wellness / Health
weigh on us, we often find ourselves burnt out, stuck in a rut or addicted to something. Finding what makes us come alive and eager to create is the key to unlocking what psychologists call the "optimal experience" or "flow."
This Colorado Consciousness Optimization Lab Wants to Help Get You There
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hen we reach states of flow, we are totally immersed in an activity and experience, a sense of selflessness, timelessness, effortlessness and richness. This results in higher intrinsic motivation, greater creativity and better emotional regulation. Breckenridge-based Flow Performance Lab wants to make flow a part of everyday life. The lab-meets-playground is merging science and spirituality by melding modern and mystical methodologies. What does this mean for you? Tools, techniques and technology — think playful card decks, online courses and in-person events — for training your mind and body to shift states and access flow on demand.
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We sat down with Flow Performance Lab facilitators John Peralta and Kat Carter to chat flow state. “With ever increasing numbers of people struggling with mental and physical disorders, our current state of collective consciousness is desperately in need of a radical reboot,” says Flow Performance lab founder, John Peralta. How did we get to this current stuck state? Kat Carter: Over many years of cultural conditioning, our inner creator, who is at its core a curious child eager to play with ideas as if they were sand to be sculpted into castles, fades into the background. As the burden of our daily responsibilities and challenges
So, why do we need flow? JP: Flow describes a very special state of consciousness in which a person is completely focused and absorbed in an activity. People sometimes describe this as being “in the zone.” Think of extreme athletes, musicians, artists and other passionate creators. There are so many incredible ways we can experience flow and even more methods for priming ourselves to get into flow faster and stay there longer. The creator in each of us is simply waiting to be re-connected with and
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photo courtesy of Flow Performance Lab
Are You in Flow State?
What inspired the original Flow Lab? John Peralta: The concept of a Flow Lab developed in 2020 during COVID. An eclectic group of international nomads met in Costa Rica during lockdown and began dreaming together about how to reliably access and even harness flow states. They wanted to explore both known and unknown ways to get into flow, reduce stress, increase happiness, amplify creativity and possibly achieve self-mastery. 25 people attended the first Flow Performance Lab in Costa Rica and discovered that flow can be harnessed through music, movement, meditation, mindset, medicine and more. Educating people about this optimal state of consciousness and empowering them to experience it for themselves is what the Flow Lab is all about.
