EDDIE Howe revealed how meditation had helped him with the mental demands of top-flight management.

The Cherries boss said he had taken up the process in 10-minute sessions every morning in a bid to clear his mind.

Howe uses an app called Calm to aid his meditation, Apple's iPhone app of the year for 2017.

And the manager believes it has helped him to work smarter throughout the campaign.

Asked about the process by the Daily Echo, he said: “It’s something I have tried this season. We have various people that come in and talk to us, who are experts in different fields.

“To try to find the ability and capacity in your mind to push yourself further, work smarter – how are you going to do that? Meditation is one way.

“I only use an app, I don’t do it with a teacher. It’s called Calm.

“It’s really good and there are 10-minute exercises that you do. You take yourself away and I recommend it highly.

“It just gives you the chance to reset your mind. My mind is so busy with loads of different thoughts and loads of things I have to do during the day.

“For that 10 minutes you try to stop that process and take yourself into somewhere else. When you come back in you are a little bit clearer with your thoughts.

“It’s something I do every morning and I feel it’s helped me this year.”

The Cherries boss is not the only member of his setup who uses meditation in his preparation.

Winger Ryan Fraser, who has been in electric form with nine assists and five goals in the Premier League this campaign, revealed he had meditated on the beach.

Speaking on The Big Interview Podcast with Graham Hunter, the Scotland international said: “I do a little bit of meditation. I sometimes go down there and it’s nice to hear the waves.

“A lot of footballers are getting into meditation now. There are so many things going on off the pitch that it is mentally hard. I just do it to help myself out.”

Asked how key mental preparation could be for a player, manager Howe added: “It’s massive and everyone has their own routines.

“I certainly had routines when I was playing. I would do different things to try to find something which worked for me and every player is so different.

“Full credit to Ryan for trying meditation. I think the mental side is huge.

“It’s something we encourage the players to do.”