High Focus Activities

I highly recommend long-distance running and lifting. Not only do both activities require complete focus (at a high enough intensity) but they also lead to lower overall levels of anxiety throughout the rest of the day. After increasing my physical health, I've been shocked to see how much it's also improved my mental state.

Cooking while following a recipe doesn't necessarily require consistent focus over a long period, but to get it right, it does require a good deal of focus. More complicated and unfamiliar recipes require more focus.

On the mindfulness/meditation side, there's a lot more out there than what secular groups like the field of psychology can provide. Consider looking for meditation groups and Buddhist religious organizations in your local area.

Also, there are also a billion podcasts and YouTube videos. Some people I know like Thanissaro Bhikku who is outside San Diego. Others are passionate about Ajahn Brahm near Brisbane, Austrialia, or potentially Bhikku Sujato in the same tradition. Some people really like Empty Cloud's stuff in New Jersey. But I'm a fan of Ajahn Sona in British Columbia. Ajahn Jayanto's Dhamma talks, which you can find on the Temple Forest Monastery website, are another favorite of mine.

Among mindfulness meditation, there are the cardinal body scanning and breath awareness meditations, but samadhi meditation is also awesome--Ajahn Sona is probably the best place to learn about this. Chanting is another meditation--adjacent thing that requires concentration. The Metta Sutta in English, Amaravati translation, is a great place to start.

Good luck! I wish you all the best!

I'm exploring different things for this as well. I've only tried this one a couple of times, but in the last few weeks when I found myself ruminating on something fueled by anxiety, playing Tetris seems to have helped. I thought of trying it after remembering that Tetris can supposedly be helpful after a traumatic incident to help prevent PTSD[0]. I don't have PTSD, but figured it might help for general bouts of anxiety a well.

I just played in my browser, but think it would be much much more satisfying with a physical console like Brick Game[1] (which I had when I was a kid).

(This was apparently a ripoff of Tetris, but I think I'd enjoy the sense of nostalgia.)

[0] - https://www.ox.ac.uk/news/2017-03-28-tetris-used-prevent-pos...

[1] - https://harddrop.com/wiki/Brick_Game

Have you ever tried rock climbing? It’s like mindful muscle balance ballet and requires a great deal of mental presence and focus.

Puzzles - not necessarily jigsaw, but more logic-puzzle types.

Building something.

And I tend to have intense focus if it's 'compiling exhaustive and thorough analyses debunking someone's point in a minor statement they made a week ago that they weren't even thinking about', but that might be me. (One time I spent probably hours carefully trying to figure out the likelihood that an immigrant comes from a country with higher vaccination rates than the US - something around 1/3 if I recall correctly - and then remembered that the US requires vaccinations for all legal immigrants and as undocumented immigrants aren't the majority of immigrants - yes, I did research on that - if you worry about unvaccinated people, you have more to worry about from native-born Americans than immigrants. I did this in response to a passing comment somewhere about how immigrants were bringing disease or something.)

In a similar vein as the previous one, researching a subject you find fun. I remember being like twelve and writing a 20-page paper on Jewish mobsters and the Jewish community and if I recall correctly the 'upper upper' limit was 12. Again: possibly (definitely) just me.

I've found chess very good for this. I can easily play for 3-6 hours in one session while getting completely in flow / losing track of time.

My wife is not as much a fan of this...

Canadian chess grandmaster Eric Hansen used chess to help with his ADHD as a child.

When I feel my anxiety gets too much space in my brain these are some things that work for me:

- Sim racing with my Moza setup - Trail running - Mountainbike riding on not too easy terrain

All these activities does the same thing, forces my brain to focus here and now and take time-critical micro-decisions.

Other activities that puts me in the same frame of mind would probably work too. For example climbing worked for me when I did that, and even working through a large set of pretty easy maths exercises worked while I was more focused on maths in my life.

In between the most focused parts of these activities I often gain deeper insights and feel grounded.

Good luck finding what works for you!

Do you like physical activities (or can you learn to?) Rock climbing, mountain biking, martial arts, kayaking, etc. are all great for this, grounding you in the moment and making you focus.

Otherwise... I don't think this is a really great lifestyle suggestion overall, but maybe in your specific case, only for limited doses: Video games? There are many puzzle, card, and strategy games that require a lot of focus and thought. Or yes, chess. I don't mean reflex-based shooters, but more thoughtful, turn-based titles.

Olympic lifting is technical and precise. Great if you would like something more physically involved.

If you have a club near you, gliding is a relatively cheap hobby.

Otherwise sudoku or crosswords can be fun and low barrier to entry

Calligraphy can be fun. For me it takes a high degree of focus, because it doesn't come naturally.

Running helps me clear my mind, and I always listen to music while I'm at it. I also love reading, but I won't recommend specific books here just pick something you enjoy and are interested in.

I don't have experience with anxiety. Would a "body busy, mind mostly free" activity work? I find cycling very useful, especially when you go longer distances.

Sports and Exercises that require 'form' keeps you alert.

On the flip side, try reading books.

Moreover, summarize each chapter in your own words to truly "lock in".

RTS games like StarCraft generally require intense focus, there's no room for a mind to wander.

* Cooking

* Playing drums - Practicing with a metronome

* Long distance running

* My wife does knitting for longer hours

Swimming, walking in the park, running, hiking, board games etc.

Skating on a skateboard. I am not kidding. Start slow and pad up.

Swimming? I can't think while swimming.

Surfing or bhopping in counter strike

A Jigsaw puzzle?