Sang H. Kim's Blog, page 3
June 27, 2014
Mindful Movement As Lifestyle Medicine
Below are the slides of the Mindful Movement: Invigorating Break session at the annual conference of the Institute of Lifestyle Medicine, held on June 20-21, 2014, at theRichard B. Simches Research Center of the Massachusetts General Hospital. This presentation was focused on hands-on practice of MBX-12 (Mindfulness-based Stretching and Deep Breathing Exercises) on both days. After the slides are the summary of the randomized controlled trial in which the MBX-12 was used as the primary exerci...
June 18, 2014
5 Ways of Practicing Walking Meditation
This is the 2nd part of a two part series of Walking Meditation: PART 1 about 5 Keys for Walking Meditation, PART 2 about 5 Ways of Practicing Walking Meditation. Walking meditation is an active experience of inner serenity. By combining the mindfully-directed physical action of walking with meditative inner awareness, you bring the body and mind into oneness. It is an experience of inner stillness in the midst of movement. Although the general purpose o...
April 24, 2014
Walking Meditation: 5 Keys
This is 2-part series of Walking Meditation, the summary of MBX-12 and Walking Meditation sessions at the Rockville Center Park in Maryland on April 19. PART 1 is about 5 Keys for Walking Meditation. PART 2 is about 5 Ways of Practicing Walking Meditation.
Walking meditation is generally used to relieve physical discomfort during sitting meditation. Every 30 or 60 minutes or so, you take a break from sitting and walk lightly around the room or yard, relieving the aching ankle...
April 9, 2014
A 30-second Exercise for Emotion
Our hands are somehow connected with our emotional life. In discord or balance, our hands express our thoughts. The hands of angry person move agitatedly. The hands of contented person move gracefully.
In every culture, for thousands years, hands have been useful and intimate tools for accessing our emotions and bringing peace of mind in trouble. In praying for example, we put two hands together in front of our heart. In Eastern culture, a two hand bow...
A 30-second Exercise for Emotional Balance
Our hands are somehow connected with our emotional life. In discord or balance, our hands express our thoughts. The hands of angry person move agitatedly. The hands of contented person move gracefully.
In every culture, for thousands years, hands have been useful and intimate tools for accessing our emotions and bringing peace of mind in trouble. In praying for example, we put two hands together in front of our heart. In Eastern culture, a two hand bow...
April 2, 2014
Living Meditation
It was 29 years ago that I left my home in Korea. Alone. I was 26 and fresh and ambitious. Full of good spirit in my heart, heading to the west. Dreaming.
Traveling across the continents taught me how to experience what life offers. Hoping.
Of many a place and people encountered, I learned much. Absorbing. The Shakespearian truth of harshness of life for humans. And truly that new things under the sun are hard to come by. Searching.
Wherever I go, there is no place where no people suffer. Enduri...
March 20, 2014
Of Mice and Meditation
During meditation, thoughts enter my mind, stay, and leave, if I don’t dwell on them.
When I give attention to a thought, it lingers and evokes feelings. Something related to the thought or person or incident arises. Once my thought tangles with my attention, it becomes not so easy to let go. I wrestle.
Soon, another thought gangs up and then another and then another…
I become more cautious.
I watch for those thoughts that would attract my attention. I keep some distance. Th...
March 4, 2014
12 Ways to Manage Spring Fatigue
As spring rolls in, the dormant nature of our winter lifestyle wakes our body up to meet the business of a new season. The increased demand of energy of longer spring days, however, can exceed our body’s capacity to handle this change. Stressed, we feel tired.
The cost of adjustment to this seasonal change is called spring fatigue.
We still don’t know exactly why it happens. Research suggests two possible reasons: external changes and internal changes.
Considering...
February 25, 2014
A 30-second Exercise to Boost Your Energy
A long winter is nearing its end. Our mind is already riding on the wings of spring, yet our body drags its feet, still not quite awake from a wintry dormant stage. It’s easy to overdo things in this spring excitement and end up with the mind and body out of sync.
To bring the mind and body together, and more importantly to increase your energy levels, I would like to introduce a 30-second exercise called Unity Posture, one of the 12 mindful movements....
February 19, 2014
Depression: How Acceptance Can Help
I suffered from depression in my 20’s after various traumas in the military. For the past 35 years, I have learned to manage depression when it returns. This post discusses my fundamental approach.
Having a sense of understanding enriches our experiences in life. Failure to understand our experiences is frustrating. Afterward we appraise those frustrating events again to make sense in our own terms. That’s a good thing. But a bad thing can happen when we get stuck in a not-making-sense-at-all...
