Couch to 5 biminutes

I used to meditate regularly. I went twice a week to a Buddhist centre. The weekday session was about an hour, mixing sitting and walking meditation. The weekend session was similar with added chanting. At home I had a simple set up to do ten-minute sitting meditations. I aimed for a daily practice but didn't always manage it.

For various reasons I dropped away from all this. (One reason, not profound but quite impactful, was that the meditation cushion I bought, made of natural fabrics and stuffed with organic cereal husks, turned out to be infested with what I think were drugstore beetles. They spread all over my apartment and I had a desperate battle for control with them one week when I was at home sick with the flu.)

It's been years since I had a regular meditation practice and I think it's time to resume it. I began it when my job was causing me stress, and I'm in a similar situation now. My experience tells me that meditation isn't a quick fix for any kind of stress or worry. In fact, when you take away distractions you might end up thinking intensely about those same issues and that can be harmful. But at the pace it operates at, building a routine and slowing mindless hamster wheel thinking just a little, it becomes a useful tool.

My goal is 10 minutes per day. That isn't a lot but I know it can be hard to start and to maintain it. 

Inspired by the "couch to 5k" running idea, where you build up from being on your arse to running 5 km, I'm going to do couch to 5 biminutes, which is a particularly awkward way to indicate 10 minutes.

This is the plan:

Week 1 (this week): 2 minutes (1 biminute) of meditation every day. 

Week 2: 4 minutes (2 biminutes - is this catching on yet?) every day. 

Week 3: 6 minutes. 

Week 4: 8 minutes. 

Week 5: 10 minutes (5 biminutes).

This would made 6th - 12th January the first week where I am doing 10 minutes daily. Maybe this is too complicated, but also the elaborate plan might keep it on my mind a bit.

I'll set a weekly reminder to myself to increase the meditation time in my phone's Clock app by 1 biminute every Monday.

Updates to follow!