10-minute guided body scan practice for being present — on the train

About this practice

For the times on the train when being present takes up more room than you would like — 10 minutes, body scan. A guided session of about 10 minutes, suited to all levels. Nothing is recorded and no account is needed.

What this works on: being present

Life happens in the present while attention is busy elsewhere. Nothing is missing except the noticing.

It tends to show up as:

• Days blurring together
• Feeling absent from your own week
• Only registering moments in photographs

Sensory attention is the shortest route back. Sound, contact and breath are always in the present.

Doing this on your commute

• Headphones on, eyes open or closed depending on your comfort
• Keep one part of your attention on your stop
• Do it standing if sitting is not possible — nobody is watching

Commuting time is already dead time. Nothing is being given up.

How body scan works

A body scan moves attention systematically through the body, region by region. It does not try to change what it finds — it builds a map of what is actually there, which is often different from what you assumed.

• Move slowly, head to feet or feet to head, and do not skip the uncomfortable areas
• Meet each region with plain curiosity rather than a verdict
• Numbness and absence of sensation are findings too

What happens, minute by minute

1. 0:00Your breathing doesn't have to change yet. Let it be whatever size it currently is.
2. 0:14Small efforts are the whole method.
3. 0:24Let your attention rest on the out-breath. The in-breath can take care of itself.
4. 0:38Notice your own pulse somewhere. Wrist, throat, wherever you can find it.
5. 0:51Feel the last part of the exhale, where it turns into nothing.
6. 1:04Breathe as if you had all evening. There's no rush in this part.
7. 1:17Feel your heart somewhere in there, doing its work without instructions.
8. 1:29Feel your hips. Wide, heavy, and doing nothing.
9. 1:40Feel the soles of your feet. All the weight of you goes through them.
10. 1:54Now the right shoulder. Let it be a centimetre lower than it was.
11. 2:07Notice where the wandering back to now lives in your body. Chest, throat, stomach. Rest your attention there without trying to change it.
12. 2:25Give the life happening while you worry a shape, a colour, a temperature. Turning it into something specific makes it easier to hold.
13. 2:43Notice the exact moment your attention left. You probably won't catch it. That's normal.
14. 2:57Nothing here needs to be efficient.
15. 3:07I'll step back. You stay here.
16. 3:17If you feel emotional, you don't have to explain it to anyone, including yourself.
17. 3:31There's no need to try harder than this.
18. 3:42Let's rest here in silence. It's short.
19. 3:52If your mind is quiet, don't grab at it. Quiet comes and goes too.
20. 4:06If you only manage half of it, that's half more than nothing.
21. 4:19Let me stop talking. Follow the breath instead.
22. 4:30If you're thinking about the next thing on your list, that list will still be there.
23. 4:45Feel your belly. Let it be soft instead of held in.
24. 4:57Follow the breath down into your belly and feel it come back up.
25. 5:10Let the quiet do its work.
26. 5:20Let the whole of your right foot be heavy.
27. 5:31Follow one full breath from the moment it starts to the moment it ends.
28. 5:45No rush to move on.
29. 5:54Notice your toes, starting with the big one on the left.
30. 6:06Let your shoulders stay still while your ribs move.
31. 6:17A few seconds more.
32. 6:26Notice the weight of your thighs, all the way down.
33. 6:38Let your ribs widen on the in-breath instead of your shoulders lifting.
34. 6:51Let's pause. Just the breathing for a while.
35. 7:02You do not have to like the texture of this exact moment to breathe through it. Liking was never the requirement.
36. 7:19Feel the weight of the wandering back to now somewhere specific, then let the floor take a share of it.
37. 7:36Notice where you feel the breath most clearly. Nose, chest, or belly — pick one and stay there.
38. 7:52If the life happening while you worry is loud right now, make your attention smaller. Just the next breath. Nothing beyond it.
39. 8:10Notice the pull to make this mean something. It doesn't have to.
40. 8:23If you feel restless, that's a feeling, not a failure.
41. 8:35A few quiet breaths. That's all this is.
42. 8:46We'll keep it quiet and unhurried.
43. 8:56Let the pause stretch out.
44. 9:05Let your breathing go back to whatever it does when nobody is watching.
45. 9:18Stretch whatever feels stiff, then carry on.
46. 9:28Stay here a little longer.

Questions people ask

Meditation is a practice, not a treatment. If you are dealing with ongoing distress, please also reach out to a professional.