Easy Meditation Techniques For Relaxation And Stress Relief

by marciag

Easy meditation techniques will help you relax, unwind and release stress and tension from the body and mind. Below you find a very easy one done just in one minute.

There are practically countless meditation techniques that can be done without any additional help. Some use meditation scripts, others are simply breathing exercises. By trying out various types and techniques, you will soon find the one (or ones) that will work best for you. Beware, the one you end up keeping at in the end might not be the one you started with in the first place!

Once you have settled for one set of meditation exercises, then work with that one only, or settle for alternating between 2 or 3, but no more. You don't want to confuse your mind with too many different exercises, however at first, when you are only starting out, it is just normal to go through various ones until you find the right exercise for yourself.

Afterall we are all different, we are all at various levels of experience and learning in our lives, and even our needs are at different levels as we speak.

When you start out with meditation, start with some basic meditation exercises which are easier to do than the more advanced once. I know this sounds like a 'doh I knew this' statement, but bear with me.

Too many people try out difficult meditations simply because they don't know that they are difficult. By focusing on the wrong exercises, they end up giving up meditation alltogether saying that 'meditation doesn't work'.

Since I started with meditation a few years back, I had the chance to chat with many people who are also meditating and some who 'tried' to meditate. Many gave up and when I asked them what meditations they started out with, they gave me the names of some meditation techniques that were simply not for beginners. No wonder they gave up!

Not all meditations are the same, and I can say that with certainty, since I've tried several already.
So below is a list of meditations, some basic, some more advanced, that you can try out on your own. I will give you the right meditation posture and any tools that you might need, and then the steps to do them.

What Are Easy Meditation Techniques?

Years ago such a concept as easy meditation simply didn't exist in our society. This is because those who embraced it, they fully embraced it, practically living by it and it's principles.

Also many years ago, before getting introduced to the Western world, the people who were meditating were monks, spiritual leaders, spiritual people and those who really took life seriously in finding a true meaning of existence.

Don't get me wrong, this doesn't mean that we, Westerners do not take life seriously. However let's not forget that our modern world is all based on impulse, on getting everything NOW and on very materialistic principles.

This is because we are living in stressful times, busy times, when we simply don't have the luxury of spending hours and hours on learning meditation to attain all the benefits it can give us.

Hence the search for easy meditation techniques that can be beneficial in our daily lives right away.

While spirituality and religion have their places in this society, as a whole we are only now starting to unlearn what the industrial revolution did to our mind and spirit over the years.

Unfortunately it is very difficult to let go of 'wanting it now and wanting it as easy as possible', hence the increasing demand for easy meditation techniques.

Easy, or simple meditation techniques are those that can be done in a relative short period of time without taking years to get benefits from practicing them.

Also the benefits that you will get from easy meditation techniques will be slightly different than those that you would get if you were a devote practitioner meditator.

For example you might not get all the spiritual advantages, however you will get additional benefits by finding everything you need to live a relatively stress-free life, to find calm and peace in your life and become a better person overall.

8 Minute Meditation: Quiet Your Mind. Change Your Life

8 Minute Meditation: Quiet Your Mind. Change Your Life.

Benefits Of Practicing Easy Meditation

  • Stress reduction and management - These meditations are not too deep, just enough to help you managing stress easily
     
  • Health benefits - Improve your health, overcome headaches and migraines, let go of various phobias and addictions, as well as become more rested due to lower metabolic and heart rate. Not to mention reducing cholesterol levels and decreasing high blood pressure.
     
  • Better mood overall - When it comes to mood, you will feel much calmer overall, less irritable and moody and less impulsive.
     
  • Enhance your creativity and imagination. You don't have to become a zen monk to spark your creativity. It is amazing what a few minutes of rest and relaxation can do to your mind! 

Preparing For Meditation Made Easy - The Right Posture And Attitude

The posture is simply about sitting quietly and calmly on a chair, on the floor or on a meditation pillow, depending on what you feel most comfortable with (or what you have around), and the rest is very easy.

You simply close your eyes for a couple of minutes, do a few breathing exercises or follow the guide in the guided meditation and after a few minutes you will feel fresh, relaxed, alert and ready to face the day (or evening) ahead.

And most of all, you will feel less stress than you had before you took up meditation in the first place.

And afterall, in our busy modern life, de-stressing is one of the major reasons why most people take up meditation. The ones that truly seek spiritual enlightenment in our circles are rather far and few in between.

One Minute Meditation - Learn To Meditate In Just One Minute

one minute meditationA one minute meditation is a great way to start meditating when you have never done it before, especially when meditation intimidates you. While meditative practices are becoming more and more popular in the Western world, there are still many people who simply don't meditate because they have the wrong idea about this practice.

It's usually two things happening: they either believe that to truly gain benefits of meditation they need to practice relentlessly for years as a Buddhist monk somewhere in the Tibet mountains, or that they need to buy expensive courses (or get to an expensive meditation retreat) to reap the rewards of enjoying meditation.

While both of these are certainly possible, for the average person living stressfully in their daily lives, daily meditations with the one minute meditation exercises, are a great way to learn how to calm the mind, relax and de-stress at the same time, while achieving inner peace.

And afterall, these are the most urgent benefits that anyone leading a busy life wants to gain from these easy meditation techniques.

Btw, there is nothing religious about one-minute meditations. There is just a feeling of gratitude for the experience of relieving tension from the body and mind at the end.

The one minute meditations are also a great way to enter further, deeper meditative states, if you choose to go that route using this meditation for beginners. I have used such meditations several times to simply lead me to a deeper subconscious level before starting a more serious meditation exercise.

Image credit: Sxc

Martin Boroson Talk About The One Moment Meditation On Stage

Why Does The One Minute Meditation Work?

One of the reasons why it works so well is because it is a simple exercise. People KNOW that it is only one minute that they take away from their time, so they get in complete agreement with the mind, which doesn't put up barriers for such a short time.

For merely a minute, the mind doesn't start with 'but I have no time', 'but I still have this and that to finish', 'but the boss is waiting for me'...It is afterall, only one minute.

And this is where its power comes from: through lowering the mind's resistance to the meditation itself and the time spend on it.

In addition, this meditation can be practiced more than once a day. While it is more difficult for a person to even spend 20 minutes in meditation (forget about meditating twice a day for 20 minutes!), everyone can take 2, 3 and 4 times a day one minute off for the purpose of relaxation and de-stressing.

How To Do The One Minute Meditation

meditating girlThere are many examples of one minute meditation instructions for stress management that I came across, however here is the one that I am actually practicing when I simply need 30 seconds - up to a minute of silence, of quiet, peace and stillness.

You can practice this meditation exercise anywhere and at any time. You don't need to have a specific meditation posture for it.

You can do it whether you are at home, at work or on the train heading towards your workplace, or even when hiking in the mountains.

The one-minute meditation simply done this way is extremely easy and whatever thoughts on meditation you might have, you should give this practice a try.

  1. If you have a place to sit down, then do so, however it is not absolutely necessary.
  2. Relax your body and let your hands either limp next to your body or on your lap, depending whether you are sitting or standing.
  3. Close your eyes.
  4. Take a few slow and deep breaths, in and out. Feel the breath entering every pore of your body and when exhaling, feel it leave completely.
  5. While breathing in, count to 4. While breathing out, count to 4 as well.
  6. Simply focus on your breathing, and nothing more, while counting at the inhale and exhale.
  7. If your mind starts wandering, gently focus it back on your breathing.
  8. Breath in and out while focusing on what you are doing for one minute.
  9. When you are ready to stop, before opening your eyes, simply remember where you are and what you did just before starting the meditation. This will ground you back into the present moment.
  10. Open your eyes and enjoy the calmness that this short meditation brought you. Now you are ready to resume your previous activities with a renewed energy.

This one minute meditation technique seems deceivingly simple, however don't let its simpleness fool you. The more you practice it, the longer time you will remain calm and relaxed, which in turn will help you keep your balance throughout the day so that when you enter a stressful situation, you will be much better equipped to handle it calmly and assured.

Photo credit: Image purchased at istockphoto.com

Might Also Like On Meditation

Meditation is one of the best ways to relieve stress today. A look at meditation can easily confirm this. Have you noticed that more and more people are meditating than ever?
If you want to learn how to do meditation at home, there are some very easy steps you can follow for best results.Meditation is healthy, is fun and is a welcome change from stress.
Have you ever wondered where did it all start, what is the history of meditation?
Japa meditation is considered even today one of the most effective meditation techniques used to eliminate stress from your life.
Updated: 05/15/2013, marciag
 
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Have You Tried Any Other Easy Meditation Techniques?

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katiem2 on 05/21/2013

I have, I get so much from meditation. I get in the gap while driving, leaving the radio off and putting meditation techniques to work while stopped at a red light or in the parking lot waiting for my kids... The possibilities do present themselves once we give it a little thought. Great Article.

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