As this year rushes to a close, we find ourselves in November—the month of gratitude. Here at Burnalong, we are taking this time as a team and with our clients to center ourselves around thankfulness, gratitude, and appreciation.
We do this not only because it is good but because it is good for us. Practicing gratitude has numerous mental and physical health benefits including better sleep, stronger immune systems, lower blood pressure, increased alertness, more optimism, and feeling less lonely.
The neuroscience behind it shows that with expressions of gratitude, the brain releases dopamine and serotonin. This release improves our mood and can act as a natural antidepressant. A regular practice of gratitude helps establish neural pathways that create a lasting impact on our mood, outlook, and personality.
Additionally, aside from being a mood stabilizer, gratitude helps with stress regulation. According to Positive Psychology, “McCraty and colleagues (cited in McCraty & Childre, 2004), in one of their studies on gratitude and appreciation, found that participants who felt grateful showed a marked reduction in the level of cortisol, the stress hormone.”
With the pressures and busyness of the season, these benefits are something we could all use right now. To that end, we’ve created a Gratitude Program for Burnalong members so we can all grow together with a short challenge starting November 15, 2021. Our team, here at Burnalong, will be participating right alongside our members, as we intentionally focus on gratitude for the next few weeks.
Want to join us? Read on to learn more about the challenge, the program, and some other quick and easy ways you can practice gratitude this November.
Be Grateful with the Burnalong Team
The Burnalong team has assembled a custom program and corporate challenge for our clients to participate in this month, focusing on thankfulness and gratitude. Over the course of four weeks, members are challenged to take two classes each week from the “Gratitude Program” on the Burnalong platform.
The classes within, hand-picked by our customer success team, include:
- Guided meditation to replace anxiety with happiness, led by one of America’s Favorite Trainers, William Kelley
- A quick appreciation meditation to easily fit into anyone’s day led by Kayleigh Beard
- An energizing and relaxing arm flow with Jennie Jackson
- A snappy glutes and gratitude workout with Heather Gidusko
- A mindful moment, focusing on your home and heart, with Risa Gaull
- Meditation centered on love and compassion, led by Jason Williams
- A body scan to increase gratitude, facilitated by Sasha Rydizky
- Quick affirmations to solidify your thankfulness with Litsu Rehak
How to Practice Gratitude
If you are looking for additional ways to practice gratitude, consider the following activities:
- Write letters of gratitude to your friends, family, even yourself
- Spend the first few minutes at the dinner table this month sharing what you are thankful for as you review the day
- Start a gratitude jar where you drop in short notes of thanks to review when you need a pick-me-up
- Journal about how you feel towards gratitude and document your progress as you practice it daily
- Challenge yourself to come up with at least one piece of gratitude every time you enter a new room today
Ready to Start?
Rather than watching another month fly by, join us in slowing down and taking a few moments each week to practice gratitude. Better yet, invite your family members with your free sub-accounts to join you or schedule a group class with colleagues for your next team meeting.
If you are a Burnalong member, reach out to your HR team or Burnalong customer success manager to learn more about the program and challenge. Should you want to join the Burnalong team and gain access to these classes (and so much more), schedule a quick call with us today so we can chat through how you can use your wellness dollars on a solution that will positively impact your entire workforce.
We are so thankful for each one of you and look forward to practicing gratitude in the coming weeks.
