March 22nd, 2019

When Is the Best Time to Meditate, and for How Long?

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Is there a magic time and duration for meditation?

Meditation beginners might be overwhelmed wondering how to do it “right.” Is it better to meditate in the morning or evening? For how long? Is it better to meditate for five minutes daily or 30 minutes weekly? We asked Fabulous users for their opinions.

1. “I’ve read that at least 12 minutes is a good enough time to meditate, but I started small (5 minutes) and am still doing guided meditations than solely focus on the breath. I try to do it in the morning, just after waking up, or just before sleeping. But if that’s not possible, I try my best to make up for missing it and getting at least one short session in during the day.”

2. “I meditate in the morning and in the evening for about 6 minutes each. You don’t have to try hard to be focused. It helps you to refresh your mind in the morning and tire you at night.”

3. “It’s a personal choice. I find early in the morning before anyone else is awake to be the best time for me. Any time you can be alone and uninterrupted is good meditation time. The duration of your meditation session is less important than consistency. It is better to meditate for 5 minutes daily than to meditate an hour once a week. I would start with 5 minutes, then increase to 10. I find two sessions of 10 minutes daily is good for me!”

4. “I make it part of my morning routine before I even get dressed. Just ten minutes a day makes a difference. Once I get going for the day I tend to forget to make time for it.”

5. “The best time is before eating and before the changing of the day. The ideal time for meditation is 15 minutes but you can start at 1 minute and gradually increase. At the end of the day, it is all about achieving peace.”

6. “Most days I meditate first thing in the morning after I wake up.  If I am short on time, I go for 10 minutes, or I just meditate after my yoga. If I have more time, I meditate for as long as it feels good, sometimes 30 or 40 minutes. I took me a very long time to work up to that amount, though.”

7. “I do it twice a day: early morning before going to work and in the evening once I get home. In any case, I seem to concentrate better in the morning when my mind is fresh. As for time: I started from 5 minutes, then moved to 10 and then 15. Moving to a new level may be tiring. For now, 10 minutes seems the easiest.”

8. “The best time to meditate is when you will be able to do it consistently. I used to try and meditate before bed but would always make excuses (“I’m too tired” or “I’ll try tomorrow”). But when I switched to first thing in the morning, I found it much easier to do every day. Experiment with different times of day and figure out the time that is easiest to do consistently.”

9. “Sometimes in the morning and the target length would be 15- 20 minutes. But sometimes I would rather meditate for 8-10 minutes instead of not doing it at all. Sometimes I also meditate in the evening after work or even during work if there is a private quiet place I can go.”

10. “The best time and duration for your meditation entirely depends on you. It’s good to start off with short amounts of time, like 15 minutes a day and work your way up the more comfortable you get with until you do it for extended amounts of time because you want to. 🧘🏻‍♂️”