Designing a relaxation/meditation practice.

[smatthew8551]

Hi all,

When it comes to R and R: Kit's relaxation recordings are wonderful before sleep, and his meditation instructions have cut through a lot of confusion for me. However, I'm having trouble being consistent with one or the other, and wondering whether my intention should be to choose one and stick with it, or to do both at different times during the day?

Regards,

SM

[Kit_L]

If I had to do only one, I'd do the relaxation practice. I would do this until that experience was genuinely embodied—and by that I mean, sufficiently familiar as a physical and mental state that you can drop into it at any time, by simply breathing in, and letting the tummy go soft as you breathe out. Two reasons: this is needed in today's world, and when you can do that, you can bring it to the cushion (or wherever/however you meditate). It is immensely powerful.

[smatthew8551]

Thanks Kit, for this and for sharing your wisdom and recordings on this vital topic more generally. Really a great service.

[Gareth O Connor]

What's your reason for wanting to practice?.What do you think it will do for you?

[smatthew8551]

Well I've made quite a few attempts at meditation before for anxiety and stress, most of them ultimately floundering because of excessive striving/goal orientation/perfectionism. So this time I might just say I hope to experience some degree of relaxation, and to experience the now and go from there....

[Gareth O Connor]

That's a good motive to enjoy life more

[Kit_L]

https://stretchtherapy.net/relaxation-wiki/

and many linked articles.

And go out for a walk today, no matter the weather, and rejoice: you're alive!

There's a good French word relevant here too: flâneur. It means to stroll, or saunter, for pleasure; antithesis is "power walker".

[Nathan]

Flâneur is a great word. I first came across it in Tom Hodgkinson's How to Be Idle, which is a fun read

[Kit_L]

I came across it in Antifragile and Black Swan, by Nicholas Nassim Taleb. I am definitely a flâneur. I feel this approach is consistent with the "stop and smell the roses" dictum.