In this week’s installment of #MindfulnessMonday, I want to share with you a little bit about binaural beats and isochronic tones.
I am a person who can’t focus if there are words being said around me. I can’t comfortably fall asleep with the television on. I can’t write blogs if there is music with lyrics playing. I squirrel regularly in the office when discussions take place in the hallway or someone is speaking loudly on the phone.
What helps me learn to focus and calm my mind, whether working or winding down to fall asleep, is the use of binaural beats and isochronic tones.
Binaural beats require headphones, so it’s often what I use at work to help me focus. A binaural beat is when each ear hears a tone at a different frequency. But your brain adjusts the difference in the tones so it can accurately process them. Different frequencies can assist in helping you create brainwave patterns to meditate, relax for sleep, or focus on work.
Isochronic tones don’t require headphones, so they’re what I utilize when trying to relax my mind before bed. They are a series of rhythmic pulses set at different intervals to help your brain reach a certain state- relaxed, focused, etc.
Binaural beats and isochronic tones are more common and more accessible than you might think. There are playlists on Spotify and Amazon Music. You can find seven-hour long videos on YouTube to utilize all for free.
My favorite free app for falling asleep is called Relax Melodies. Within the app, there is a composer feature that allows you to create your own mix of sounds and put an isochronic tone or binaural beat underneath different calming sounds. I’m cheap, so I didn’t purchase the full version of the app and I can’t access everything, but I utilize the relaxation isochronic tones and have different mixes saved depending on my mood.
One of my favorite mixes places a 10Hz relaxation tone under the sounds I associate with my happy place. Remember last week when you built your happy place? Now you can make it more accessible by creating a mix of sounds that you associate with it- waves crashing, leaves in the trees, chirping birds.
But we are Foley Sports Tourism after all, so let’s bring this back to sports. How can isochronic tones and binaural beats help you better #PlayFoley? Have you ever been nervous before a big competition and struggled to fall asleep the night before? Isochronic tones might help. Between games, you might be over-amped and struggling to focus on what comes next. Sure some of your favorite songs might help you get pumped up immediately before you go out to play, but first, take the time to clear the past. Slip into your headphones and put on some binaural beats while you do drills. They’ll help you focus on what you’re doing and not the outside noise that often accompanies tournament day.
Remember mindfulness is a journey. You won’t be able to tap into your inner yogi on your first try. You can always look back at past #MindfulnessMonday blogs to help you better your mental game for the next time you #PlayFoley.
