Welcome to Meditation 101.
My name is Steve.
I'll be your guide and your teacher in this meditation practice.
Meditation is the deliberate practice of mindfulness.
Mindfulness is just being aware of what you're doing all the time.
But the practice of meditation can be very frustrating as we're learning.
It can even be a source of anxiety for some people.
So I want you to make yourself as comfortable as possible.
Lie down,
Sit down,
Whatever is comfortable for you.
There's no rules to how you meditate.
Make yourself comfortable.
Make any adjustments you need.
Find what works for you.
As we develop this deliberate practice of mindfulness,
This meditation practice,
You'll discover that other parts of your life become more mindful.
Whether it's going for a run or doing other mindful movements like yoga and Pilates.
Or it could be something much more casual like walking the dog can become a mindful exercise.
Things we do at work become more mindful.
Spending time with loved ones can become a mindful exercise.
You'll find your relationships become stronger as we tune into our loved ones a little bit more.
Even mundane tasks we have to do like vacuuming,
Chopping vegetables can become a mindful exercise.
As we begin a practice of meditation.
So you've made yourself nice and comfortable.
We begin by taking a deep breath in and a big breath out.
Breathe deeply in.
Give yourself a sigh.
And again,
Breathe deeply in.
And let it out.
Let your body relax.
Let all those tense muscles go.
Give your body a quick scan.
Find any areas that seem a little wound up.
Find the muscles that don't want to let go.
A little tension in your shoulders.
A little stiffness in your low back.
Breathe into those areas.
Let the muscles relax.
To breathe into those areas,
Just hold an image of those muscles,
Your tight shoulders in your mind as you breathe.
As you breathe out,
Let them relax.
Focus your relaxation into those areas that are tight.
Restricted.
Move your awareness through your body.
Finding any areas that seem a little tight and restricted still.
Bring some focused relaxation to those areas.
Think of this as a little time for yourself to relax.
And you'll find as you're scanning your body,
Your mind keeps rushing off to the busy of your day.
To the tasks you have to accomplish.
This is your busy brain.
It's in charge all the time.
Give your busy brain permission to take a break.
Let your thoughts relax.
Bring your awareness to the very crown of your head.
Very tip top part of your head.
Come aware of any tension you have.
As you breathe,
Let this tension around the top of your head just melt away.
Big breath in.
And let it go.
Let every breath of this tension around the top of your head melt away.
Bring your awareness to your forehead.
Eyebrows.
Breathe deeply in.
And let this tension melt away.
Let your awareness move to the corners of your eyes,
To your temples.
Let this tension we hold here relax and melt away with your breath.
Your awareness moves below your eyes to your nose.
Let these little muscles in your face relax.
The tension,
The stress melts away.
The space between your nose and your mouth.
The top lip.
Your cheeks.
All these muscles relax.
Your bottom lip and your chin.
Tension goes.
The muscles deep inside your jaw relax.
Feel any tension around your neck,
Your throat,
Your shoulders.
Those big muscles in your shoulders relax.
All the tension and stress just melt away from your body.
Bring your awareness to your breath.
Begin by feeling the air rushing through your nose.
Become aware of this point at the end of your nose where the air passes.
Feel the cool air rushing in,
The warm air rushing out.
All your awareness is on this feeling of air moving in and out of your nose.
As you find your mind rushes off to that busy stuff again,
Don't get frustrated.
Noticing is meditation.
Bring your awareness back to your breath.
Give yourself a little congratulations for meditating.
Let your awareness of your breath sink a little deeper in your body.
Feel the rise and fall of your belly.
With every breath out,
You feel your body relax.
Feel the rise and fall.
You feel the rhythm of your breath.
As your mind rushes off,
Acknowledge it.
Give yourself a mental pat on the back you've noticed.
Come back to your breath.
You're doing great.
Let your awareness sink deeper into your breath.
Become aware of a deeper organic rhythm.
Sense the time of your breath in.
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
Out,
Four,
Three,
Two,
One.
A little pause.
Notice the timing of your breath without changing it,
Without forcing,
Without expectations.
Notice the gentle breath in.
Notice you take a longer,
Slower breath out.
It settles into a small pause.
Let a gentle breath in again.
And fully aware of this gentle rhythm of your breath.
Your mind rushes off and you notice you're getting good at this.
You come back to your breath.
Your body's fully relaxed.
Your mind seems to have come quiet.
Imagine your mind like a small pond.
The thoughts are ripples across the pond.
You can't hold them back.
You can only watch them settle and disappear.
You see the little ripples on your pond.
Let them go quiet and settle.
You're present only for your breath.
And with every distraction and thought,
It's just a ripple in the pond of your mind.
Let it go.
Feel the gentle rise and fall of your breath.
The deep rhythm of your body.
The deep rhythm of your body.
