Jikan wrote:Many people in the English-speaking world are obese. I am interested in finding out how obesity impacts meditation practice at the physical level (starting with breathing), and how it may impact the mind. I suspect that obese people may experience the nuts and bolts of meditation such as sitting on the floor much differently from those who are not obese.
Thoughts?
Why's everyone lookin at me?
I'm sorta big, 5'10, over 200 (workin on it), I work out a lot though (yoga, boxing, muay thai, cross training) and I'm pretty flexible - so I may not fit into the category you're thinking.
As a heavier guy, it's hard to find good cushions that give me enough lift so my legs don't start cramping up and/or falling asleep.
Currently using 2 zafus & a thin tempurpedic type pillow on top of a zabuton as my meditation set up.
It lets me go 30 min to an hour non-stop pretty easy, without a whole lot of leg torture.
If I'm going over an hour, either I'll take a break half way and/or switch to a kneeling chair I have.
I mostly use the kneeling chair for mantras and I can't do much more than about an hour on that chair before my knees give me issues (thin padding + sweaty knees).
If I had to, I could alternate between cushion & kneeling chair for an extended time without too much suffering.
Not sure why, but I've shied away from using normal chairs for meditating.
I think it's because I sit in a chair all day at work and don't want to spend too much time chair-bound at home.
Hope that helps