Begin by finding a comfortable position either sitting or lying down somewhere quiet and free of interruptions.
For this practice,
We will focus on relaxing ourselves and our body through an exercise known as progressive muscle relaxation.
This relaxes your mind and body by progressively tensing and relaxing different muscle groups throughout areas of your body.
We will scan your body and you will tense each muscle group with intensity but without strain for 5 seconds.
Then release the tension and feel the muscles relax.
If you are feeling discomfort in a specific area while tensing,
Feel free to skip that muscle group.
Throughout this exercise,
You may visualize the muscles tensing and a wave of relaxation flowing over them as you release the tension.
Now settling in with our natural breath,
Bring your attention to how your body is breathing right now without needing to change it.
Take a deep breath with your nose,
Feel your stomach expand and now hold for 2,
3,
4,
5 and now slowly exhale.
Notice your stomach rising and your lungs fill with air in each breath.
As you exhale,
Imagine the tension in your body flow out of your body.
Inhale again through your nose,
Hold for 2,
3,
4,
5,
Exhale slowly through the mouth.
Keep breathing with this pace now.
Now inhale again and tighten the muscles in your forehead by raising your eyebrows as high as you can.
Hold this for 2,
3,
4,
5 and release the breath and the muscles,
Feel the tension release and fall away.
Pause and return to your natural breath for just a few moments.
Now inhaling again and smile widely,
Feeling your mouth and cheeks tense up.
Hold this for 2,
3,
4,
5 and exhale through the mouth and release your smile.
Appreciate the softness in your face.
Take a moment now just to check in and see if your face feels more relaxed in certain areas.
Inhale again and squint your eyelids now tightly shut.
Hold this for 2,
3,
4,
5 and release.
Return to your normal breath now.
Now gently pull your head back as if you are looking at this healing.
Inhale and feel your stomach expand.
Hold it.
Now exhale and release.
Feel the tension melt away.
Feeling your head and your neck relaxing now,
You may experience a slight sinking feeling.
If so,
That's completely normal.
Breathing normally now at your own pace,
Inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth.
Feel all the stress rolling away and off your body.
Now tightly but without any strain,
Take your hands and clench them into a fist.
Hold this position for 2,
3,
4 and 5.
Now release it all,
Your breath and your muscles.
Moving to your biceps now,
Bring your arms up and flex them.
Imagine yourself squeezing them with all of your strength.
Really feel the build up of tension.
Hold this now and release.
Enjoy a feeling of softness to your arms.
Breathe in now and exhale with a deep sigh.
Let's do that one more time.
Inhale through the nose,
Sigh it out.
Tightening your triceps now by extending your arms out and locking your elbows.
Hold this position for 2,
3,
4,
5 and release.
Inhale again and lift your shoulders up to get as close to your ears as they can.
Hold it now for 2,
3,
4,
5 and release with an exhale.
Notice if it feels good to let your shoulders loose.
Imagine all the worries you've been carrying on your shoulders rolling off and away.
Inhaling again and tensing your upper back,
Pull your shoulders back as if you were trying to make your shoulder blades touch.
Hold it for 2,
3,
4,
5 and let go.
Surrender with an exhale.
Take a deep breath in now and tighten your chest.
Hold this tension for 2,
3,
4,
5 and exhale through the mouth,
Blowing out all the air held inside your chest.
Now taking another deep breath in,
This time imagine breathing into your stomach.
Imagine your stomach expanding like a balloon,
Sucking the air into your stomach.
Hold it for 2,
3,
4,
5 and release.
Exhale through your mouth and feel your stomach deflate.
Gently arching your lower back,
Inhale through the nose and hold this tension for 2,
3,
4,
5,
Exhale through the mouth and relax.
Taking a moment now to feel the limpness in your upper body now that you've practiced letting go of the tension and stress inside.
Squeeze and tighten your buttocks.
Hold this tension for 2,
3,
4,
5,
Exhale and release.
Imagine your hips gently loosening.
Inhaling through the nose and tighten your thighs by pressing your knees together,
Almost as if you were holding a penny between them.
Hold it now for 2,
3,
4,
5,
Exhale and release.
Moving down to your legs,
Inhale again and flex your feet.
Pull your toes towards you and feel the tension building up in your calves.
Hold this position for 2,
3,
4,
5,
Exhale through the mouth,
Relax and feel the weight of your legs sinking down and letting go.
Inhaling one more time together,
Curl your toes and tense your feet.
Hold this position for 2,
3,
4,
5,
Exhale through the mouth and release.
Returning to your natural breath now,
Imagine a wave of relaxation slowly spreading through your body,
Beginning at your head and moving all the way down to your feet and your toes.
Feeling the weight of your relaxed body,
Notice if there's been any shifts in feeling and sensation in your body.
Taking a slow breath in now,
Exhale and slowly open your eyes.
Gently bring your attention back into the room,
Letting your head and neck rotate gently,
Taking in the space that you're in.
And when you're ready,
You can return to your normal gaze and move on with the rest of your day.
Thank yourself for taking the time to practice today.
Spread love and be kind to yourself.
Thank you.
.
