INDIANAPOLIS — As we close out 2020, many people are already thinking about their goals for 2021. Those goals often have to do with physical fitness, but today we are not talking about hitting the gym.

We’re talking about our minds and overall wellness.   

Practicing meditation is a way for people to de-stress, reduce anxiety and even boost energy and focus.

At Urban Meditation, located in Keystone’s Fashion Mall Commons, co-owners Kristy Paul and Tina Hallett have created a safe space to get centered and focus on overall wellness from the inside out.

The coolest part? Like the popular Tik-Tok challenge once said, “The floor is lava.”

Here, it actually is.

We’re breathing out the stress on this trip In Your Neighborhood.       

“Most people come in saying they can’t meditate. [They say] ‘I’ve tried. I can’t clear my mind. I can’t do it,” explained co-owner Kristy Paul.

The goal at Urban Meditation is to make meditating easy for the modern-day person by getting back to basics.

“We really try to work with it’s not about what you can’t do…There’s no hard poses. [It’s] really just going in, laying down and then we have all the relaxation tools for you,” said Paul. “We have infrared. Our floor is made out of lava. We use essential oils to get you into that meditative state as fast as you can.”

From start to finish, each audio-led meditation session lasts 30 minutes and they have guided meditation classes running every 45 minutes throughout the day.  

“So you can fit it into your regular routine of the day because you know you’re in and out in 30 minutes,” she said. “And within the first session, we have noticed within our members… that you have a noticeable difference in the way that you go about your day.”

“If you make it a regular habit of at least three times a week coming in, you really go about your life differently,” she added.

The experience itself is unique and immersive.

You’ll lay on the heated floor—made from volcanic lava stone imported from the Mount Merapi volcano in Indonesia–  as ambient light dances on the walls in the otherwise dark room.  

They also incorporate essential oils [which you can use by diffusing or rubbing in your hands/onto your skin] to deepen your intention and restore mind, body and spirit.  Their most popular oil— and there’s no surprise here— is called “Focus.”

“Most people are coming in for stress relief,” Paul noted. “And we do a lot of different things with intention or grounding. But Focus is really the main oil that people use.”

Not only can you use the oils in the studio, but you can also take some home with you.

“We have a retail section so everything we use inside the studio.. all the meditation tools that we use here are available for purchase,” she said.

That also includes diffusers and crystals like amethyst, clear quartz and rose quartz—which they use both inside and outside the meditation space.  

Those that opt to use them believe they are good emotional anchors.

“If you have something to hold on to when you’re stressed or something that’s comforting, it’s an emotional anchor either inside the studio or out in your daily lives,” said Paul. “You can put a crystal in your pocket and when you’re feeling that anxiety, hold it in your hand and it helps calm you down.”

Their other benefit, Paul says, has to do with their properties.

“[Crystals] have a piezoelectric effect, so they interact because their vibrational frequency… So they work to balance emotions,” she explained. “I personally go with clear quartz… but each person is really attracted to a different crystal.”

Four Things You Need to Know About Urban Meditation:

• Urban Meditation opened earlier this year at 8487 Union Chapel Road Suite 780, Indianapolis, IN (in Keystone’s Fashion Mall Commons). They’re Monday-Friday from 7AM-6:15PM, Saturday from 8:30AM-4:45PM and Sunday from 10AM-4PM.
• Their goal is to make meditating easy by going back to basics and helping people attain what they call the “urban glow” through daily guided meditation. “We really try to make it easy and lose stress,” said co-owner Kristy Paul. “We really try to work with ‘It’s not about what you can’t do’.. There’s no hard poses. [It’s] just going in, laying down and then we have all the relaxation tools for you.”
• Meditations take 30 minutes from start to finish, with meditation classes running every 45 minutes around the clock during business hours. Meditations are audio-led and change daily. The studio features an infrared heated floor made from volcanic lava stone. They use ambient lighting to enhance relaxation and reduce stress and incorporate essential oils and crystals to aid in reaching a meditative state quickly.
• Urban Meditation offers unlimited monthly memberships as well as packages. But if you want to test it out, they are currently offering a week of unlimited access for $39— which comes complete with your very own bag of crystals.

For more information about Urban Meditation, check out their website by clicking here. To see more photos and reviews by local Yelpers, check out their Yelp profile. You can also connect with them on social media via Facebook and Instagram.

After finding your Zen, check out these other popular local businesses located in and around Keystone at the Crossing:

• Sushi Boss
• Dottie Couture
• Reis-Nichols Jewelers
• Ruth’s Café

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

• 

•