3 mindful activities to bring you calm amidst the summer holidays

With the school holidays upon us life can get very hectic. Here are three mindful activities which you can effortlessly incorporate into your daily life this summer to bring you moments of calm amidst the chaos.

Have fun with it, bring an attitude of playfulness and exploration to it, pay attention to how you feel in the moment and even get the kids involved. Because we only really have moments to live. So, let’s fully live them!

1. Mindful eating

If you’re anything like me, your summer will be filled with trips to various parks and picnic lunches. Here’s hoping for some nice weather! Why not bring mindfulness to your eating by bringing your full attention to it and experiencing it with all five of your senses? My own kids particularly enjoy mindful eating with a variety of different foods where they can notice the different colours, textures, smells, sounds and tastes.

To do this, simply slow down and pay full attention to the process of eating. Feel the weight and texture of the food in your hand. Is it smooth or rough? Squishy or hard? Heavy or light? Next notice what it looks like. What colour is it? Is it a mix of colours or just one colour? Hold it up to your nose and notice what it smells like. Then bring the food to your lips and take a bite. Hold the food in your mouth for a moment, really savouring the taste before swallowing it.

Try this and see how it differs from your usual experience of eating. By bringing your full attention to your eating in this way, you are practising mindfulness. This mindful eating activity is traditionally done using raisins. However, some foods I’ve used with my own kids before have included strawberries, blueberries, clementines and chocolate!

2. Mindful walking

Whether walking around a park, to the bus stop, to the shops or simply to the toilet, this very walking action can be made mindful helping you to regain some composure, and calm and bring you back to the present moment. And this is how.

Basically, think back to when you were a toddler first learning how to walk (before we began walking on automatic pilot). When you first stood up you would have swayed slightly as you got your balance. Once balanced, you would have noticed how your feet felt on the ground as they supported the weight of your whole body.

Next, as you tried to walk, you’d really have to pay attention to lifting one foot, moving that foot forward then placing that foot back down on the ground. You’d then do the same with the other foot. This is mindful walking. Paying full attention to the process of walking. Feeling your feet on the ground, the movements, and sensations in your feet and your body as you walk. Let go of trying to get anywhere, it's not about the destination. Rather it is about fully experiencing the process itself, the walking.

3. Mindful laundry

I’m sure you have a pile of laundry you need to clean, dry, fold then put away (maybe many piles in fact, I know I have!).

You can adapt this activity to make it mindful by paying full attention to it rather than doing it automatically with your mind already racing ahead to the next task on your never-ending ‘to-do’ list, which can leave you feeling frantic, frazzled, and overwhelmed. I like to adapt the folding aspect of doing the laundry into a mindful activity. This is how I do it.

Start with your pile of dry clean laundry. As you pick up one item pay full attention to the movement and sensations you feel in your hand and arm as you pick up and lift that item from the pile and place it down in front of you. Tune in fully to your senses of touch, sight, and smell. You may notice the aroma from the washing powder you use, notice how fresh it looks, and how the item feels to the touch. Tune into these senses as you start to fold the item of laundry, and notice the creases you make as you fold. You may wish to do this with just a few items or the whole lot of laundry. And again, this is an ideal one to get the kids involved with too!

I’d love to hear how you get on with these activities so please feel free to get in touch by email to let me know how you found them. Have a lovely (and mindful) summer holiday!