Category: Techniques

The body scan is one of the most-searched meditation techniques there is — it anchors most secular mindfulness courses, half the sleep-audio industry, and countless app libraries. If you’re researching it, this page will tell you honestly what it is and what it’s good at. And then, just as honestly: it’s not what we teach, and we’ll show you the warmer practice we’d hand you instead.

What body scan meditation is

In a body scan, attention travels slowly through the body — usually feet to head — pausing region by region to feel whatever is there: warmth, pressure, tingling, contact, or nothing at all. The body becomes the meditation object, giving the mind a physical, always-available anchor. It’s typically practiced lying down, often guided by a recording, and often takes fifteen to forty-five minutes.

What it’s genuinely good at — and where it falls short

The honest credits: it’s grounding for people who live in their heads, it’s famously effective as a wind-down toward sleep, and its physicality suits people who find subtler anchors frustrating.

The honest debits: it leans hard on long guided recordings, so the skill often stays with the narrator instead of becoming yours. It’s time-hungry. Falling asleep mid-scan is so common it’s practically the technique’s signature — fine at bedtime, not what you wanted from your practice. And like the breath, the body is a neutral object: session after session of knees and shoulder blades can turn dutiful and gray. A practice that bores you is a practice you’ll quietly quit.

What we teach instead: warmth as the anchor

In loving-kindness meditation (metta), the anchor isn’t a body part — it’s a feeling. You bring to mind someone easy to love, remember a happy moment with them, let the warmth arise in your chest, and rest your attention there, feeding it with a quiet wish: may you be happy. When the mind wanders, you smile and come back to the warmth.

Notice it keeps everything people love about the body scan — it’s a felt, physical, in-the-body experience, and you can absolutely do it lying in bed — while fixing the debits. The anchor is vivid instead of neutral, so sessions don’t gray out. No forty-five-minute recording is required; ten unguided minutes work from day one, so the skill is yours immediately. And instead of an inventory of sensations, you finish having practiced being kind — which, many people report, follows them off the cushion and into how they treat everyone around them, themselves included.

The basic form takes ten minutes to learn in our beginner’s guide; the complete metta guide has the full depth — the phrases, the Four Smiles, what to do when the feeling fades.

Common questions

Can I still use something like a body scan to fall asleep?

Even better: lie in bed, bring someone you love to mind, and rest in the warmth while you drift. Many people report it’s the gentlest off-ramp to sleep they’ve found — and unlike a recording, it never has a narrator who’s still talking after you’ve gone.

My therapist or course assigned body scans. Should I stop?

No — follow the guidance of professionals working with you directly; body scans inside a structured course have their place. This page is about choosing a lifelong personal practice, and for that, we teach loving-kindness.

Is one of these more “traditional” than the other?

Both have deep roots. Loving-kindness is one of the oldest practices in the Buddha’s recorded teachings — a complete path on its own, not a modern add-on. Choosing it isn’t choosing the easy version; it’s choosing the warm one.

Start warm, tonight

If a body scan is what brought you here, warmth is probably what you were actually looking for. Learn the loving-kindness basics in ten minutes, or let a real teacher guide your first session — free, from our nonprofit. Sit tonight. Smile first.

Breathing meditation is probably what brought you here — it’s the version of meditation most apps teach, most articles describe, and most people picture: sit down, watch your breath, repeat. It’s a real practice with thousands of years behind it. But we’re going to be honest with you up front: it’s not what we teach, and if you’re a beginner, we think there’s a warmer, more effective place to start. This page explains both halves of that sentence.

What breathing meditation is

In breathing meditation (mindfulness of breathing), the breath serves as the meditation object — the home base for attention. You rest awareness on the sensations of breathing, and each time the mind wanders, you notice and return. Nearly every contemplative tradition has a version of it, and its logic is sound: the breath is always with you, it’s free, and returning attention to something steady is exactly the reflex meditation trains.

Why so many beginners struggle with it

Here’s what the apps don’t tell you, and what we hear constantly from people who come to our teachers after months of frustration:

• The breath is a thin signal. For a loud, modern, over-caffeinated mind, a faint tickle of air at the nostrils is easily drowned out. Many beginners spend whole sessions unable to find anything to hold on to.
• It’s neutral — and neutral is boring. The breath doesn’t feel like anything much. When the anchor is bland, returning to it is a chore, and the practice turns into willpower. Willpower runs out.
• Watching the breath changes it. Almost everyone finds their breathing goes self-conscious and mechanical under observation — an awkwardness that can take weeks to fade.
• It can get grim. Without warmth built into the method, many people end up gritting their teeth at their own wandering mind — training tension instead of ease.

None of this makes breath practice wrong. Experienced meditators do beautiful things with it. But “commonest” is not the same as “best for beginners” — and there’s an alternative that solves every problem on that list at once.

What we teach instead: an anchor that feels good

In loving-kindness meditation (metta), the meditation object isn’t the breath — it’s a feeling: the natural warmth that arises when you bring to mind someone easy to love. You remember a dear friend, let the smile come, wish them well, and rest your attention in that warmth. When the mind wanders, you return — same reflex, same training — but you’re returning to something that’s actually pleasant to come back to.

Point by point, it answers the breath’s problems: the signal is strong (a feeling in the chest beats a tickle at the nostrils), it’s warm rather than neutral (the mind wants to return), there’s nothing to self-consciously interfere with, and kindness is baked into the method itself — you can’t practice it grimly, because the warmth is the practice.

Our complete beginner’s guide teaches the basic form in about ten minutes, and the full metta guide on our nonprofit’s teaching site goes as deep as you’ll ever want.

Common questions

Isn’t breathing meditation the “proper” way to start?

It’s a way, not the way. In the Buddha’s earliest recorded teachings, loving-kindness stands as a complete path in its own right — it isn’t a warm-up act for breath practice. Starting with metta is every bit as traditional, and for most beginners, considerably kinder.

I’ve already been doing breath practice. Should I switch?

If it’s going well — you sit daily, it feels settled, you’re not fighting yourself — carry on with our blessing. If it’s felt dry, effortful, or joyless, try loving-kindness for two honest weeks and compare. That dryness isn’t a personal failing; it’s usually the method.

Don’t I still breathe during loving-kindness meditation?

Of course — the body breathes all by itself, and you’ll notice it relaxing and slowing as the warmth settles in. The difference is simply where attention rests: on the feeling of kindness, not on the mechanics of air.

Try the warmer way, today

You came here to learn to meditate — so learn, today, in ten minutes: the step-by-step first session is here. And if you’d rather have a patient human walk you through it, our nonprofit’s teachers give free one-on-one sessions. Whichever door you take: sit today. Warmly.

Somewhere along the way, people got the idea that meditation requires folding yourself into full lotus on a mountain ledge. It doesn’t. The actual posture requirements are two: comfortable enough to stop noticing your body, alert enough to stay awake. Everything else is adjustable. Here’s every position that works, with honest pros and cons — including the chair, which is where most Western meditators actually sit.

The chair (seriously, it’s fine)

Sit toward the front half of the seat if you can, feet flat, hands on thighs or in your lap, back self-supported if possible — leaning back is allowed if that’s what your body needs. No tradition’s insight is stored in the hips. If anyone implies chair meditation is cheating, they are confusing furniture with philosophy.

Best for: almost everyone, especially anyone with knee, hip, or back issues.
Watch for: slumping as the session goes on — re-lengthen the spine when you notice.

Cross-legged on a cushion

The classic image. The crucial detail everyone omits: your hips must be higher than your knees, which is what the cushion is for. Sit on the front third of a firm cushion, let the knees fall lower than the hip crease, and the spine balances with surprisingly little effort. Without that height, your back rounds and everything aches by minute six.

Best for: people with average flexibility who like sitting close to the ground.
Watch for: sleeping feet and knee strain — never force the knees down.

Kneeling (seiza)

Kneel with a cushion or a small bench under your seat, shins on the floor. Keeps the spine naturally tall with almost no effort, and asks much less of the hips than cross-legged sitting. A meditation bench is one of the few accessories genuinely worth its money.

Best for: people whose backs slump in chairs and whose hips protest crossing.
Watch for: ankle discomfort — a folded towel under the ankles fixes it.

Lying down

Flat on your back, knees bent or straight, arms at your sides — what yoga calls savasana. Completely legitimate, and for some bodies (pain, injury, pregnancy, fatigue) clearly the right call. The one honest drawback: the position your brain associates with sleep will invite sleep. If that keeps happening, meditate lying down at a time you’re not tired, or bend the knees so a drifting mind gets a wobble alert.

Best for: anyone in pain, low-energy days, and end-of-day loving-kindness sessions where sleep afterward is fine anyway — drifting off while wishing someone well is a gentle way to go.
Watch for: the obvious.

Standing and walking

Standing meditation — feet hip-width, knees soft, arms relaxed — is underrated for short sessions and sleepy afternoons. And walking meditation is a full practice in its own right, not a consolation prize; this guide teaches it at a normal, unweird pace.

What actually matters in any position

• Spine long, not rigid — think “tall and at ease,” like a stack of coins, not a soldier.
• Hands anywhere comfortable. Lap, thighs, stacked — the elaborate hand positions are tradition-specific, not required equipment.
• Jaw, shoulders, belly: soft. These three hoard tension. Release them at the start and whenever you notice.
• Stillness is a preference, not a law. If real pain arises, move — mindfully, once, rather than fidgeting forever. Pain is information, not a test of devotion.

Stop optimizing, start sitting

Posture is worth ten minutes of setup and zero minutes of perfectionism. Pick the position your body can genuinely sustain, then put your attention where the practice actually happens — the noticing and returning. Still unsure what your body needs? A teacher can watch and adjust in one free session.

“Meditation” is an umbrella word, like “exercise.” Swimming and powerlifting are both exercise; breath awareness and chanting are both meditation — and they train noticeably different things. This guide describes ten common styles honestly: what each one is, what it feels like, and who tends to click with it. No style is “the best.” The best one is the one you’ll actually practice.

1. Breath meditation (mindfulness of breathing)

The most common starting point across many traditions. You rest attention on the sensations of breathing and return whenever the mind wanders. Portable and time-honored — though it’s not what we teach first: many beginners find the breath a thin, slippery anchor, and the practice can turn dry and effortful. It’s an honest option; it just isn’t ours — our honest look at breathing meditation explains why, and what we teach instead.

2. Body scan

You move attention slowly through the body — feet to head or head to feet — noticing whatever sensations are there. Grounding and physical, popular in secular mindfulness courses and often used as a relaxation exercise at bedtime. Another style we describe rather than teach — our honest look at the body scan covers what it’s good at and what we’d hand you instead.

3. Loving-kindness (metta)

This is the method we teach — on this site and in our nonprofit’s free sessions. You cultivate a feeling of warmth and goodwill, usually by bringing to mind someone easy to love and silently wishing them well, and that feeling itself becomes the meditation object. It sounds sentimental; in practice it’s a powerful concentration method with a built-in advantage: an anchor that feels good is one the mind gladly returns to. Learn the basic form in our beginner’s guide, then go deep with the complete metta guide on our teaching site.

4. Walking meditation

Meditation on the move — attention rests in the body while you walk. Some traditions walk very slowly; others use a completely normal pace. Ideal for restless bodies and as a bridge between sitting practice and ordinary life. See this practical walking meditation guide.

5. Mantra meditation

You silently repeat a word or phrase, letting it occupy the attention. The repetition gives the mind something rhythmic to hold, which many people find easier than the breath. Transcendental Meditation (TM) is the best-known branded version, taught with assigned mantras and paid instruction — but mantra practice itself is ancient, and free.

6. Zen (zazen)

The seated practice of the Zen tradition: precise posture, open awareness, and radical simplicity — often summarized as “just sitting.” Usually learned in a group with a teacher, and the community and form are a large part of its appeal. Suits people drawn to discipline and aesthetic sparseness.

7. Vipassana (insight meditation)

A family of practices aimed at seeing experience clearly — its changing, impersonal nature — often taught through body-sensation scanning (the Goenka retreats) or noting practice. Famous for silent ten-day retreats, which are a profound but demanding way to start. You don’t need a retreat to practice insight, but the immersion is why many people go.

8. Open awareness / open monitoring

Rather than one anchor, attention rests wide open, noticing whatever arises — sounds, thoughts, sensations — without grabbing any of it. Spacious and freeing for experienced meditators; genuinely difficult as a first practice, because an untrained attention tends to just daydream. Worth exploring after a few months with an anchor.

9. Guided meditation

Any of the above, with a voice walking you through it. Not a separate technique so much as training wheels — extremely useful ones. When to keep the voice and when to drop it: guided vs. unguided, compared honestly.

10. Contemplative prayer and other traditions

Meditative practice isn’t owned by Buddhism. Christian centering prayer, Jewish hitbodedut, Sufi dhikr, and secular relaxation methods all share the same core move: attention, gently returned, again and again. If you have a home tradition, it probably has a contemplative branch worth discovering.

Which style should you actually start with?

Most people don’t need a survey; they need a starting point. Honest shortcuts:

• If your mind is busy or anxious — start with a warm object rather than a neutral one. Watching the breath gives a racing mind an empty room to fill; loving-kindness gives it better company.
• If you’ve tried before and “failed” — the method was probably the problem, not you. A cold anchor defeats a lot of capable people.
• If you can’t sit still — walking practice is a complete practice, not a consolation prize.
• If you want tradition and structure — Zen and Vipassana both offer real teachers and real communities; we describe them honestly here and point you to them.
• If you want something to happen tonight — five minutes of warmth beats twenty minutes of technique research.

And one honest warning that applies to every style below: method-hopping is the most reliable way to make no progress at all. Every switch resets your familiarity. Pick one that suits your temperament, give it a season, and change only for a reason you could explain out loud.

How to choose

• Brand new? Start with loving-kindness — the basic form takes ten minutes to learn, and it’s the method our teachers use with every beginner.
• Tried meditation before and found it cold, dry, or joyless? That’s exactly the experience loving-kindness fixes. Warmth first; concentration follows.
• Can’t sit still? Walking meditation, at a normal pace — same loving-kindness, in motion.
• Mind too loud for silence? Guided sessions while you learn, and our guide on the too-busy mind.
• Drawn to another tradition on this list? Genuinely fine — a practice you love is better than a practice you were assigned. The descriptions above should help you look in the right place.

Whatever you pick, give it two honest weeks before judging — style-hopping every three days is the one reliable way to get nothing from any of them. Our suggestion is the one we teach: start with loving-kindness today. And if you’d like help deciding, a free session with a real teacher beats any quiz.

Frequently asked questions

What are the main types of meditation?

The most widely practiced are breath-focused mindfulness, body scan, loving-kindness (metta), walking meditation, mantra practices including Transcendental Meditation, Zen, Vipassana, open awareness, and guided meditation. Most differ mainly in what they ask you to rest attention on.

Which type of meditation is best for beginners?

The one you’ll keep doing. Beginners are most often handed the breath and most often quit on it, because a faint neutral sensation is genuinely hard to stay with. Many people find a warm object — the felt sense of loving-kindness — far easier to return to, which is why it’s what we teach.

What’s the difference between mindfulness and meditation?

Meditation is the formal practice — you sit down and do it. Mindfulness is the quality of attention you’re training, which can be carried into anything: washing dishes, walking, listening to someone.

Can I combine different types of meditation?

You can, but early on it usually slows you down. Familiarity is what makes a practice work, and familiarity comes from repetition. Better to go deep in one for a season, then explore.

Which meditation is best for anxiety?

Many people report that breath-focused practice makes an anxious mind louder, because attention lands on the same body signals anxiety already monitors. A warm, pleasant object tends to be gentler. Meditation is a practice, not a treatment — if anxiety is shaping your days, please talk with a professional too.