- Relaxation exercise A is a 20 minute exercise during which I ask you to successively tense and relax each muscle group in your body. You should do this exercise each day for approximately six weeks before you move onto Relaxation exercise B. When you tense your muscles, only tense them 75% not 100% and when you let go of the tension, do so quickly.
- Try to pick a time when you are not in a rush anywhere and do it in a room which is warm and where you are comfortable. Choose a time of the day that fits with your schedule. Turn off all phones and try not to be disturbed.
- If your mind wanders and you lose concentration, just bring your attention back to the recording and continue. You can use the exercise to help you sleep however if you miss out on most of the exercise because you have fallen asleep then make sure you do it again another time during the day so you are still getting the practice with all the muscle groups.
- Do not expect to see any dramatic improvements for a few weeks although you should start to notice that your awareness of tension in your body is gradually increasing.
- When you think that you are totally familiar and bored with A, move onto exercise B which is only 10 minutes and involves immediate letting go without any prior tensing. This is regarded as a more difficult exercise. As you practice this for about 3 to 4 weeks you should start to notice that during the day, when you instruct a group of muscles in your body to relax(for example, your neck or your stomach) that you can actually make a difference.
- From then on you may do the exercise whenever you wish but you should be able to get on without it and you should find that you are able to notice tension creeping in to your body and just let it go. Regularly do an imaginary ‘bodyscan’ to ensure that all parts of your body are nice and relaxed.
Relaxation Tape A
Relaxation Tape B
