4 Ways to Incorporate Grounding Into Your Daily Routine

If you feel like you’re doing everything right but you still feel disconnected to yourself a lot of the time; if you feel like constant stress and anxiety is your new norm, grounding may be what’s missing from your life.

Without going too much into detail, I’ll do my best to explain the science of grounding and why it’s SO important for your physical and mental wellbeing. Remember the Magic School Bus? Let me be your Ms. Frizzle for a minute. Zoom in far enough and you find the electrons and protons that make up the atoms that make up cells, tissues, organs, and whole organ systems of our bodies.

More remarkable than that though, is that most of what you see when you zoom into this level is just empty space - in fact, we're 99.999999999% empty space! So what holds us all "together", you ask? In short, energy! We are essentially made of electricity. In other words, we are bioelectric beings.

Now, I’m sure most of you have heard of grounding in the context of electrical equipment. In order for electrical equipment to be stable and safe, it must be grounded before it’s used (this is what the third prong on your electrical plug is for).

So if we’re basically just complicated bioelectrical equipment, don’t we need to be grounded too? The answer is Yes! The problem is that these days, the vast majority of us barely understand how important grounding is. Back in the day, people used to sleep on the ground, walk around barefoot or in sandals made of natural materials like leather. They used to sit on the ground to eat, tell stories, cook, etc.

Nowadays, unless we make a concerted effort, it's all too easy to go about life ungrounded. In fact, our entire modern lifestyle, with the exception of occasional camping and beach vacations, is basically designed to keep us ungrounded.

The result? A society full of anxious, scatter-brained people who can't help but live either worried about the future or ruminating on the past. When you’re grounded, you feel present, less “in your head”, stable, balanced, and content. Studies have even shown that grounding can also reduce inflammation and pain!

So how often do you actually connect your feet to the earth? Ideally, we should be spending at least 30 minutes every day grounding ourselves. Ambitious, I know - especially if you live somewhere that is only warm for four months of the year.

What are the best ways to ground ourselves, you ask? Below are four great ways to incorporate grounding into your daily routine. If you're in need of some quick grounding, scroll to the bottom to find a short ten minute grounding meditation!

1. Get Outside With Bare feet

 As often as you can, spend time outside with your shoes off. Walk, stand, or sit in the grass or sand (if you're lucky) for as much time as your schedule allows. This is something you should be doing year round, not just when it’s warm and sunny out. Living in Canada means cold-ass winters. My favorite way to ground in the Winter is bundling up in my snow boots, pants, warm jacket and mitts, and head out to the little forest near my house. I literally lay in the snow on the ground for as long as I can - usually 10-20 mins- and it feels so good. Winter, and Christmas time especially, can be hectic - this is by far the BEST remedy I’ve experienced to shed all the stress that comes with the busy holiday season.

2. Grounding Technology

If you prefer to stay indoors during the colder months, or you’re simply too busy to make it outside everyday for a bit of grounding, there is a wide array of grounding technologies you can use. From mats that you can lay down or sit and meditate on, to grounded bed sheets, or under-desk mats to rest your bare feet on while you work, there’s a ton of options. You can even buy grounding shoes so that you can get the benefits of grounding everytime you walk outside! Obviously, these are much more spendy than the original grounding tech (bare feet on Earth), but hey, do what works best for you.

3. Eating Grounding Foods

Something cool to consider is that certain foods can give your body the same benefits as grounding. In Ayurvedic medicine, eating certain foods - predominantly root veggies like beets, carrots, parsnips, sweet potato, etc. helps to ground you as the food grew underground and so they carry similar energy to the earth. During the Winter when I’m not able to ground as much as I do in the summer, I love eating lots of these grounding root veggies. I roast ‘em, saute them, add them to soups and stews… and it just so happens that the Fall is when they are in season and thus most dense in nutrients. Isn’t mother nature awesome?!

4. Grounding Meditation

When you’re feeling a little on edge and you’re craving some of those amazing benefits that Mother Earth has to offer, but you’re not able to get outside or cook up delicious borscht, a grounding visualization meditation can do the trick. When I’m feeling anxious or too much in my head, I love to sit down for a few minutes in silence and imagine I am sitting with my back against a giant tree, or that my feet are grounded deep in warm sand or soft grass. Some birdsong, running stream, or wave sounds can help with the visualization immensely. Just 10-15 mins of this is enough to totally calm me down and it’s honestly my favourite type of meditation when I’m craving inner peace and calm.

Do you have a grounding practice? Tell us what your favourite way to stay grounded is in the comments below!