6 popular meditation exercises for beginners

Mantra meditation is a good starting point for those who find it difficult to concentrate and want to calm their mind. But even if you have a specific goal you want to achieve, you can turn it into a mantra and incorporate it into your meditation.

Here's how it works:

Mantra meditation is basically quite simple. First, choose a mantra, that you can identify with. Initially, you can start with single words like calm or peace.

The mantra can also be something you personally want to achieve and consist of entire sentences like: I open my heart to new things.

Once you've found your mantra, sit down and close your eyes. Now, all you have to do is mentally repeat the mantra over and over, until the mind becomes calm and focused. If your thoughts wander, just bring them back to your mantra.

For those who feel restless and stressed and can't imagine sitting still for long periods, they might find themselves in walking meditation. But even if you have to sit all day at work, a walking meditation can provide the necessary balance.

Here's how it works:

In walking meditation, the name says it all. All you have to do is walk consciously. Take one step after another very slowly and deliberately.

Pay attention to your breathing and notice all the movements and sensations in your body. Feel the gentle breeze on your skin and the sensation of your foot touching the ground.

Go in this leisurely manner for a few minutes, to settle down and leave disturbing thoughts behind. Feel how with every step you brush off the stress. Whether you're outside or just walking back and forth in your apartment is entirely up to you, because walking meditation works everywhere!

This meditation is not only the foundation for all mindfulness exercises but also a very good starting point for meditative practices. If you can't calm down in the evening, targeted mindfulness meditation can also help you sleep better.

Here's how it works:

Lie down comfortably in bed. Now listen to your breath and count each breath. Once you reach 10, just start again at 1. This way, you take away the pressure of needing to fall asleep immediately.

Let all thoughts, feelings, and sensations just pass bythat arise during the process, without holding onto them. Do not judge them, and instead, gently return to your breath.

While doing this, you can enter your body and feel how your individual body parts spread in the bed and become more and more relaxed piece by piece. Soon your mind will calm down, and you'll gently slide into sleep.

Tip: Are you having trouble regularly calming down and bringing your sleep rhythm back to balance? The programs of the Sleep Well Line can help you to sleep well again.

Music not only reduces stress, but also lifts the mood. Therefore, it is particularly suitable for meditation. A meditation with music is ideal for you if you want to relax and at the same time become more mindful . In this meditation, the experience of sound is the main focus.

How it works:

Choose music that you like and that relaxes you. The style of music is entirely up to you. From classical music, to jazz, to new age, anything is possible. However, we recommend starting with instrumental music.

Now sit down, take a deep breath in and out, and focus solely on the music. Observe what the music does to you and which sensory impressions it triggers in you. You might even learn something about yourself! In any case, you will become more relaxed and collected during the song.

Do you just want to take a break or would you rather go on a journey right away? With the conscious visualization of a power place, you can mentally travel, without having to move at all. Thanks to this meditation exercise, you can withdraw wherever you are to let go and recharge new energy.

How it works:

Imagine a specific placewhere you feel comfortable and can draw strength. Whether the place is real or only exists in your imagination doesn't matter. Let your imagination run wild and travel to a beach, a lakeside, a forest clearing, or even a cozy library.

Now take in as many details of the place as possible. What sounds can you hear there? What does it smell like? Also, pay attention to your breathing and feel how you are being supplied with new life energy. When you feel strengthened and calm, you can gently leave the place again.

The more precisely you imagine the place, the better the meditation exercise works. This way you have your personal place of power to which you can return anytime, anywhere.

If you feel like everything is overwhelming you and you are seeking inner stability, you should try a grounding meditation. In this way, you bring body and mind back into balance and can draw new energy for everyday life.

How it works:

Sit down or lie on your back. Now imagine that roots are growing from your feet or your back. The roots gradually penetrate the ground beneath you and grow over several floors until they find fertile soil.

Now anchor yourself firmly with the ground and feel how the power of the earth flows through your body via the roots. Observe how you gradually absorb more energy and become calmer at the same time.

Finally, the roots leave the ground again and slowly return to your body - but the power of the earth remains with you.