If you’ve ever sat down to meditate, closed your eyes, and immediately felt like jumping out of your skin…you’re not alone.

Stillness isn’t the only path to calm. In fact, your brain may focus better when your body is gently moving.

What is Moving Meditation?

For many of us, the word meditation is synonymous with the image of someone sitting cross-legged - or in lotus pose! - in a cave or on the top of a mountain. 

(But if what you want is the calm, peace, and focus that comes from this practice, you can get there while moving too. Like many things in the yoga world, there is more than one path to the destination.)

Meditation is present moment awareness, and usually to get to that awareness we use a focal point like the breath. A moving meditation is that same mental effort while rhythmically moving the body. Sometimes that’s the whole body (like mindful walking), other times it’s sitting and moving the hands in time with the breath.

Why Sitting Still Isn’t The Only Way To Meditate

Let’s be clear: there is value in stillness. My intention isn’t to show you how to completely bypass the need for stillness. BUT if stillness doesn’t feel accessible, or is keeping you from the mental practice of meditation, then let’s bridge that gap with movement.

If you are brand new to meditation, sitting completely still and quiet can be really overwhelming. And when going from an active and busy part of your day into meditation, sitting completely still can be a big transition, and a lot to ask. A lot of these moving meditation tools are great as a short practice on their own, or as the path to help you settle into your stillness practice.

For folks whose knees hurt thinking about that classic image of a monk in lotus pose, don’t worry. You can be seated, standing, or lying down any which way and still be using the same mental effort as the person with legs crossed.

The Neuroscience Behind Moving Meditations

Some moving meditations will help you mentally focus more than the classic seated pose, because of the somatosensory homunculus.

The what?

A part of the brain that pays special attention to the hands, lips, and tongue.

Have you ever had a paper cut on your finger that hurt more than walking on a sprained ankle?

Or you know when you get a canker sore and you CANNOT stop thinking about it and checking on it for days?

Since the brain gives extra significance to these important few body parts, involving them in your meditation awards extra mental focus.

Think of it like this: the thinking part of your mind that might wander off during stillness is very present with what the hands are doing. Moving the hands as an integral part of your meditation practice allows that thinking mind to be focused on the movement, in the present moment, enhancing your meditation abilities.

Make sense?

Examples of Moving Meditations You Can Try

Mindful walking, slow flow yoga, and tai chi, are great choices to help bridge the gap between busy-ness and stillness.

To engage the somatosensory homunculus, try this:

When you inhale, spread your fingers apart and open the palms. When you exhale, close your hands into gentle fists. Continue this pattern - inhale to open, exhale to close. Slow and steady movement in time with a slow and steady breath.

Check out the week's worth of hand-moving meditation techniques in the Free 7-Day Moving Meditation Challenge, linked below.

How Moving Meditations Can Calm Your Nervous System

When your nervous system is in a heightened state - whether that's from stress, overstimulation, or constant multitasking - stillness can feel almost unbearable. Moving meditations offer a gentler entry point by meeting your body where it's at.

The rhythmic, intentional movements give your mind a point of focus, while the steady breath patterns signal safety for your brain. This combination can help you shift out of 'fight or flight' mode and into a more regulated, grounded state.

Over time, practicing moving meditations trains your nervous system to recognize and return to calm more easily, even in the middle of a stressful event or busy workday.

How To Start Your Own Moving Meditation Practice

Beginners - start with just 3 minutes! Set a timer on your phone and open and close your palms in time with your breath. Count this as a big win and keep coming back to this practice until you feel like challenging yourself to go longer.

For more structure and guidance join the Free 7 Day Moving Meditation Challenge - 5 minutes or less every day for a week, to learn 7 new, accessible moving meditation techniques.

Or for a wider variety of mindful movements, become a member at practicewithbren.com where you have access to the video-on-demand library of 80+ yoga classes, movement loops, and breathwork videos to find your calm through movement for any mood or moment.