Simple Meditation: 6 Simple Meditation Techniques

A simple meditation is a mindfulness technique that does not require much training, expertise, equipment, or experience. Plenty of simple meditation techniques exist, and choosing which works best for you is a matter of personal taste. You can practice simple meditation techniques by reciting positive mantras or focusing on the present moment while engaging in activities like walking or showering. Simple and short techniques allow you to build a daily meditation habit.

For many people, finding the proper meditation involves trial and error. Often, it will come down to a technique that feels right for your self-care routine. Consider the following simple techniques:

1. 1. Body scan meditation: This type of meditation involves focusing your awareness on different parts of your body and allowing them to relax and release any stored tension fully. Body scan meditations can involve the entire body. Still, a simple starting meditation can focus on a particularly tense area, such as your neck or lower back.
2. 2. Guided meditation: An instructor-led meditation session, guided meditation can happen live during a meditation course or via prerecorded audio, which you can listen to online or follow through a meditation app on your phone. The guide speaks in a soothing voice, leading the listener through meditation. They may instruct the meditator to hold their breaths for a certain number of seconds or form specific visualizations in their minds.
3. 3. Loving-kindness meditation: Metta meditation, or loving-kindness meditation, centers on compassion, directing the meditator to feel love and kindness toward everyone in their lives, even those they consider enemies. This type of meditation aims to cultivate feelings of love and kindness that can erase the negative thoughts and feelings that cause stress.
4. 4. Mindfulness meditation: This form of meditation focuses on staying in the present moment and being completely aware of your body and the surrounding environment. Mindfulness meditation can entail a quick check of your current public surroundings or a deep, quiet observation of your room at home. Your goal is to achieve a relaxed state of awareness without judging your thoughts, body, or environment.
5. 5. Transcendental meditation: Created by Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, transcendental meditation uses the repetition of a silent mantra to help rise above oneself. This meditation practice introduces bubbles of thought into the mind gradually, causing a state of de-stress and relaxation.
6. 6. Walking meditation: To practice walking meditation, switch between walking and long periods of sitting meditation (known in the Zen Buddhist tradition as “zazen”). The practitioner takes a few steps for a certain amount of time, hyper-focusing on the body’s movements and physical sensations with every step.

A simple meditation technique hardly requires any preparation. With something as simple as a short mindfulness meditation or an introductory session of guided meditation, you can reap several health benefits. Simple meditation can:

1. 1. Boost mental health: Meditation can help prevent the mind from wandering into negative or traumatic territory by promoting self-awareness and existence in the present moment. Mindfulness meditation techniques can help you learn to deal with the mental stressors that permeate daily life. According to neuroscience studies, meditation can potentially reduce stress, alleviate symptoms of depression and anxiety disorders, and boost your immune system.
2. 2. Improve sleep quality: Meditation can increase the production of sleep hormone melatonin, which can alleviate insomnia symptoms and improve sleep quality. Poor sleep quality can lead to issues with your overall health, and meditation is just one of many ways to improve your sleep hygiene.
3. 3. Support physical wellness: Regular meditation can reduce your heart rate and lower blood pressure. According to Harvard Medical School, meditation practices can encourage heart-healthy behaviors, reducing the risk of heart disease, high blood pressure, or other cardiac issues.

Take it slow when starting a simple meditation. Experience will bring increased benefits, but in the meantime, consider these meditation tips for a simple practice:

1. 1. Avoid expectations. Enter your meditation without expectations, and do not judge yourself if you cannot have a relaxing meditation session in your first few attempts. It may take multiple tries before you begin to feel comfortable with meditating. The practice requires patience, consistency, and practice.
2. 2. Begin with short sessions. Start by meditating for three minutes, and aim for quality over quantity. Many people find that when they start with short, quick meditations, they have more success lengthening their sessions.
3. 3. Find a quiet place. Practice meditation in a distraction-free environment. Find a quiet space with a comfortable temperature and decent amount of light.
4. 4. Get into a comfortable position. When you select a sitting position for a meditation session, consider your comfort levell. You can sit with your legs crossed on the floor or comfortably on a couch or chair with your feet flat on the ground and a straight (but not rigid) spine.
5. 5. Try counting your breaths. One way to focus on your breathing is to count your breaths. Take a deep breath, and silently count or visualize a number, keeping your mind empty otherwise. See if you can get to five and then ten before other thoughts enter your headspace. You can also practice box breathing, a four-part breathing exercise.

Find something comfortable to sit or lie on, grab a MasterClass Annual Membership, and dial into the present moment with Jon Kabat-Zinn, the father of the Western mindfulness movement. From formal meditation exercises to examinations of the science behind mindfulness, Jon will prepare you for the most important practice of them all: life itself.