Hello and welcome to today's meditation.
For today's meditation we're going to be diving into a full body scan to relax and release.
At any time throughout the day when we are fully present,
Be it running along a trail,
Staring out the window of a moving train,
Listening to the waves crashing on the beach,
Or just being amongst loved ones,
Where time has no bearing on the present moment,
Where there is no past or future,
The mind,
The body and the environment are all in sync.
We're going to get as comfortable as possible,
Laying down on your back with a pillow under your head,
Hands out by your side,
Or sitting up on a bolster with your hands on your lap.
Whatever you need to do to really relax and let go of tension.
Allow yourself to connect the mind and the body through the breath.
So let's take a few moments to just notice our breath coming in and out,
Not changing it,
But just noticing.
I'll invite you to slow your breathing down and together,
Taking a gentle breath in and out through the nose,
In,
Gentle breath in.
Closing down the eyes and the force of the breath in and around,
Allowing it to gently come in to the back of the throat,
Filling up the lungs,
Noticing the slightly cooler air as it comes in.
Relax,
Gentle breath out.
Noticing the slightly warmer air as it exits.
Shifting your awareness from the external environment to within,
Noticing the heart beating,
The subtle temperature changes,
And should anything distract you,
Bringing your attention back to your breathing.
As you breathe in,
Noticing any sensations on the crown of your head,
The tip top of your head.
Breathing out,
Relaxing.
Now moving to your forehead,
The eyebrows,
Allowing any furrowing and tension to just melt away.
Your ears,
Can they just drop down and be floppy like a dog when it relaxes.
Your nose and cheeks,
Just feel them melt,
Allowing your jaw to just sink and melt into your neck,
Allowing your tongue to rest gently at the roof of the mouth,
Just behind your upper front teeth in the five-point position.
Moving down to the traps and the upper back,
Breathing into the tightness here and releasing on the exhale.
Another breath into the tightness and letting it go with the exhale.
As you breathe in,
Just tense this area ever so slightly,
Then relax,
Release as you breathe out.
Noticing the shoulders and the upper arms,
The rear delts,
The biceps,
The triceps.
Just releasing on the exhale,
The forearms and the hands,
Releasing any tension here as you breathe out.
I invite you to make a fist with both hands as you breathe in,
Just holding for a little while longer,
Allowing a bit of tension to the arms,
Softening,
Letting go as you breathe out,
Releasing the tension.
Noticing it feel looser than before,
Allowing some gentle movement amongst your fingers.
Breathing into the chest area,
Noticing any sensations in the pecs,
Clavicles,
Breasts,
Sternum,
Nipples.
Not judging,
Just noticing.
And as you breathe out,
Allow them all to just relax and release.
Breathing in,
Creating some tension,
Breathing out,
Releasing,
Allowing the area to feel looser than before.
Noticing the back,
From the upper back,
The mid-back down to the lower back,
Scanning the whole back,
Feeling any tension in the lats,
The rhomboids,
The pecs,
Feeling any tension in the lats,
The rhomboids,
The erectors,
Allowing the scapulas to just move into their natural relaxed position.
Breathing in to any of the tight areas,
Breathing out and releasing,
Breathing in and applying some tension,
Breathing out,
Releasing the tension,
Feeling yourself get heavy,
Sinking deeper and deeper into the surface below.
Moving on to the stomach area,
Feeling it slowly moving up and down with your breathing.
Noticing any sensations of your internal organs,
Not judging,
Just noticing.
See the tightness in the diaphragm,
Gently breathing into it,
Letting it go.
Not tensing the abdominals,
Allowing them to just be as they want.
Softening the hips and the glutes,
Allowing some gentle movement,
Giving the hips a bit of a jiggle,
Feeling them loosen up,
Bringing awareness to any tightness in this area,
Allowing them to just sink to the surface below.
Breathing in,
Bring some tension to this area,
Just gently squeezing,
Breathing out,
Allowing the tension to just dissolve into the ground.
Allowing the upper legs,
The quads,
The hamstrings,
Backs of your knees to feel heavy,
Noticing any sensations and tightness in this area.
As you breathe in,
Bringing some tension,
Squeezing the upper leg area in your glutes,
Breathing out,
Relax,
Allowing them to just unfold.
Moving down to the calves,
The ankles,
The shins,
Our shock absorbers.
Breathing into the tight areas,
Two heads around the calves,
Tense them ever so slightly,
Letting them go.
Moving down onto the feet,
Around the ankles and the feet,
Some movement to the toes,
Wiggling them,
Feeling all the tightness in the arch,
The ball,
Heel.
As you breathe out,
Releasing the tightness and the tension,
Just imagine a gentle flow of energy going from the brainstem down the spine,
Spreading throughout the body to the extremities and the back,
Carrying with it a wave of relaxation.
Now just scanning the entire body,
The crown of the head,
The tips of the fingers and the toes,
Noticing if there is any tightness still left in the body.
Focusing your breath and awareness to these areas,
Not judging,
Just noticing.
Gentle squeeze,
Just releasing with every exhale.
Feeling so heavy,
Having sunken into the surface below and being completely,
Absolutely and entirely relaxed.
As we draw to a close on this practice,
Let's take a slow,
Deep breath in,
Two,
Five,
Letting it go,
Slowly.
Whenever you are ready,
I invite you to welcome some gentle movement,
Slowly opening your eyes,
Knowing that this practice will allow you to become a better,
A better person,
A better person,
A better person,
A better person,
A better person.
Opening your eyes,
Knowing that this practice will allow you to become a better,
Optimized version of yourself,
Not just for you,
But the world and all you come in contact with.
