In honor of Thanksgiving today and with the holidays officially here, it’s time to take a moment to recollect and refresh in order to live your best life and achieve holiday bliss and all around wellness into the New Year. Which is why NOW is the time to connect with yourself and find inner peace, even on the most wonderful but hectic time of the year. And best of all, the end result will be a happier and healthier you for the New Year, and all with the help of lululemon LA Ambassador Megan Monahan.
What’s good Gab had an opportunity to interview Megan Monahan—lululemon LA Ambassador, meditation guru, and all around woman warrior—and learn about her passion for life and meditation, her spiritual way of living, and feel-good mantras.
So read on to learn how to start your own meditation journey—and be happy and healthy for the holidays and beyond.
How did you come to collaborate with lululemon as the LA ambassador?
My journey with lululemon started about six years ago. It was an incredibly organic journey that started with me simply sharing meditation with the store. The more that I developed a relationship with the store, the more I saw my values being reflected back in my experiences. It was a natural step to start collaborating on larger projects, such as the lululemon Recovery pop-up in Culver City for the LA Marathon. Llululemon has become family and one of the most nourishing relationships (personal and professional) in my life!
Tell us about the benefits of meditation practice? How can we incorporate it into our lifestyle whether we are beginners or simply feel too busy? How much time do you have?!
I like to think of meditation as the ultimate adaptogen. It shows up to benefit you physiologically (literally restructuring parts of your brain!), mentally and emotionally. It gives you a longer fuse line so that in between the stimulus in your life and your response you get a little grace period where you can decide how you want to respond to the world. Meditation is the key to stop being a victim of your mind and offers you the practice of witnessing your mind. And once you get comfortable noticing your thoughts, you can then decide what you want to do with them. Spoiler alert: You don’t have to believe every thought you have and every thought doesn’t need to get stage time in your life.
How do you start your day- do you have a morning mantra that motivates you?
Stillness and sweating! Working out and meditating grounds me into my body, my mind and soul. My “word” right now is trust. It’s easy to get impatient and fearful around what will happen and how things will unfold. This time of year especially is filled with conversations around what you want to create in the new year, and I have to remind myself that I can lean into “trust”. It isn’t my job to figure everything out, but to listen to my intuition and to show up with integrity accordingly.
Do you practice a meditation ritual to stay centered and relaxed?
Breathing! Haha! I’m only partially kidding. Your breath is always present, unlike your mind which can VERY often take you back into the past or project you into the future in ways that are wildly unhelpful. Your breath connects you back to this present moment where all your power lies. Also, our stress response is often activated because of something we’re anticipating, so do your nervous system a solid and stay in the present.
Any words of advice to help readers stay stress-free this holiday season?
Focus on what you want to leave people with. There’s so much energy that swirls around us during this time of year and it can be easy to get caught up and lose intention. Ask yourself, “what do I want to ripple out into that world today/at this holiday party/at this family gathering/on my commute today?” and get clear on what energy you want to be grounded in. And throughout the day focus on what you want to leave people with when they come into contact with you. Focusing on how you want to show up will help you stay grounded and intentional.
Can you share any wellness tips for a happy and healthy New Year?
MEDITATE! Also, start to connect with your future self. Imagine the desired version of you that lives at the end of January/the end of the year etc. and ask yourself how you can be in service of that expansive future version of yourself. I don’t love the idea of resolutions, but I am all for not throwing my future self under the bus by participating in the habits, relationships, practices that are preventing me from living life as the most epic version of myself.
Prompt question for you, “What does my ideal future self require of me right now?”
Visit meganmonahan.com to learn more about Megan, her work, and books. And be sure to treat yourself and visit lululemon.com to check out the holiday collection and entire lineup.
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