You can build up the grey matter in your brain giving you more thinking power just like you would build up your muscles in the gym. It doesn’t require eating tons of protein and getting sweaty exhausting yourself with push-ups and doing squats (never forget leg day!) Training your brain requires a bit more finesse.

Meditation is a proven tool to increase the grey matter rolling around in your skull. This is like putting a bigger engine in your car but instead of going faster, your more powerful brain will let you have more emotional control, be more relaxed, and handle adversity even better. It makes you a better human being.

Imagine what your life would be like if those small frustrations that sometimes derail your day just didn’t bother you anymore. That is a subtle, but extremely important shift that can happen.

This episode is all about the science surrounding mindfulness meditation and how it affects your brain. By meditating regularly you will get the brain version of a six-pack. It won’t help with strutting around the beach, but it will help in nearly every other aspect of your life.

Talking Points:

In a Mindfulness Based Stress Reduction (MBSR) scientific study, participants practiced mindfulness based activities for about 27 minutes a day on average.

The left hippocampus contributes to the regulation of emotion This area is stimulated to grow because of meditation. Having a bigger left hippocampus allows life to not be as much of a rollercoaster How SSRI medication for depression changes the hippocampus

The left temporoparietal junction (TPJ) “It has been suggested that the TPJ is a crucial structure for the conscious experience of the self, mediating spatial unity of self and body”

“Furthermore, the TPJ is also involved in social cognition, i.e., the ability to infer states such as desires, intentions, and goals of other people.”

The cerebellum How this part of the brain regulates movement, and emotional response The difference in the cerebellum of regular meditators

An area of the brain that actually SHRINKS because of meditation (don’t worry, this is a good thing)

My 8 Week Meditation Challenge

Action Steps:

Experiment with meditation. Start with 10 minutes per day. If you want to complete the 8 week challenge, do between 15-30 minutes per day.

Comment below that you are going to start meditating!

Resources & References

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