Progressive muscle relaxation is a long-established, structured approach to relaxation and improved well-being. It can effectively turn off your body’s stress response and reduce anxiety, pain, and insomnia. The technique is fairly easy to learn and can be done on your own as part of your regular wellness routine for optimal mental and physical health.
What Is Progressive Muscle Relaxation?
Progressive muscle relaxation is a specific relaxation technique that involves tensing and relaxing muscle groups in a sequence from feet to head (or head to feet) throughout your whole body. The goal is to relieve tension and activate your body’s relaxation response.1 It intentionally influences the inner workings of your physiology to assist both body and mind to relieve tension, stress, and problems.2
In the 1920s, Dr. Edmund Jacobson developed progressive muscle relaxation based on the premise that experiences that activate the body’s stress response (e.g. anxiety) and relaxation are opposite processes in the body and mind. It is impossible to experience both of these opposite processes simultaneously.3,4,5,6 Progressive relaxation was first published as an official approach to relaxation in 1938.
As you systematically tense and release muscle groups throughout your body, your nervous system “switches gears” from the stress to the relaxation response. As this happens, your breathing slows, heart rate and blood pressure drop, and production of stress hormones like cortisol and adrenaline decreases.1
Progressive Muscle Relaxation Guidelines
Progressive relaxation can be practiced in any position—lying down, seated, or standing. Take a moment to settle in before beginning, intentionally positioning your body in the opposite way as you would hold yourself when stressed. For example, try relaxing your shoulders, opening your hands, and spreading your fingers.4
Here are general guidelines for progressive muscle relaxation:1,5,7,8
- Consider following a guided script, especially when first learning
- Begin either at your head or feet, working your way down or up your body
- Take several slow, deep breaths before beginning
- Coordinate your actions with your breath, tensing muscles as you inhale and releasing when you exhale
- When you tense a muscle group, hold it for 15-20 seconds, noticing the sensation; you may hold your breath or continue to breathe, whichever is more comfortable
- When you release, do so quickly rather than gradually, again noticing the sensation
- Relax and breathe deeply for 20-30 seconds before tensing again, focusing on the sensation of tension leaving your body
- Repeat with the same muscle group two or three times before progressing to the next
- Take great care to honor your body; pain in any area is a signal to stop and proceed to the next muscle group
9 Steps of Progressive Muscle Relaxation
You can conceptualize nine steps of progressive muscle relaxation as different areas of the body to concentrate on or be mindful of. Actively concentrate on the sensations in your body and breathing. When your attention wanders, gently return to the sensations of tensing and relaxing. This will help you become attuned to the feelings of muscle tension and relaxation when you’re going about your daily life.1,2,4,8
Here are nine steps of progressive muscle relaxation:
- Forehead: Furrow your brow as if you were frowning or concentrating deeply; release
- Face: In sequence, squeeze your eyes shut and purse your lips; press your tongue against the roof of your mouth; release
- Jaw & Cheeks: Clench your jaw, taking care not to cause pain in your teeth; smile broadly; release
- Neck & Shoulders: Press your head back gently; after holding and releasing that position, lower your chin toward your chest; next, shrug your shoulders up to your ears; release
- Arms & Hands: Bend your arms at your elbows and flex your biceps; extend your arms and bend your hands back so that your fingers point straight up; make tight fists; release
- Back: Arch your back away from the floor or back of your chair; release
- Buttocks: Squeeze the muscles of your cheeks together; release
- Legs: Clench your thigh muscles; for your calves and shins, flex and point your toes, holding each one separately before moving to the next; release
- Feet: Curl your toes; release
The Benefits of Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Progressive muscle relaxation has numerous mental and physical health benefits. It relieves tension, stress, anxiety, and pain throughout your entire body while simultaneously calming your mind and directing your attention away from problems and onto the feeling of relaxing and letting go.2
As you engage in this targeted body scan, actively flexing and releasing muscles, you allow tension and discomfort to escape while simultaneously switching off your body’s stress response and awakening the relaxation response.1,5,6
The relaxation response does the following:
- Counters the stress response by slowing and deepening your breathing
- Allows your cardiovascular system to slow down
- Restores balance to your circulation to facilitate digestion and pain relief
- Reduces the production of stress hormones
- Lowers inflammation
- Allows the body to rest and return to its base state of operation9
Accordingly, this exercise brings both immediate relief and long-term reward. The specific benefits of progressive muscle relaxation include:1,3,5,6,7,8
- Anxiety relief
- Stress relief
- Pain relief
- Better sleep
- Blood pressure control
- Headache relief (both tension headaches and migraines)
- Improved digestion
- Blood sugar regulation
- Improved concentration
- Better mood
- Reduced anger and frustration
- Temporomandibular joint disorder (TMJ) relief
- Increased energy
- Improved confidence in your ability to handle problems
What Does Science Say About Progressive Muscle Relaxation?
Numerous studies have been conducted to examine the benefits and effectiveness of progressive muscle relaxation. Results are consistently positive. While progressive muscle relaxation is considered safe and effective for most people, some experts caution against its use for people with poorly controlled cardiovascular disease as tensing the abdominal muscles can be dangerous for them.4
These five studies found evidence of the effectiveness of progressive relaxation:
- 2001 study review published in Western Journal of Medicine: Researchers analyzed existing research into formal relaxation techniques, including progressive muscle relaxation. They found evidence revealing that when practiced daily, it leads to both mental and physical relaxation and is effective in relieving anxiety and stress.4
- 2002 controlled trial involving 61 participants: 46 participants experienced abbreviated progressive muscle relaxation training (receiving only two sessions one week apart). 15 of them engaged in sessions of sitting quietly. They found that even participants who used progressive relaxation reported decreased anxiety, stress, blood pressure, and salivary cortisol levels.10
- 2005 study involving 81 adolescent males experiencing angry emotions and behaviors: 40 teenagers engaged in 30-minute progressive muscle relaxation twice weekly for eight weeks while 41 did not. Those who practiced progressive relaxation experienced a reduction in cortisol levels measured by saliva tests. Both groups took the State-Trait Anger Expression Inventory before and after the trial; those in the muscle relaxation group improved their scores in the categories of vitality, social activities, emotional problems interfering in daily activities, and overall mental health.11
- 2013 study appearing in the Indian Journal of Physiotherapy and Occupational Therapy: 105 teachers with high blood pressure received guided training in progressive muscle relaxation; then they engaged in the exercise for 30 minutes. They had an immediate, positive response and experienced a reduction in blood pressure and anxiety. Researchers concluded that progressive muscle relaxation could be an effective complementary approach to treat high blood pressure.12
- 2018 random controlled trial in the International Journal of Health Sciences and Research: 218 nursing students who were experiencing mild, moderate, severe, or extremely severe emotional distress were trained in progressive muscle relaxation; they practiced it for five weeks (initially every day for ten days and then at least three times per week for the duration of the study). Progressive muscle relaxation was found to successfully decrease stress, anxiety, and depression.13
8 Beginner Tips for Practicing Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Progressive muscle relaxation is easy to learn and practice on your own.4 That said, it is a skill that requires patience and practice to use efficiently. It can take a few weeks to fully get comfortable with the process.5
Here are eight beginner tips for progressive relaxation:1,5,6,7,8
- Adopt an attitude of patience and self-acceptance: Knowing that progressive muscle relaxation is a skill that improves with time allows you to adjust naturally rather than having it become a new source of stress
- Use a guided recording to help you learn the process: Find free videos or audio tracks on YouTube, online, or in apps such as Insight Timer
- Consider using visualization to enhance your experience: As you focus on the sensation of tension release, you might imagine stress leaving your body as a particular color or shape
- Breathe slowly and deeply throughout the process: This will deepen both the tension and feeling of release
- Keep your muscles relaxed a bit longer than you keep them tense: Doing so will help you fully experience the sensation of letting go
- Practice frequently: Using progressive muscle relaxation daily is helpful, but if that doesn’t work for you, practice at least several times per week
- Establish a regular time and place: Practicing in this way helps to help make it a habit
- Combine your practice with other positive self-care: These self-care activities could include exercising, proper nutrition, stress management techniques, and working with a therapist.
Final Thoughts on Progressive Muscle Relaxation
Progressive muscle relaxation is a safe and effective approach to reduce stress, anxiety, negative emotions like anger, physical pain and discomfort, and high blood pressure. If you’re dealing with these human experiences and seeking ways to enhance your progression, consider progressive muscle relaxation. When used as one component of your approach to well-being, it’s all the more powerful and effective.
