Because our body can hold stress in our muscles,
Progressive muscle relaxation technique is very powerful in releasing stress from the body.
It signals profound safety to our brainstem when using progressive muscle technique of relaxation.
It's very simple.
We engage and contract a muscle fully.
And then we release and let go.
Through this harsh contraction,
It signals to the brain,
Okay,
We're in a contracted state.
What's next is we relax and we let go.
So even if you already have some tension,
By mindfully contracting,
It allows the body to release and let go.
So we're going to start with our feet and I'll guide you through this practice.
So please join in and do it with me.
If ever something doesn't feel right,
Adjust it to your comfort level.
So with the feet,
You're going to curl your toes right now,
Curling your toes and contracting down at the base of your feet.
And we're just going to hold this for a few moments here.
And on your next exhale,
Let go of that contraction,
Uncurl your toes,
Let your feet fully relax.
Maybe feel a little bit of space in between each toe.
Each inhale and exhale,
Bringing more expansion to your feet.
We're going to move up to your calves now.
So contracting your calves,
You may want to bend your feet and flex your feet towards your knees.
It's a great way to contract your calf muscles,
Feeling that strong contraction in your calves.
Holding this for a few moments.
And on your next exhale,
Relaxing,
Surrendering,
Letting some openness flow,
Some fresh blood moving into your calf muscles.
With each breath relaxing further,
Surrendering more deeply.
Wonderful,
You're gonna contract your thigh muscles,
Contracting them now.
If you're in a seated position,
Raising your legs up or raising your thighs together,
Just slightly contracting and holding here.
Full contraction,
Just like when you're flexing your biceps,
We're flexing that muscle.
And on your next exhale,
Relax,
Release.
Surrender.
Moving into that state of flow and rest.
Fully relax.
Beautiful.
We're going to do our lower abdomen,
Our glutes,
Our pelvic floor,
And the low back.
So contracting in,
Almost like you're pulling in your low tummy muscles.
Flexing your glutes and your hips and tightening the low back all at once.
Holding that.
And on that next exhale,
You know the drill.
Relax.
Open,
Surrender.
Letting a little joy into that space.
Hmm.
Amazing.
We're going to do your shoulders,
Your chest,
And upper back now.
Just kind of hunching in,
Pulling your shoulders together,
The front,
And contracting in the chest.
And releasing,
Letting your shoulders drop.
Surrendering them to the earth.
Letting some peace and freedom flow into your upper torso.
And now we're going to clench our fists and our arms.
So doing this now.
Clenching tightly and holding.
And on that next exhale,
Letting go.
Fully relaxing,
Just letting it melt.
Let your arms become like noodles,
Soft and jello-like.
Slowly relax.
Deep breathing.
Beautiful.
And our final area that we're going to engage and contract is the neck,
The face,
And the scalp.
So you might make a funny face while we do this one,
But I'm going to do it with you,
So no worries.
Let's engage this now.
And on your next exhale.
Relaxing.
Letting those eyes rest,
Letting.
.
.
That tension on the forehead open.
Really embracing openness.
In the head,
In the scalp,
In the face.
Letting a wave of relaxation flow through your body now.
Noticing how you feel.
Are you feeling softer and more open?
We're signaling that safety to the brainstem.
And a quick way to use this tool,
You don't have to do an entire body scan.
We can contract the entire body at once.
So you're always welcome to do that if you don't have the time for the full practice.
Let's do this one time now.
Engaging every muscle in your body firmly.
Let's go.
On your next exhale.
Surrender,
Open,
Relax.
Soften.
Amazing,
Amazing work today.
And I hope that you call on this skill if it's something that resonates with you and feels good for your body and your nervous system.
Bye for now.
