It’s a frequently asked question with an extremely varied set of answers! Perhaps we should ask ourselves, “IS there a best time to meditate?”. Better yet, “when is the best time for me to meditate?”
Research suggests meditation may help with several areas of well-being. It may help ease chronic pain and addictive tendencies, and many people find it brings more clarity and joy into their lives. A consistent meditation practice may support both mental and physical health. Buddhist monk Ajahn Amaro, said “If you have time to breathe you have time to meditate. You breathe when you walk. You breathe when you stand. You breathe when you lie down.” He is suggesting that meditation can be done at all times. Knowing this, it’s important to reflect upon when meditation can fit into our unique schedule. This way we don’t have to live up to the pressure of meditating at the “perfect time”…which there isn’t any.
That being said, each time of day comes with its assets. In this article, we look at the benefits of different windows of time for meditation. We hope this inspires you to pick a dedicated slot for the deepening of your meditation practice.
Important Factors For Choosing A Time To Meditate
Are you wondering when you should meditate? Here are several points to consider. It is important to brainstorm the advantages that certain hours of the day hold for your practice!
Personal schedule
Lay out your typical day on paper and take note of the gaps. Consistent meditation can sometimes depend on your schedule. You might want to meditate in the morning, but perhaps you have many things that occupy your time before work. If you want to keep the same time every day, choose a realistic time. This way you can avoid feelings of discouragement when you try to achieve an ideal time.
Energy levels
Part of being mindful is taking note of how you feel. If there are times during the day when you feel extremely tired, perhaps you want to avoid meditating then. Likewise, when you feel wired with too much energy, it might be just as difficult to sit. If you want your practice to line up with your energy levels, pay attention to how they rise and fall throughout the day.
Preference for morning or evening
Some people rise with the sun, others with the moon. If you feel “ready to go” in the morning, meditate. If you feel more motivated by the sunset, try evening meditation. You know better than anyone whether you are an “early bird” or a “night owl.” Try to practice at the time of day that suits your natural energetic rhythm.
Consistency
Consistency in meditation is a great motivator. While inspiration can get us going, it is not as persistent as consistency. If you want to practice daily, set aside dedicated meditation time the day before. Look over your schedule, find the opening, and commit to a certain time.
Privacy
You might have a perfect time, but is it your own time? Perhaps you want to meditate for 15 minutes at work, but the breakroom is crowded and chatty. If you want to meditate uninterrupted, pick a time that best suits this intention.
When Is The Best Time To Meditate?
Many people want to know, “is it better to meditate in the morning or at night?”. It’s a great question with no definitive answer. Below we will go over many times of the day to meditate. This way you can decide for yourself.
Morning Meditation
Mornings are a great time to set the tone for the day. One study tracked consistency and progress in meditation for those who had an app reminder. The results stated that those who anchored their practice to their “morning reminder” had higher odds of sticking with their meditation routine after the study. If you’re wondering when to meditate, try first thing in the morning!
- Supports mood: Research suggests that people who sleep and wake up earlier are less likely to experience depression, though more research is needed. Combined with the possible mood benefits of meditation, an early morning routine may lift your mood.
- Encourages mindful eating: First thing in the morning, you have not broken your night fast yet. Meditation may make it more likely that one will eat mindfully throughout the day. Mindful eating may help us curb eating impulses and enjoy our present-moment experience more fully. A morning practice can set the tone for a more attentive day.
- Peace and quiet: The world is quieter in the early hours of the morning. Maybe your roommates or family are still sleeping. Morning can be a good time for uninterrupted meditation. Start before the world needs you.
- Mental clarity: NIH-reported research suggests that sleep helps clear waste that builds up in the brain during the day. You may feel fresher on waking, which could make morning meditation easier.
Meditation At Work
It’s common in our busy Western society to lose ourselves in work. Bringing our meditation time to the workplace can help us recenter. Take five minutes during break time or twenty minutes during your lunch hour. Being grounded at work can provide numerous benefits, however long your practice may be.
- May build resilience: Research suggests that meditation can reduce symptoms of stress during challenges. Work can come with many hurdles and conflicts. You can learn to build your ability to emotionally recover from the inevitable trials of having a job.
- May strengthen professional relationships: Meditation may build our capacity for compassion. A Greater Good Science Center article describes a study in which people from meditation classes were more willing to help someone in pain, even when others ignored her, and suggests meditation may make people more compassionate, including in settings like competition or work.
- May improve efficiency: Efficiency benefits ourselves and everyone working with us. Researchers have reported that meditation may improve mental efficiency during tasks that require concentration and memory. In one study, non-meditators expended more brain power during a concentration task than their meditating counterparts. Meditation may help you conserve mental energy during activities requiring sustained attention.
Afternoon Slump Meditation
You know that low-energy time of day, often around two or three in the afternoon? It’s the afternoon slump that tempts us to reach for a cup of coffee when we want to nap. This is a natural lull that happens per our circadian rhythm (sleep cycle). The afternoon slump comes with low energy and difficulty concentrating. Instead of reaching for a stimulant, we could make this a dedicated meditation time.
- May reenergize: A study followed a group of runners and a group of meditators. Their goal was to track who had a greater increase in endorphins and energy after their practice. The article reports that meditators got more of a “pick-me-up” than those performing physical activity. Meditation may help ease the afternoon dip.
- May increase focus: This lull can negatively affect our concentration. Bring meditation to this “daily dull” to help bring your mind back online. Research suggests that meditation can help focus our attention.
- May help break bad habits: During an energetic dip in the day, it might be tempting to scroll on the phone, eat sugar, or drink caffeine for a mood spike. We know these don’t serve us in the long run, but habit energy can be strong and unconscious. Meditation can help us increase our mindfulness, helping us make better choices for our health and happiness.
Evening Meditation
The sun is setting, and your day is unwinding. The evening is a good time for reflection and relaxation. It can also be a creative time of day. If the upswing of the morning stresses you out, allow your practice to be one of evening decompression.
- May improve sleep: A randomized trial of pediatric healthcare professionals compared an eight-week yogic meditation class with a control group. The meditation group had better sleep-quality scores and a shorter time to fall asleep. Sleep is a known pillar of health. If your sleep is not optimal, an evening practice may be worth trying, and ongoing insomnia is worth raising with your doctor.
- May support creativity: The corpus callosum is the part of the brain that links the left and the right hemispheres. Researchers have proposed that communication between the two hemispheres plays a role in creativity. In one imaging study, long-term meditators had thicker corpus callosum regions than non-meditators, which may reflect greater connectivity between the hemispheres. If you are more active at night, you might be naturally creative. If not, give evening meditation a try!
- May ease pain: As the day winds down, aches and pains dulled by busyness might become more prominent. If you tend to tune into your pain in the evening, meditation may help. A review of recent studies reports that mindfulness meditation can reduce pain through several mechanisms, including changes in how we relate to it. Meditation complements, and does not replace, professional care for ongoing pain.
- Increased mindfulness: Evening is a great time to relax and reflect on our day. Meditation can help us recognize and process the emotions that we experienced throughout the day. This can help us be aware of ways we act and respond that may be helpful or unhelpful for the next day.
Case-by-case Meditation
Sometimes emotions are high. You may need a break no matter what time of day it is! Additional meditation can be incorporated into your day on a need basis. Meditation is here for you when you receive bad news or criticism, have a mood swing, or simply need a break.
- When feeling lonely: One study of physicians during the Covid-19 pandemic reported burnout and loneliness tied to an intense work schedule and isolation, and found that their feelings of loneliness decreased after four weeks of “heartfulness meditation”. In a separate laboratory study, even a brief loving-kindness meditation increased feelings of social connection and positivity toward others.
- When feeling reactive: It’s hard to know when to step away from a stressful situation. Our heightened moods can make everything feel so urgent! Being aware of this factor can encourage us to meditate when feeling intense. Research suggests meditation can help us regulate our emotions and may lower our stress response.
- When feeling angry: There are a lot of mixed messages about anger. Victoria’s Better Health Channel notes that the stress chemicals associated with ongoing, unmanaged anger can eventually affect many systems of the body, and that anger can be a useful emotion when it is expressed appropriately. So how can we deal with the burning feeling accompanying this complicated emotion? Meditation is one option. Anger can give us important information. Maybe your boundary has been crossed or you need to make a change. Understanding this beneficial information does not require tempting but harmful expressions of rage. A Psychology Today post reports that a new study found brief meditation can reduce anger. It may also help us avoid reacting in ways that hurt our relationships.
How To Find Time To Meditate
Choosing a time of day to meditate is important. So, HOW do you choose this time of day? We have provided several important considerations to help you decide when it’s time to explore your inner world.
- Make a schedule: Stress makes us feel like activities take longer than they actually do. Writing down your schedule can show you realistic blocks of time in which to meditate. Get it on paper!
- Pick a moment with minimal interruptions: You may have the time, but do you have the space? Make sure you find a time when you do not feel compelled to respond to the demands of the outside world.
- Commit to your meditation schedule: Consistency trumps inspiration. If you wait until you “feel like it”, you might be waiting a long time. Try to set aside a certain amount of time each day in advance.
- Include your people: Tell your friends and family about this commitment to meditation. Maybe they will join you, increasing your motivation. Also, telling someone else may hold you more accountable for your practice.