Core Techniques: Body Scan and Breath

🔄 Quick Recall: In the last lesson, you did your first breath awareness meditation — sitting for 5 minutes, noticing the breath, and practicing the skill of returning when your mind wandered. Now let’s expand your toolkit with two more techniques.

The Body Scan

The body scan is a systematic journey through your body, paying attention to each area without trying to change anything. It’s like taking inventory of physical sensations.

AI-Generated Body Scan Script

Create a 10-minute body scan meditation script.

Guide me through:
1. Settling and grounding (1 minute) — feel the chair/floor beneath you
2. Feet and legs (2 minutes) — notice temperature, pressure, any tension
3. Torso and back (2 minutes) — belly, chest, lower and upper back
4. Arms and hands (2 minutes) — shoulders, upper arms, forearms, fingers
5. Neck, face, and head (2 minutes) — jaw, forehead, scalp, behind the eyes
6. Whole body integration (1 minute) — feel the entire body as one connected system

For each body area:
- Name the area clearly
- Suggest specific sensations to notice (warmth, tingling, heaviness, nothing at all)
- Remind me that "nothing" is also a valid sensation to notice
- Don't instruct me to relax — just notice

✅ Quick Check: Why does the prompt say “don’t instruct me to relax — just notice”?

Because forcing relaxation creates its own tension. If you tell someone “relax your shoulders” and they can’t, they feel like they’re failing. But “notice your shoulders — are they tense? Relaxed? Somewhere in between?” removes the pressure. Often, simply noticing tension causes it to release naturally. And when it doesn’t, that’s fine too — you’ve still built awareness.

Advanced Breath Work

Once basic breath awareness feels comfortable, add structure:

Breath Counting

Count each exhale silently: 1… 2… 3… up to 10. Then start over at 1.

Rules:

• Only count on the exhale
• If you lose count or go past 10, simply return to 1
• If you notice you’ve been thinking for a while and forgot about counting entirely, that’s fine — return to 1

Create a 7-minute breath counting meditation script.

Structure:
1. Settling (1 minute) — a few natural breaths
2. Introduction to counting (1 minute) — explain the counting method
3. Guided counting with reminders (3 minutes) — periodic reminders to count
4. Silent counting (1.5 minutes) — no guidance, just count on your own
5. Release and close (30 seconds)

Include: gentle reminders that losing count is normal and restarting at 1 is the practice, not a penalty.

4-7-8 Breathing

A technique for activating the relaxation response:

• Inhale through your nose for 4 counts
• Hold for 7 counts
• Exhale slowly through your mouth for 8 counts

This extended exhale activates the parasympathetic nervous system — your body’s “calm down” signal.

Create a 5-minute 4-7-8 breathing session.

Include:
1. Explanation of the technique and why it works (30 seconds)
2. 3 guided rounds with timing cues (2 minutes)
3. 3 independent rounds with quieter cues (1.5 minutes)
4. 2 completely silent rounds (1 minute)
5. Return to natural breathing and close

Choosing Your Technique

Exercise: Try Both Techniques Today

1. Generate a body scan script and try it (10 minutes)
2. Generate a breath counting script and try it (7 minutes)
3. After each, notice: Which felt more natural? Which addressed your current need better?
4. Write down which technique you’ll use for your daily practice this week

Key Takeaways

• The body scan builds mind-body awareness by systematically noticing sensations from head to feet — revealing unconscious tension
• Breath counting adds structure to breath awareness: count exhales from 1 to 10, restart when you lose count — the restarting IS the practice
• 4-7-8 breathing (inhale 4, hold 7, exhale 8) activates the parasympathetic nervous system for rapid calming
• Match your technique to your need: body scan for physical tension, breath counting for mental focus, 4-7-8 for acute stress
• AI creates customized scripts for any technique, duration, and situation — expanding your practice options infinitely
• Having multiple techniques means you can always find one that fits the moment, increasing the chances you’ll actually practice

Up Next: In the next lesson, you’ll learn to bring mindfulness into everyday activities — eating, walking, working, and conversations — so the practice extends beyond formal meditation.