Meditation for gamers – with mindfulness for more performance

Meditation is more than just sitting. How meditation affects you and your gaming performance and how best to get started.

Table of contents

1. Why meditation is useful for gamers

2. 6 effects that meditation can make you play better

3. How often to meditate? This is how you develop your meditation routine

4. 5-Minute: Meditation for Gamers

5. Must-Knows

1. Why meditation is useful for gamers

Meditation helps you calm down and focus. At the same time, it is a little check-in with yourself and your current reality: What moves you? How does your body feel? What thoughts come to mind? And how are you overall?

Awareness of yourself offers you the opportunity to act accordingly and consciously deal with your issues - an important part of good psychological hygiene.

There are also numerous scientific studies that show that regular meditation has a positive effect on parameters such as stress hormones and perceived psychological stress. Researchers are investigating how this works using, among other things, MRI images of the brain. For example, it was found that participants in a meditation-based mindfulness program increased gray matter in the region of the brain that significantly influences the feeling of stress. ¹

2. 6 effects that meditation can make you play better

Pro gamers are holistically fit: focus, concentration, quick reactions and coordination meet composure and resilience, ideally together with a minimum level of physical fitness, a good feeling for one's own health and the ability to switch off, let go and start again when the time has come. Meditation helps you to sustainably integrate the mental requirements for healthy gaming into your life.

#1 You stay focused

In meditation you will quickly realize that this is not so easy. What should I eat for dinner? Which hacks will take me to the next level? What's coming up in the gym tomorrow? ...The stream of thoughts doesn't want to end.

When meditating, you learn to concentrate on your meditation despite everything. This helps you to be fully engaged during the game. If that doesn't quite work, our focus spray can help .

#2 Hate and negativity are a thing of the past

The opponent played unfairly? Not completed the level (again) and the frustration barometer is slowly rising to red? It can happen, but there's no reason to worry. Simply because feelings and thoughts are not the same and you are not your feelings and your thoughts, but only their observer.

It sounds spiritual, but it's actually pretty simple and logical. If you can perceive your emotions, you cannot be them at the same time. Just like you can't watch yourself do something from the outside without a mirror. So your emotions are just part of you. However, one that your thoughts love - they like to get attached to an emotion and make a big story out of it: "That's an idiot too.", "So you can stop playing." …and so forth.

In meditation you not only train yourself not to let these thoughts get out of hand, but also that negative emotions can be there and the world is still basically okay. This takes a bit of practice, but it works. For gaming, this means: You can take a deep breath, let go and start again.

#3 You know what's going on

When disturbing thoughts no longer have control over what movie is playing in your head and you are practiced in accepting your emotions as part of you, you have more time to concentrate on what is important. You decide for yourself what that is.

In meditation it might be your breath or a certain sensation. When you're gaming, what's happening on the screen. In full and unclouded by theories or emotions.

Last but not least, meditation is also a form of mindfulness training: you learn to perceive exactly what is happening. What exactly this looks like may differ from meditation. Nevertheless, it helps you to take a closer look when gambling.

#4 You keep a cool head even in stressful situations

Meditation can be challenging: sitting becomes uncomfortable, your knee hurts, your arm itches, you have to go to the toilet, the fly is annoying, it's boring, negative emotions arise or thoughts just won't let you go. In some cases, sitting still with what is can be a real challenge. Leaving would be much easier and more pleasant. If you persevere, you will be rewarded with greater resilience and more calmness. Even when things get stressful.

#5 Your reaction speed improves

With so much more space in your head and within you, you can not only process more information better, but also faster. This gives you a clear advantage when gaming.

#6 You learn to calm down

Simply put, in meditation you practice letting go of thoughts and not letting emotions upset you. This can also help you with mental recovery after gaming and let you sleep deeply despite gaming.

Sleeping is your issue? Here are 7 tips to avoid sleeping badly after gaming.

3. How often to meditate? This is how you develop your meditation routine

There are many different meditation techniques. Some require some prior experience and/or are better learned under the guidance of an experienced teacher. It makes sense to learn meditation in a protected environment, especially after traumatic experiences or if you have psychological problems.

Healthy people can easily establish a simple meditation at home. This is how it works best:

#1 Start small

Less is more. Meditating for an hour right from the start is tiring and likely to result in headaches and exhaustion. Start with what is feasible for you and can be implemented regularly, for example 3, 5 or 10 minutes. Choose a duration that you can do every day.

#2 Meditate daily

To truly feel the positive effects of meditation, it must become a part of your life. Regularity is the prerequisite for this. Take time to meditate every day. Just like how you brush your teeth every day.

#3 Always meditate at the same time

Ideally, you meditate in the morning when you still have time. In this way, you also set the mental direction for the day and - if things get stressful during the day - you can remember the calm of the morning meditation. This also prevents you from repeatedly postponing meditation until later, ending up too tired or having already had a beer after work.

#4 Be patient with yourself

It's normal for your mind to wander while meditating, to become mentally caught up in something, to forget your focus, or to become tired. Sometimes every few seconds. This is part of the process and is also the case for experienced meditators. As you gain experience, your focus phases become longer and you gradually get an idea of ​​a meditative state. How long this takes is different for everyone. Don't let yourself get frustrated, just keep returning to your focus when you get distracted.

#5 Don't expect too much and stick with it

You're not completely zen after a month of meditation. The positive effects of meditation emerge gradually. Try to let go of expectations, commit to daily meditation for six months and then evaluate what meditation does for you.

Of course, the following also applies when it comes to meditation: Nobody's perfect: If you really missed meditating for a day, get back into it the next day instead of allowing yourself to be demoralized. After all, when you're gaming, you don't just give up if you don't clear the level.

#5 Don't expect too much and stick with it

You're not completely zen after a month of meditation. The positive effects of meditation emerge gradually. Try to let go of expectations, commit to daily meditation for six months and then evaluate what meditation does for you.

4. 5-Minute: Meditation for Gamers

Set a timer for 5 minutes and choose a pleasant ending sound. If you use your smartphone, switch it to airplane mode while meditating.

Sit comfortably. A comfortable cross-legged position is ideal, in which you can straighten your spine in a relaxed manner. Place your hands relaxed on your knees and close your eyes.

Observe the natural flow of your breathing without intervening. Feel the air flowing in and out of your nose. Try to focus on this and come back to it every time your mind wanders. After 5 minutes, slowly open your eyes, sit quietly for a moment and feel.

5. Must-Knows

1. Meditation teaches you not to let your emotions and thoughts upset you and to stay focused and mindful of what you are doing, even in stressful situations. You benefit from these effects and the resulting good reaction and coordination when gaming and in real life.

2. Sleep better after gaming? With regular meditation you will learn to switch off better and create the perfect conditions for mental and physical recovery after gaming. So that you can get back to work the next day.

3. Meditation has been proven to have a positive effect on mental health. This is automatically reflected in physical effects. Meditation not only makes you a better, but also a healthier gaming pro.