Add a body scan to your morning routine

Getting up in the morning mindfully can be quite hard to do. For some of us, we get up already feeling an unpleasant heaviness and fatigue.

Practicing a daily healthy habit, something I think we should all implement, of preforming a body scan, has so many benefits including a better start to your day and more positive thoughts. It is important to recognise that we need to bring more awareness into our body and mind, how are we feeling at the start of the day?

Try this each morning for a few minutes before you start scrolling through your phone or racing around to get ready for the day.

Body Scan

Begin by bringing your attention into your body. Lay flat on your bed in a comfortable position.

Close your eyes

Notice your body

Feel the weight of your body on your bed

Take a few deep breaths. As you take a deep breath, bring in more oxygen and as you exhale, have a sense of relaxing more deeply

You can notice your body sink into your mattress

Notice the sensation of your legs sinking into the bed. The weight and pressure, vibration, heat of your legs

Notice your back sinking comfortably into your mattress.

Bring your attention into your stomach area. Is it tense or tight, let it soften.

Take a breath.

Notice your hands, are your hands tense or tight? Wiggle your fingers and let them too sink into the bed

Notice your arms. Feel any sensation in your arms. Let your shoulders be soft

Notice your neck and throat. Let your jaw go slack, let your neck relax and loosen, and your throat be soft, relaxed.

Let your face and facial muscles be soft

Then notice your whole body become more present

Take another deep breath

Be aware of your whole body, as best you can

Take a breath

Now go back to your feet and slowly moving from your feet to your head, preforming a scan of how your body is feeling.

Are your ankles sore? Do your leg muscles feel tight? If so they will need some extra attention today.

How is your hips and back? Any stiffness or soreness there? Why is it there? If it feels good, tell yourself what a great job your doing with those muscles and areas of your body

Continue to move up your body. How are your shoulders? Have you been carrying some unnecessary weight or sensations in those areas? Are you worried about something? Is it helping by worrying about it? Can you tell yourself to let it go? Wiggle your shoulders and then let them go loose and relaxed. There is no need to carry unnecessary burden.

As you get to your head this is where you can think of what thoughts are popping in. Are they negative? Creating lists of what needs to be done, or creating negative thoughts for the day? Push them aside.

Thinking about what we have to be grateful for is a great practice while doing the body scan of the head.

Think of how lucky you are to be able to hear, smell, see and think through your day.

As you become fully aware of all the areas of your body, consider what may need a little more time and attention and remember to give your body that today.

Thank your body for what it is about to do for you today

And then when you’re ready, You can open your eyes