Many times we go around our day with stress, and this plays out in our bodies.  We hold this stress in our muscles, and they tense up.  Scanning our body for tension and then consciously releasing this tension helps, and sometimes it’s easier to clench our muscles so we can release them more effectively.

Practicing noticing our muscle tension allows us to be better at recognizing tension early before it becomes chronic, causing permanent muscle/nerve damage.

In your everyday life, you can use what you have learned in your meditation practice by noticing how you are feeling, refocusing on what is present and conducting a three-breath practice.  You can do these as many times as you want throughout your day.  They are a great way to remind yourself of your learning and growing.  Best of all, they take less than a minute to do.