Body scan meditation: a step-by-step guide
How to do a body scan in five or ten minutes, what it is for, and what to do if you get restless or fall asleep.
A body scan is a meditation in which you move your attention slowly through the body, one region at a time, noticing whatever you find there. It asks nothing of you except to notice. You do not have to relax each part, though relaxing often follows by itself.
It is one of the most widely taught practices, and a good one for people who find watching the breath too subtle to hold on to.
A five-minute body scan
Sit comfortably or lie on your back. Set a timer so you can let go of the time.
- Arrive. Take three slow breaths. Feel where your body meets the chair, bed or floor.
- Head and face. Notice your scalp, forehead, eyes and jaw. The jaw is often clenched without our knowing.
- Neck and shoulders. Notice whether your shoulders are raised. Let them be as they are, or let them drop.
- Arms and hands. Move down through the upper arms, forearms, palms and fingers. Notice warmth, tingling or nothing at all.
- Chest and belly. Feel the breath moving here. Notice the rise and fall without changing it.
- Back. Travel from the upper back down to the base of the spine. Notice pressure and support.
- Hips and legs. Move through the hips, thighs, knees, calves and ankles.
- Feet. Finish at the soles of the feet and the toes.
- The whole body. For the last few breaths, feel the body as one thing, sitting or lying here.
Spend three or four breaths in each region. For a ten-minute scan, simply go more slowly, or treat the left and right sides separately.
What you are looking for
Nothing in particular. You might find warmth, coolness, pressure, tightness, itching, pulsing or ease. You might find no sensation at all in some places, and that counts as a finding too.
When you meet tension or discomfort, the instruction is to pause there for a breath or two and feel it clearly, without trying to fix it. Often a tight area softens once it has been noticed. If it does not, move on.
What it is good for
Much of the tension we carry goes unnoticed until we look. A scan finds it. Done regularly, it makes you quicker to notice a clenched jaw or raised shoulders during the day, when you can do something about them.
It is also a useful way to wind down. A slow scan lying in bed gives a busy mind a simple, physical job, and many people use it to prepare for sleep. Research on mindfulness programs that include body scans is broadly encouraging for stress, though a scan is a relaxation practice and not a treatment for any condition.
Common problems
“I fall asleep.” If that is your aim, good. If it is not, do the scan sitting upright with your eyes open, or earlier in the day.
“I can’t feel anything.” That is common in some areas, particularly at first. Notice the absence and move on. Sensitivity grows with practice.
“I get restless.” Move faster, or start with the part of the body that is restless and give it your whole attention for a few breaths.
“It makes me notice pain.” Go gently. You can skip an area, or keep your attention at its edges. If scanning brings up strong distress, stop and speak to a doctor or qualified teacher before continuing.
A shorter version for the day
You do not need five minutes. Three points will do: jaw, shoulders, hands. Check each one, let it soften if it wants to, and carry on. It takes about three breaths, and nobody around you will notice.