Progressive Muscle Relaxation

Progressive muscle relaxation script (16 muscle groups)

Read it to yourself, record it in your own voice, or let the timer above guide you. For each group: tense for about five seconds at half your strength, then let go for ten to fifteen seconds and notice the difference. The 15-minute session tenses each group twice.

Before you start

• Settle in, sitting or lying down, with your arms and legs uncrossed.
• Close your eyes, or rest your gaze on one spot.
• Breathe in slowly through your nose, and let it out slowly.
• Again: a slow breath in, and a long breath out.
• For each muscle group: tense for five seconds, at about half your strength, then let go. Never to pain.
• You will tense each group twice, so the difference between tight and loose sinks in.
• Keep breathing while you tense. Do not hold your breath.

1. 1. Right hand and forearm

   Tense: Make a tight fist with your right hand. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your fingers uncurl and your hand go loose. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

2. 2. Right upper arm

   Tense: Bend your right arm and tighten the muscle at the front of your upper arm. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let the arm drop and go heavy. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

3. 3. Left hand and forearm

   Tense: Make a tight fist with your left hand. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your fingers uncurl and your hand go loose. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

4. 4. Left upper arm

   Tense: Bend your left arm and tighten the muscle at the front of your upper arm. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let the arm drop and go heavy. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

5. 5. Forehead

   Tense: Raise your eyebrows as high as they go, wrinkling your forehead. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your brow go smooth and wide. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

6. 6. Eyes and nose

   Tense: Squeeze your eyes shut and wrinkle your nose. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your eyelids rest, lightly closed. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

   Take out contact lenses first if squeezing your eyes is uncomfortable with them in.

7. 7. Jaw and mouth

   Tense: Press your teeth together and pull the corners of your mouth back. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your jaw hang loose, lips slightly apart. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

   Press lightly if your jaw clicks or aches.

8. 8. Neck and throat

   Tense: Pull your chin gently toward your chest, and at the same time hold it back, so your neck tightens. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your head rest, balanced and easy. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

   Go gently here, and skip it after a neck injury.

9. 9. Shoulders, chest and upper back

   Tense: Pull your shoulder blades back and together, as if squeezing a pencil between them. Hold for about five seconds.

   Let go: Let your shoulders drop and your chest soften. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

10. 10. Stomach

    Tense: Tighten your stomach muscles, as if bracing for a light poke. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let your belly go soft and rise with your breath. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

    Skip this one if you are pregnant or have had recent surgery on your abdomen.

11. 11. Right thigh

    Tense: Tighten the big muscle on top of your right thigh, pressing the knee straight. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let the leg sink and go heavy. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

12. 12. Right calf

    Tense: Pull the toes of your right foot up toward your face, so the calf stretches and tightens. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let your foot fall back and the calf go soft. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

13. 13. Right foot

    Tense: Curl the toes of your right foot down, gently. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let your toes uncurl and spread. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

    Feet cramp easily: curl lightly, and ease off at the first twinge.

14. 14. Left thigh

    Tense: Tighten the big muscle on top of your left thigh, pressing the knee straight. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let the leg sink and go heavy. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

15. 15. Left calf

    Tense: Pull the toes of your left foot up toward your face, so the calf stretches and tightens. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let your foot fall back and the calf go soft. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

16. 16. Left foot

    Tense: Curl the toes of your left foot down, gently. Hold for about five seconds.

    Let go: Let your toes uncurl and spread. Notice the difference between tight and loose.

    Feet cramp easily: curl lightly, and ease off at the first twinge.

To finish

• Now let your whole body rest.
• Scan slowly from your feet up to your face. If any spot is still tight, let it soften as you breathe out.
• Notice how heavy and warm your body feels.
• Notice how you feel now, compared with the start.
• When you are ready, wiggle your fingers and toes, stretch, and open your eyes.

At bedtime, end like this instead: Let your breathing slow down on its own. Stay as you are. There is nothing else to do. Let sleep come when it comes.

The 7-minute version: 12 muscle groups

The shorter session pairs left and right and adds the hips, so it covers the whole body in 12 groups, each tensed once.

1. Hands and forearms: Make tight fists with both hands.
2. Upper arms: Bend both arms and tighten the muscles at the front of your upper arms.
3. Forehead: Raise your eyebrows as high as they go, wrinkling your forehead.
4. Eyes and nose: Squeeze your eyes shut and wrinkle your nose.
5. Jaw and mouth: Press your teeth together and pull the corners of your mouth back.
6. Neck and throat: Pull your chin gently toward your chest, and at the same time hold it back, so your neck tightens.
7. Shoulders, chest and upper back: Pull your shoulder blades back and together, as if squeezing a pencil between them.
8. Stomach: Tighten your stomach muscles, as if bracing for a light poke.
9. Hips and buttocks: Squeeze your buttocks together.
10. Thighs: Tighten the big muscles on top of both thighs, pressing your knees straight.
11. Calves: Pull the toes of both feet up toward your face, so your calves tighten.
12. Feet: Curl the toes of both feet down, gently.

Muscle relaxation for sleep

• Do it in bed with the lights down, lying on your back, arms by your sides.
• Choose "Drift off" so the session ends quietly instead of asking you to open your eyes.
• Turn spoken cues on, and turn your screen brightness down, so you can keep your eyes closed.
• If you fall asleep before the end, that is a good result, not a failed session.
• Same time each night works better than once in a while: the body learns the cue.

If your body is calm but your mind is not, pair it with 4-7-8 breathing or check how much sleep you are actually getting with the sleep calculator.

Safety notes

• Tense to about half your strength. You are looking for a clear feeling of tightness, not effort or pain.
• Keep breathing while you tense. Holding your breath while you squeeze works against the relaxing.
• Skip any part of the body that is injured or painful, and just relax it instead.
• If a muscle starts to cramp, usually a foot or calf, let go at once and stretch it gently.
• If you are pregnant, skip the stomach group. If you have a heart condition or high blood pressure, check with your doctor before doing tense-and-release exercises.

Sources

• Jacobson E (1925). Progressive relaxation. The American Journal of Psychology 36(1):73–87.
• Jacobson E (1929; 2nd ed. 1938). Progressive Relaxation. University of Chicago Press.
• Bernstein DA, Borkovec TD (1973). Progressive Relaxation Training: A Manual for the Helping Professions. Research Press.
• Meyer B et al. (2016). Progressive muscle relaxation reduces migraine frequency and normalizes amplitudes of contingent negative variation (CNV). The Journal of Headache and Pain 17:37. (A program run from the Bernstein and Borkovec manual: 16 groups, then 7, then 4.)
• Toussaint L et al. (2021). Effectiveness of progressive muscle relaxation, deep breathing, and guided imagery in promoting psychological and physiological states of relaxation. Evidence-Based Complementary and Alternative Medicine.
• Donato KO et al. (2026). Progressive muscle relaxation technique improves sleep quality and mental health: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Journal of Psychosomatic Research 203:112563.
• Li K et al. (2026). The effects of progressive muscle relaxation on sleep quality in adults: a systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Frontiers in Public Health 14:1906525.