Are you struggling to clear your head at work? Do you find it difficult to concentrate and feel stressed at the end of each day? We asked Ali Lemaitre, the co-founder of Zest Retreats and leader of the Dear Body Programme, to guide us through a daily meditation practice to ensure total balance and a clear head before embarking on your working day. 

“Sit comfortably, you can do this with your eyes open or closed. Start by taking a deep breath in…and as you slowly exhale, relax your shoulders a little more, become aware of how active your mind is right now. Take another breath in and this time move all of your attention downwards into your chest. If you’d like to, you can even put your hand on your heart for a moment and really connect with the beating of your heart, the rhythm of your pulse deep within.

Relax your shoulders downwards a little more now and continue to breathe deeply, focusing on the area of your heart. Move your awareness downwards for a few moments; relaxing your abdomen, pelvis, and the larger muscles in the legs all the way down to your feet. Allow yourself to feel grounded as you continue to breathe deeply.

Then allow your focus to return to your heart. Rest here for a few moments and then reach within for a really great feeling, maybe it’s a favourite memory, a great place you’ve been, friends that make you laugh, the person you love the most, or simply a feeling of heartfelt gratitude for all that’s going well in your life right now. Breathe, feel good, smile and then take that smile into the rest of your day.

This technique allows the autonomic nervous system to find its balance and has a measurable, positive effect on heart rate variability, coherence, stress and anxiety.”

Read more about the Dear Body programme here.