Abundant research shows that Physical Relaxation Exercises can help reduce stress, decrease symptoms of anxiety and depression, and improve our mental health. Relaxation exercises most frequently used in therapy include Paced Diaphragmatic Breathing, Progressive Muscle Relaxation (PMR), Guided Imagery, and Medical Hypnosis. Outside of conventional therapy, mind-body exercises like yoga and Tai Chi not only reduce perceived stress but also improve heart rate variability, reflecting enhanced autonomic regulation and stress resilience.
Relaxation exercises can be a great addition to in-session work, and the outcomes are better when we practice them regularly — including outside of the sessions.
Here are the resources that offer guidance and support for practicing outside of the session:
Progressive Muscle Relaxation
This exercise is the most validated by research. It offers a guided, concrete, and active practice that can help reduce stress, decrease physical and emotional symptoms of anxiety, and decrease insomnia.
Brief 15-minute Progressive Muscle Relaxation and another Brief PMR
These exercises are great stepping stones towards completing the 40-minute PMR, or as stand-alone exercises when briefer practices are more beneficial.
Breathing exercises
While many breathing techniques might be helpful, current research suggests that the most beneficial breath is:
Diaphragmatic
Slow, smooth, and even
Approximately 6 breaths per minute (or a 10-second breathing cycle)
With either equal or slightly prolonged exhalation
How do I learn Diaphragmatic Breathing?
Here is a brief video on Diaphragmatic Breathing — an excellent set of instructions from UCLA Integrative Digestive Health and Wellness Program.
Here is a 10-minute Mindful Breathing exercise, consistent with empirically supported diaphragmatic breathing strategies.
This kind of breath has been shown to reduce stress, decrease symptoms of anxiety, and reduce physical symptoms of various medical conditions. This slow and even diaphragmatic breath outperforms other popular techniques such as square breathing or 4-7-8 breathing in direct comparisons.
