feel less draining

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


The Sunday Scaries suck, but Mondays often suck more. After a weekend of friends, family, and ideally, naps, you’re thrusted into deadlines, meetings, and spreadsheets. That’s one way to look at it, at least; another is to think of Mondays as a day to start fresh. 

The DeStress Monday initiative uses that mentality to encourage users to press the refresh button with simple tools that will help them unwind every week.  In doing so, they hope to help people start their Mondays in a positive way and then reduce stress throughout the rest of the week. Read more…

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Virtual reality meditation is a thing — and it’s actually good

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness. Read more…


FlowVR
$3.99 for the Oculus Go app
The Good

Easy to make into a habit • especially with short sessions • Can meditate anywhere you have the headset • Calming and approachable

The Bad

Limited choices that don’t update — after a while you want more than the six options • Doesn’t take full advantage of VR

The Bottom Line

FlowVR is a great place to get comfortable with the idea of meditation — and feels like a mini-vacation.

⚡ Mashable Score
4.0
😎 Cool Factor
4.0
📘Learning Curve
4.5
💪Performance
4.5
💵 Bang for the Buck
3.5

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March Mindfulness 2019: Meditators go head to head

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


For the past week, I’ve asked people who spend their lives focused on the practice of mindfulness to do the one thing they’re not supposed to do: meditate like they’re in competition with each other. 

That’s the idea behind March Mindfulness, Mashable’s annual meditation tournament — the world’s first-ever, word to the latecomers at Meditation Battle League — now in its second year. Using brain-sensing headbands called Muses, we’re able to place the world’s chillest people in head-to-head combat, comparing scores that literally measure the calmness of their brains.  Read more…

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Would you buy a vinyl recording of 20 minutes of silence?

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


The sound of silence hasn’t been this popular since Simon and Garfunkel. 

A Kickstarter campaign for a double-sided vinyl record containing 20 minutes of silence is the latest crowd-funding project that’s making noise. Eric Antonow and his 15-year-old son, Ben, decided the world could use some quiet. 

And Kickstarter supporters agree. The duo has raised roughly $4,300 — seven times more than their $600 goal to produce the record. Their Kickstarter ends Wednesday. Read more…

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Instagram’s ‘Hashtag Mindfulness’ boom: The good, the bad, and the ugly

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Can simply “being mindful” while, say, sipping a kale smoothie, constitute a mindfulness practice? Some experts say, yes! 

But what being mindful means to you — especially when you’re posting about that moment on Instagram — may constitute a different version of mindfulness than the one that has prompted medical studies and attracted serious adherents across the globe.

The recent explosion in popularity of mindfulness is a well-documented phenomenon. One place in particular where mindfulness — or what some people think of as mindfulness — is enjoying a boom is on Instagram. Currently, there are over 11.8 million posts tagged with the hashtag #mindfulness; there are hundreds of thousands more with variations like #mindful or #mindfulnesspractice. Read more…

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Chill out with these 10 mesmerizing breathing exercise GIFs

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


When you’re stressed — consumed by thoughts about your next career move, that embarrassing thing you said a few weeks ago, or anything else that makes your chest tight — it’s helpful to bring yourself back into the present by taking a few deep, steady breaths. 

Obviously, that’s not always easy, but there are plenty of captivating GIFs that can help you visualize your way to mindfulness. These 10 will shift your focus away from your thoughts and toward your breathing. Take a look, breathe in, breath out, and wind down.  Read more…

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Competitive Meditation 101: What you need to know about the world’s weirdest sport

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology. It culminates in Mashable’s groundbreaking competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


There are many things I like about Competitive Meditation — not least of which is the name. It’s sure to bring a confused frown or a bemused smile to the face of anyone who hears it for the first time. 

Which is fitting for a sport that is at once extremely serious and utterly hilarious. Think of Competitive Meditation as the mental equivalent of a summer softball league. Using a brain-sensing headband, it lets friends and colleagues play for bragging rights over who can keep the coolest head.  Read more…

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HQ Trivia for meditation? Why this app could be the daily habit your brain needs

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


Around 10 minutes before noon — the busiest part of my day — I get a notification from the same app telling me it’s time to meditate. I dismiss it, only to see another annoying reminder 5 minutes later. Finally, at noon, I usually give in and start the meditation — because it’s the only chance I’ll have to do so. 

That’s because the app in question, Tap In, is entirely dedicated to one live 10-minute guided meditation every weekday. You’re either in or you’re out. Think HQ Trivia, but for midday chill-out sessions.  Read more…

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This is why mindfulness isn’t working for you

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s groundbreaking meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.


In a culture obsessed with self-care, feeling like you’ve failed at the practice of mindfulness can breed unique feelings of frustration, resentment, and even shame. 

It seems so simple: Quietly observing your thoughts, you remain open to and curious about the present moment without judging the ideas that ping back and forth in your consciousness. You expect to experience the benefits that research says mindfulness can offer, including reduced stress, increased attentional focus, less emotional volatility, and improved relationship satisfaction.  Read more…

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How ‘neurosculpting’ can train your brain

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March Mindfulness is our new series that examines the explosive growth in mindfulness and meditation technology — culminating in Mashable’s competitive meditation bracket contest. Because March shouldn’t be all madness.

Having sliced open my skull Hannibal Lecter style, I removed the familiar folded lump of still-pulsing pink matter — brains only turn gray when they die — and placed it on a wooden workbench. After massaging it for a while, I picked up a steak knife and started slicing neatly between the hemispheres like I’m on a cooking show. Wait, that couldn’t be good.

“Stop!” my sleeping mind screamed at the image. “What are you thinking?” Read more…

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