Guided meditation was one of the best ways for me to get started.
In the beginning, I found that guided meditations were appealing. They literally walked me through the meditation. I didn’t have to “do” anything but just sit there and let it happen. This seemed simple enough for a guy like me who can complicate things.
After scouring countless meditations, I’ve collected the best guided meditations on YouTube. Each one illustrates fun mindfulness exercises and approaches. Whether for sleep, anxiety, chakra-clearing, or binaural beats, these are worth listening to.
Blissful Deep Relaxation Guided Meditation
I like this guided meditation because it has sounds of ocean waves in the background. This is nice because it puts me into a calm state by itself. Also, there is a wonderful integration of breathing exercises that sooth and relax. You may find yourself feeling weightless at some point, which is quite nice.
This YouTube video is effective for beginners and experienced meditators alike.
Guided Sleep Meditation: Delta Waves, Deep Sleep, Inner Peace
Even though there aren’t any instructions with this guided meditation, the music and imagery work well. This is the best YouTube videos I can think of to start with. Want deep, restful sleep? Read this article on deep sleep meditation.
Breathing Guided Imagery Meditation
Many meditations tell us to breathe deeply, but what does that mean?
I like the way this begins by simply demonstrating what deep breathing means. The meditation guides you to put one hand on your stomach and the other on your chest. This shows the correct method of diaphragmatic breathing, which increases the amount of oxygen that goes into your lungs.
Beyond that, this meditation does a nice job of guiding you through imagery to stillness. You are then given about 10 minutes without a guiding voice to allow you to float in silence. “The Seat” meditation is an effective way to connect with your breath and find a place of stillness inside.
10-Minute Meditation for Anxiety
This guided meditation is designed to alleviate anxiety. This is for those of you who have emotional vampires in your life and want to relieve stress. I like its brevity (about 10 minutes) and general helpfulness for those new to meditation.
When just starting, many people prefer having a voice to guide them for the duration of a meditation. Soft speech combined with the flute and strings in the background of this video are soothing.
The voice directs you in following your breath and also involves some guided imagery with nature.
Extremely Powerful Third Eye Opening Binaural Beat Meditation
For those who use meditation to get in touch with intuitive guidance in life, this may be for you. It uses a unique sound/technology called binaural beats. Binaural beats are a series of tones and sounds that physically affect our brain wave states.
This meditation does require headphones (preferably ear-covering ones). The tones induce theta waves, which represent deep relaxation. It also can be considered the space between sleep and being awake.
This video combines the binaural tones with contemplative questions (written on the screen). This integration helps you listen to your own intuition on what to do in life. Big questions are asked, some without an answer: “Who are you?”
The binaural tones combined with the contemplation can lead to profound insights. Especially if you’re at a crossroads with a job, relationships, or direction at work.
I recommend this for those who tend to be contemplative or just want to experiment with binaural meditation. Keep a journal handy to record any major insights that may come.
How to Meditate for Beginners
This list wouldn’t be complete without a video produced by yours truly (Chris Willitts, founder of Mindful Muscle). It isn’t a guided meditation per se. It is more of an instructional video about how to start a meditation practice.
If you’re just getting started this should get you going in the right direction. Want more tips on how to get started? Here’s the article that goes with the YouTube video above: How to Meditate: 5-Minute Mastery.
Summary
Meditation can dissolve stress and help us find inner peace. Some say it is the most effective tool we have to harmonize our emotional self, and it is even more powerful than “smart drugs” and nootropics. It’s really difficult to learn how to meditate without a teacher, a guided meditation presents an attractive method.
Another option for learning to meditate on your own without an instructor is by using the muse headband. This device essentially reads your brain waves and helps keep you on track when you get distracted. Check out this muse headband review to learn more.
*UCLA has free guided meditations worth checking out.
