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How to Pick a Meditation App

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Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#31

Post by rtl49 »

avtar wrote: post #28
rtl49 wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that some people recommend the retreats with too little restraint. I'm a fairly young and healthy person, and I still found sitting still while cross-legged for long periods of time very painful. Even on the last day I found it impossible to sit longer than an hour without moving. And this practice is encouraged -- they were called "sittings of strong determination." This is not to mention the difficulty of m…

There's no shame in using a chair for sitting :) I'm not sure if you attended a ten day Goenka retreat but other teaching styles in the same tradition can be more flexible. Walking meditation can also help prepare the mind for sitting practice: http://www.insightmeditationcenter.org/books-articles/articl...

>There's no shame in using a chair for sitting

Easier said than believed when there's a sixty-year-old woman within view managing just fine without one ^^.

I actually appreciated the discipline of the retreat, I was just physically unprepared for the sitting (too inflexible). I'm open to other techniques, and when I'm alone I don't force myself into an uncomfortable posture. Thanks for the link.

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#32

Post by qbit »

cnp wrote: post #27
mbrock wrote: post #12

Earlier quoted context omitted.

The eagerness with which people recommend those very intense ten day retreats to anyone saying they'd like to start meditating indicates a problem, in my view. Plenty of people find them valuable, but they're also a pretty extreme way to start out. To me it seems likely to turn people off; after all they're designed to be a kind of boot camp experience. And then on the internet people are often bringing up how they s…

Totally agree. I find its best to do 12 minutes in the morning, right when I wake up. No food yet or anything; just leave the bedroom, head to the corner of the room, hit my timer and go. 12 minutes is my happy medium, but it took some time to get there; I started at 3 (can't argue with 3 minutes) then doubled it to 6, then doubled it to 12. On the weekends I do 24, and often times more. But the key was building up f…

I'm curious how long you did the three minutes per day before doubling to six, and likewise for the time before doubling to twelve.

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#33

Post by KingMob »

mbrock wrote: post #21
rtl49 wrote: post #20

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I agree that some people recommend the retreats with too little restraint. I'm a fairly young and healthy person, and I still found sitting still while cross-legged for long periods of time very painful. Even on the last day I found it impossible to sit longer than an hour without moving. And this practice is encouraged -- they were called "sittings of strong determination." This is not to mention the difficulty of m…

Yeah, meditation is a magnet for grand claims. I ignore that stuff too, except to the extent that I find Buddhist philosophy interesting. The vipassana retreats are built on Buddhism (though the founder prefers to reformulate it in more secular terms) so it's not surprising that they're aimed towards some notion of nirvana. At the very least, simple breathing exercises can be super obviously relaxing and mind-clearin…

Minor note: Goenka uses the term "vipassana" in a way that makes people think they're synonymous, but many other teachers and schools teach vipassana.

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#34

Post by wordbank »

foobarqux wrote: post #22
king_magic wrote: post #5

Earlier quoted context omitted.

> Just start by focusing on the tip of your nose and controlling your breathing. Then when you are ready, allow your body to take over the breathing while you watch. Then also allow it to take over the monologue in your head and you listen. Eventually you become an observer of all your thoughts and senses, and so become free of them. Except it's a lot easier said than done. I've personally enjoyed my Headspace subscr…

Each session of the trial seemed to contain essentially the same instructions. Is there anything more to it?

2 years on subscription (though I meditate without Headspace more). There're many techniques and ideas in different Headspace courses that were quite useful for me and I added them into my meditation practice.

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#35

Post by wordbank »

swayvil wrote: post #23

Speaking as a guy who has been meditating for a couple decades, the whole concept of meditation apps seems stupid.

It's strange that after a couple decades of meditation you call obviously helpful things "stupid".

Please be mindful, everybody has their own ways.

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#36

Post by tinyhappysteps »

jph wrote: post #30
tinyhappysteps wrote: post #14

Quick plug - made a free app with no ads or IAP - https://itunes.apple.com/app/tiny-calm/id1039698577?mt=8 Has simple reminders, quick access widget, tracking and encouragement - basically all the features I wanted in a meditation app but I couldn't find for free on the appstore.

Tiny Calm looks great - thank you for creating and sharing!

Thanks! If you have any requests just shout out..

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#37

Post by mbrock »

KingMob wrote: post #33
mbrock wrote: post #21

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Yeah, meditation is a magnet for grand claims. I ignore that stuff too, except to the extent that I find Buddhist philosophy interesting. The vipassana retreats are built on Buddhism (though the founder prefers to reformulate it in more secular terms) so it's not surprising that they're aimed towards some notion of nirvana. At the very least, simple breathing exercises can be super obviously relaxing and mind-clearin…

Minor note: Goenka uses the term "vipassana" in a way that makes people think they're synonymous, but many other teachers and schools teach vipassana.

Agreed. I think it's a pretty definitely Buddhist term though, no? Referring to the fundamental insight into the nature of suffering?

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#38

Post by collyw »

kasey_junk wrote: post #24
swayvil wrote: post #23

Speaking as a guy who has been meditating for a couple decades, the whole concept of meditation apps seems stupid.

I've practiced with & without apps for a similar time period. The apps helped me keep a schedule I found difficult without them. YMMV but for me headspace was worth it.

Then it's a scheduling app really, not a meditation app.

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#39

Post by kristofferR »

collyw wrote: post #38
kasey_junk wrote: post #24

Earlier quoted context omitted.

I've practiced with & without apps for a similar time period. The apps helped me keep a schedule I found difficult without them. YMMV but for me headspace was worth it.

Then it's a scheduling app really, not a meditation app.

I guess you haven't tried it.

Headspace is probably the easiest and best way to get started with meditation, due to its great instructions, sublime voice quality (both technically and phonetically/subjectively), and clear motivating daily progress (with reminders).

This video [1], which occurs early in the free introduction course on Headspace, is a good example of why Headspace is vastly more than just a scheduling app. Meditation can be hard, but Headspaces makes it easy to get into.

[1] https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7xAeJKgupPI

Re: How to Pick a Meditation App

#40

Post by cnp »

qbit wrote: post #32
cnp wrote: post #27

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Totally agree. I find its best to do 12 minutes in the morning, right when I wake up. No food yet or anything; just leave the bedroom, head to the corner of the room, hit my timer and go. 12 minutes is my happy medium, but it took some time to get there; I started at 3 (can't argue with 3 minutes) then doubled it to 6, then doubled it to 12. On the weekends I do 24, and often times more. But the key was building up f…

I'm curious how long you did the three minutes per day before doubling to six, and likewise for the time before doubling to twelve.

About every three months I've doubled it. It got to the point where the 3 minutes of time started instantaneously passing and then the same thing happened with 6 and now its starting to happen with 12. A very weird / cool feeling that really builds over time
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