Mindfulness for Wellbeing and Peak

Performance

• Mindfulness meditation: The body scan

Narrator: This practice is the body scan and will run for approximately five minutes.

For the five minute body scan, just start by sitting comfortably in the chair allowing your back
to be lengthened. Straight, but not tense. Embodying a sense of relaxation and alertness at
the same time. Just allowing the chair to support you. To hold your weight and just letting go
of any excess tension in the body. Any muscular activation that doesn’t need to be there.

And then bringing your awareness to you feet. Just noticing the soles of your feet making
contact with the floor. Tuning into any sensations you notice there and noticing the rest of the
feet, toes, the heels, ankles and the lower legs, shins, calves, knees and upper legs. Just
holding both feet and both legs in awareness, letting go of any tension that you find there.

And then moving your attention to your hands, becoming aware of the palms and the backs of
your hands, the thumbs and fingers, and also noticing both of the arms. Simply letting go of
any tension that you find there. And then noticing all the different sensations showing up in
your arms and hands right now. Perhaps noticing as how you do this your attention comes
into the present moment. And then at some point later you might find your attention has
wandered off into thinking or listening or somewhere else. And as soon as you’ve noticed your
attention has wandered away, simply bringing it back, escorting gently back into the body.
Back to the arms and hands, and just doing this as many times as you need to.

Bring your awareness now to your stomach and your chest. Allowing your body to breathe
naturally as it does when you’re not paying any attention to it, and just noticing what it feels
like to do that. Noticing your back, and then noticing your shoulders and your neck. Letting go
of any tension that you find here. Letting go of any reactions to any of the sensations that are
showing up in this part of your body.

And the noticing your face. Releasing any tension in the jaw, eyes or forehead. Letting go of
any thoughts or distractions, and coming back each time to the body.

And then becoming aware of the body as a whole sitting in the chair. Letting go of any tension
that’s crept back in. And then noticing what it feels like to sit and breathe. And then when
you’re ready, allowing your eyes to open.

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