Start meditating and many questions arise: How long should I meditate for? Am I better off doing a few minutes of meditation or should I do longer meditations? What is the sweet spot?
These questions, and many others, are what I answer in this article.
1. What Are the Benefits of Meditation?
Imagine the following scenario: You are in class, the day seems to be going great, and you are looking forward to a relaxing evening at home. But then, with 10 minutes left in the class, your instructor gives back last week’s tests…
You failed the test. Miserably.
You have a few options for how to deal with this situation:
- Make a mental note to do better next time, stop thinking about it, and enjoy the rest of your day.
- Let the problem eat away at you and think about how unfair the world is.
- Erase your name and write someone else’s on it … Just kidding, don’t do that.
Repeating an uncomfortable situation in your head is something we all do.
I used to be guilty of rumination. Whenever something unexpected happened, I would dwell on it for hours. But there is something that has helped me tremendously: mindfulness meditation.
Over the last four years, I have put in hundreds of hours of meditation. And even though I am still learning to get better at my mindfulness practice, I now sit down to mediate on a regular basis and without hesitation. Mindfulness has become a habit, and it is now an integral part of my daily life.
Though there are many health benefits that come with meditation, such as stress reduction, improved anxiety and depression,1 the perhaps most important one is that it stops rumination.
2. How Long Should I Mediate For?
One of the biggest misconceptions about meditating is that we must sit down for an extended period to reap the benefits, turn it into a habit, and achieve success. But that is not true. To master meditation, simply show up.
Start out with just 2 minutes per day. You are more likely to sit down for a pleasant, 2-minute meditation than you are to sit down for a painful, half-hour session. To master the practice, just show up and keep it below the point where it feels like work.
Two minutes every day is a good starting point if you are new to meditation. Set a timer with a gentle alarm, close your eyes, and observe your thoughts and feelings. Once 2 minutes feels too easy, you can increase the duration.
I rarely meditate for longer than 20 minutes. A meditation should be an enjoyable experience, and not a painful one. If you feel strong resistance, back off and keep it below the point where it feels like work.
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3. How Long Should I Meditate and What Is the Best Position?
Another misconception is that we must hold a specific posture to meditate. Meditation can be done in any posture: standing, sitting, lying, and walking.
The reason we like to sit down with a straight back is because it provides a good balance of focus and relaxation. When the body is upright, both the body and mind are alert.
At the same time, when we are seated, there is a certain degree of letting go and relaxation that takes place. It allows you to focus on the present moment and meditate for a long time.
The one expectation is if we find ourselves in too much pain or discomfort to sit. Then, of course, it is acceptable to lie down.
I prefer sitting over lying down, but you can choose any posture. You can try lying down on your floor, your bed, or your couch as long as you don’t fall asleep. For best results, chose a posture that is comfortable but allows you to stay alert.
4. What Are the Best Styles of Meditation?
Training the mind is often quite different from what people think it is. Maybe they have an idea it’s about stopping thoughts, or about eliminating negative feelings. But the reality is often quite different.
Mindfulness is about developing an awareness of what is going on in your mind.
Your mind will always have thoughts, and you will always have feelings. But instead of letting your thoughts and feelings guide you, just observe them. Imagine yourself sitting on the side of a busy road. The cars on the road represent your thoughts and feelings. All you must do is sit there and watch the cars pass.
Don’t put any pressure on yourself to become any different and you will move towards accepting yourself. Observing the traffic is the perhaps simplest and purest form of meditation that leads to positive results.
5. How Long Should I Meditate and When Is The Best Time?
Setting an intent can have a positive impact on your meditation practice.
In a 2001 study, a team of researchers worked with 248 people to test how to create an exercising habit.2 The participants were divided into three groups.
- Group 1 was the control group, which is a group acting as a benchmark to ensure the experiment works. They were simply asked to track how often they exercised.
- Group 2 was the motivation group. They were asked to track how often they exercised and read some material on the benefits of exercise.
- Group 3 was the intent group. They were motivated like Group 2 but set a clear intent. The intent involved planning for when and where they would exercise by writing, “I will [BEHAVIOUR] at [TIME] in [LOCATION],” on some paper.
In the first and second groups, 35 to 38 percent of people exercised at least once per week. But 91 percent of the third group exercised at least once per week, which is more than double the normal rate. Can we use this information to make meditation a habit?
If you are just starting out, and you do not schedule your session, it will not happen. Instead, you need to set an intent. Write out the sentence “I will meditate at [TIME] in [LOCATION],” and you are more likely to pull through with it.
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6. How Do I Make the Practice of Meditation Fun?
Give yourself an immediate reward when you complete a key task. By treating yourself, your brain elicits positive emotions, leading to the realization that your meditation was worth doing.
I always do my morning meditation before I have my first meal of the day. This reward works for me because I look forward to feeling energized and getting my day started.
You can meditate at any time of the day, but what I found to be the best time is first thing in the morning. You can reward yourself with a delicious breakfast, a relaxing morning walk, or some social time with friends. Any healthy activity that elicits a reward will do the job.
7. What Time of Day Should I Meditate?
Have you ever woken up at 8:00A.M. with barely enough time to drink your coffee and get dressed before you had to leave?
My morning routines followed this pattern for many years. A rushed morning with time constraints often resulted in a stressful day. It was not until I added a meditation to my morning routine that I noticed positive changes in how I felt throughout the day.
A morning routine should not be a monotonous series of drills you drag yourself through. A good morning routine should set a tone of calm and positivity for the entire day. The first thirty minutes of your day determine how you feel for the rest of your waking hours.
8. How Much Meditation to Form a Habit?
Making progress is motivating, especially when using visual measures. It allows you to track how much you have meditated and when the practice turns into a habit. Try to following tracking systems:
- Marbles and Jars: You can track your progress by moving a paper clip or a marble from one jar to another when you complete a task.
- Don’t Break the Streak: Get a big wall calendar and hang it on a prominent wall. For each day that you do your task, put a big X over that day. After a few days, you will have a streak. If you keep at it, the streak will grow longer every day. Hanging up your calendar in a spot you see every day will tempt you not to break the chain.
But what do you do if you miss a day? Do not beat yourself up if you forget to meditate for one day. If you miss two days in a row, you must dial down the difficulty. Reduce the length of your meditation or change to a more comfortable position.
Tracking your progress with a visual reward system is a great way to make meditation a daily practice.
How Long Should I Meditate For: A Guide for Beginners
Meditation is a powerful mental tool and we all have free access to it. If you are ready to start your meditation habit, try this:
- Write out your intent on some paper the night before you are planning to meditate: “I will meditate at [TIME] in [LOCATION].”
- The next day, wake up 10 minutes earlier than usual to allow for enough time.
- Take a comfortable posture that allows you to stay alert.
- Set a timer with a gentle alarm that lasts for 2 minutes.
- Begin your meditation. Observe your thoughts and feelings with no judgement.
- Give yourself an immediate reward when you finish.
- Track your progress with visual measures.
- Remind yourself of the benefits of meditation often.
References
- Khoury, Bassam, et al. “Mindfulness-based therapy: A comprehensive meta-analysis.” Clinical Psychology Review, vol. 33, no. 6, Aug. 2013, pp. 763-71, doi:10.1016/j.cpr.2013.05.005.
- Milne, Sarah, et al. “Combining motivational and volitional interventions to promote exercise participation: protection motivation theory and implementation intentions.” British Journal of Health Psychology, May 2002, pp. 163-84, doi:10.1348/135910702169420.