Mindfulness is a state of complete awareness of the present moment: it requires making a special effort to notice what is happening within and around you (in your mind, your body and your surroundings) in a moment-by-moment way, without judging anything. Mindfulness’ intention is to be in the moment by bringing an open, accepting and discerning attention to what you do. It helps reaching physical, emotional and cognitive stability. Mindfulness can be linked to Religion, Buddhism, meditation and Kung Fu, however you don’t have to be spiritual, or have any particular belief to practice it.
Mindfulness aims to help you:
- Develop more self-awareness;
- Decrease stress and anxiety;
- Improve ability to respond to your thoughts and feelings;
- Improve coping mechanism for difficult or unhelpful thoughts;
- Be kinder towards yourself.
Many people find practicing mindfulness helps to manage day-to-day wellbeing, but it doesn’t always work for everyone in the same way.
Mindfulness is a skill that requires time and effort to develop.
The way we think (and what we think about) affects our Chi (flow of energy) and how we feel and act. For example, if you think about a bad experience, you might feel sad or anxious, and act accordingly. It takes time to learn how to slow down and really pay attention to what is happening around us in such a busy world, to truly tune into what we are sensing in the present moment. So how do you develop Mindfulness?
There is a variety of things that you can do to develop Mindfulness: by practicing breathing exercises, sensory exercises, self-observation exercises, meditation or even by just slowing down your daily routine. At Wing Chun Self Defence, Mindfulness is an integral part of our training programmes: all the techniques we teach should help you bring your attention to the present and develop your senses (quieting your mind and focusing your attention) – whether it is when practising your Wing Chun Forms, Chi Sau’s, Footwork, combat drills or Chi Kung. By following our Wing Chun Self Defence programmes, you will:
- Notice how thoughts come and go in your mind. You may learn that they don’t have to define who you are, or your experience of the world, and you can let go of them.
- Notice what your body is telling you. For example, tension or anxiety can often be felt in your body (such as in a fast heartbeat, tense muscles or shallow breathing).
- Create space between you and your thoughts, so you can react more calmly and accurately.
Our Wing Chun Self Defence programmes is suitable for.