At first this relaxation technique may take 10
minutes and needs to be practiced in the quiet of home. With practice this
technique can be used to relax more quickly before a competition or
similar stressful event. Lie on the floor, and progressively tense and
relax certain muscle groups.
Start with the arms, make a fist and tighten all the arm muscles (try
and focus on relaxing all other muscles whist doing this) keep tensed for
approximately 5-7 seconds then relax for 30 seconds.
Do the same for the neck, face shoulders and upper
back, then the stomach and lower back, then the hips and legs.
Finish off by tensing all muscles then relaxing fully.
As you become good at this you may only need a few minutes to fully
relax your muscles.
This technique can be incorporated with the mental imagery story as
outlined above.
