10 Minute Guided Meditation Tracks To Conquer Stress

A 10 minute guided meditation, when done consistently, can significantly reduce stress and improve your quality of life.

That’s why we selected the best meditation tracks available online and some meditation music to get you started on your journey towards more mindful and balanced living. There was never a point in time where stress was such a tolerated part of our lives as it is right now.

We are constantly bombarded with information that carries our focus away and makes our minds wander between past mistakes and future worries. Everyday distractions, mortgage payments, work deadlines, and even the country’s political scene worry us and drain our energy.

A recent study by the American Psychology Association shows that 57% of Americans say the current political climate is a very or somewhat significant source of stress.

Now, if you’ve been following our blog for some time, you know our greatest recipe for dealing with stress is meditation. Studies show that not only does meditation help people focus and stay present, over a three-month period it can reduce the density of brain tissue associated with anxiety and stress.

One great way to start a meditation practice is by using a guided meditation.

What Is Guided Meditation?

Guided meditation is a process through which a person meditates while listening to guidance provided by a trainer, a meditation track, or even a video.

There are also guided meditations that help practitioners enter the meditative state by visualizing certain things to calm and quiet their minds.

Although meditation as a practice has been around for over five thousand years, guided meditations have gained popularity in the 1960s and 1970s. Since then, guided meditations have been a common resource for people who want to become more mindful, more present, and less stressed.

Here are six benefits of using a guided meditation:

1. It Takes Away The Stress Of “Figuring It All Out”

While meditating is a process to help you reduce stress, starting a practice can cause some stress on its own.

If you think you have to sign up for a class, drive to a studio, spend lots of money, then put away one hour a day — every day — hiding from your kids and spouse and other distractions… that process alone can be a cause for unnecessary stress.

Guided meditations are amazing because all you have to do is push “play” or follow the written instructions. The track is there to guide you through every step of the way, helping you relax and visualize a positive and vibrant reality.

2. It Helps You Focus On The Task At Hand

If you are one of those people who becomes restless when sitting down for a long period of time, or whose thoughts tend to wander right back to problems and worries, guided meditation is an effective way to — from start to finish — stay tuned to what the instructions are saying and getting through the practice, one day at a time.

Think about it as training wheels:

You learn how to sit still and observe your thoughts, relax and visualize what the instructor tells you. If you are consistent, eventually you won’t need the track anymore to attain the same benefits.

3. It Will Immediately Make You Feel Good

Meditating with a track is a thoroughly enjoyable experience. There are thousands of tracks available online for free and the vast majority is recorded by instructors with a soft, pleasant voice, which makes the whole experience energizing.

4. The Options For Guided Meditations Are Endless

Technology has made meditation as easy as the push of one button. You can open another window of your browser right now, push play on a Youtube track and you can start your practice.

The benefits are the same, but they can include specific goals to achieve, like being more grateful or dealing with anxiety.

5. It Doesn’t Have To Be A Lengthy Practice

An important misconception to understand when thinking about starting a meditation practice is that in order to meditate, you need to sit still for hours.

Contrary to common belief — that meditation should be a lengthy process — practicing for only 10 minutes a day consistently can considerably improve your focus and help you slow down at stressful times.

In order to start your practice, make sure you set a time of the day (just ten minutes) and do your best to be consistent. You can meditate early in the morning, before starting your day or before bedtime, after a tiring day.

Create a trigger in your mind, like you do with brushing your teeth or showering. Associate meditation with other habits and that will help you stick to it and make sure you keep that 10-minute slot locked for this purpose.

We are here to help you get all the benefits you can from this life-changing practice, so we made the following list to help you choose where to start.

What Meditation Does For The Brain?

Meditation is a very powerful practice.

Here are just a few ways in which meditation can help both the body and mind:

1. Slows the aging process
2. Reduces activity in the “me” center of the brain
3. Lowers anxiety and depression
4. Improves attention, concentration, and focus
5. Better memory
6. Increased creativity
7. Increased self-control

How Do You Meditate For 10 Minutes?

Even a short 10-minute meditation has the potential to do a lot for both your body and mind.

So, how do you do these short meditation exercises?

Here are a few things you can do to help facilitate your 10-minute meditation:

1. Find a quiet space
2. Let others know you don’t want to be disturbed for the next 10 minutes
3. Find a comfortable position to sit or lie in
4. Take a few deep, cleansing breaths
5. Set a timer or follow a guided meditation track

Does Guided Meditation Work For Anxiety?

Meditation can help with many mental health concerns, including anxiety and depression.

Through consistent meditation, you can actually change the chemistry of your brain through a phenomenon called neuroplasticity.

Meditation has been proven to have significant effects on those dealing with anxiety and depression. Just five minutes a day can make a world of difference.

In particular, mindfulness meditation has been shown to be helpful for those suffering from anxiety disorders such as Generalized Anxiety Disorder, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder, and Obsessive-Compulsive Disorder.

How Do You Practice Mindfulness Meditation?

Mindfulness meditation is a form of meditation that encourages present moment awareness.

One of the best ways to practice mindfulness is to simply pay attention to the breath. Being aware of each breath as it enters and exits the body is mindfulness. It really is that simple.

If you’re new to mindfulness, why not try a guided meditation? It’s the best way to get started with the practice in a gentle, healthy way.

Top Twelve 10-Minute Guided Meditations

1. “Guided Meditation For Gratitude”

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Gratitude

Gratitude is a proven form of increasing happiness in your daily life, but we often focus too much on detailing what we are grateful for and not enough on the actual feeling of gratitude. This track will help you feel gratitude in a deeper level, instantly and appreciate those aspects of your life you may be taking for granted.

2. “Mindfulness Meditation”

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Mindfulness

Recorded in the soothing voice of Rick Clark, this is a powerful meditation to stay still and be mindful. It is all about observing your thoughts, controlling them, and letting them go. It is amazing what you can accomplish just by observing your thoughts free of judgment, then letting them pass by, leaving you still and unmarked by negativity or worry.

3. “Positive Breathing Awareness”

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Being Present

This is a great track if you are searching for less guidance and more space to breathe and sit still. Being more present is one of the great benefits of tracks that focus a lot on breathing and bringing thoughts back to the present.

4. “Awaken Your Perfect Health”

Time: 11 Minutes

Purpose: Improving your health

This track has a goal to bring mindfulness and awareness to your health, by understanding that stress is a manifestation of us not getting what we need. It is a calming, nurturing piece helps you slow down your breath while breathing into parts of your body you want to heal.

5. “Breath Sound Meditation”

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Being Mindfully Aware

Enjoy a relaxation exercise that will help you notice your body from within your body, while still remaining aware of your surroundings.

6. “10-Minute Breathing”

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Being present

Much like other meditations, this focuses on being present and mindfully aware, while also relaxing. This specific track doesn’t have a background sound or music, so you can mix it with one of the tracks in our list below.

7. “All The Time You Need”

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Being present

“I have all the time I need” — this powerful affirmation will help you become present and remind you that, whatever it is that is stressing you out, you will figure it out and you do have all the time you need.

8. “Breathing Meditation”

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Being present

This track is also a quiet one with no background music, and it focuses mostly on the rhythm of the breath and acknowledging the presence of thoughts and feelings, and gently breathing into that space.

9. “Brief Sitting Meditation”

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Being present

The goal of mindful sitting is to develop attention and a presence in the now, using the breath as the object of focus.

10. “Mindful Meditation with Sam Harris”

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Being present

Philosopher Sam Harris shares with us this wonderful mindful meditation, again focused on the breath and sensations of being present.

11. “Go to sleep!”

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Relaxation for better sleep

This is a great track if you are having trouble falling asleep at night. Combined with a binaural piece, it will help you quickly relax and enter a meditative state.

12. “Wake Up!”

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Starting the day

This track will help you kick-start your day with amazing energy. This track was designed to help you envision your day and fulfill your potential, and it has a brainwave entrainment track that will help you awaken your brain and be alert.

Top Four 10-Minute Meditation Music

Now, you may have noticed that many of the above meditation tracks don’t have background music and this is often done on purpose so you can choose a track that suits your needs and mindset.

Meditating to music is not only pleasant but it can actually help your brainwave frequency become more conducive of the meditative state.

What that means is that when you put on a soothing, relaxing piece of music, it can help your brain get to the state it needs to be so that the meditation and visualization words are most effective.

We made a list of the four best music tracks we could find. You can mix them with some of the meditations above by playing them together, or you can use them on their own after you have learned how to meditate without guidance.

Let’s get to it!

1. “Asian Meditation Music”

Time: 8 hours (but you only need 10 minutes!)

Purpose: Relaxation

This track is not only good for a meditation session but also to help you better sleep. If you are currently suffering from insomnia or having trouble clear your mind and relax just before bed, this can be a great way to start.

2. “Music for Babies”

Time: 9 min

Purpose: Relaxation

I know what you’re thinking, you are not a baby. But if this track can make a baby relax and sleep, it can definitely help you clear your mind and feel calmer and quieter too. This beautifully composed track is great to mix with a guided meditation or to listen to on its own, and it includes binaural beats that will help you sink into a completely relaxed state of mind.

3. “Beautiful Morning”

Time: 9 min

Purpose: Positive Thinking

This is a great track to help you have a smooth transition on your wake up. We often jump off of bed abruptly and that can increase levels of stress in our brain. Meditating to a relaxing piece of music in the morning can help you wake up slowly, without stressing out your brain.

4. “Chakra Meditation Balancing and Healing”

Time: 9 hours (but you don’t need that much)

Purpose: Balancing Chakras 

This relaxing yet upbeat track promises to help you balance and heal your chakras, and you can use it with any length of meditation since the authors made 9 hours of content available on Youtube.

Best Meditation And Music Pairings

We want to make the decision to start meditating really easy on you, so if you don’t want to go through all those tracks and combine them, you can just take our advice on what tracks go well together, pick one combination and play the tracks simultaneously.

One thing to keep in mind is that some of these tracks are downloadable, others are on Youtube, so you will have to adjust the volume so that the music track is slightly softer than the voice of the instructor.

Check out our three picks for tracks that go really well together:

1. Ten Minute Breathing + Chakra Meditation Balancing Music

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Being present while balancing your chakras

This combination will help you focus on your breath but stay alert and aware. The soothing voice of the instructor combined with the upbeat rhythm of the music will help you be present and feel cleansed.

2. Mindful Meditation with Sam Harris + Music for Babies

Time: 9 Minutes

Purpose: Being present and relaxed

Sam Harris’ voice is complemented by this relaxing binaural track.

3. Breath Sound Meditation + Beautiful Morning Music

Time: 10 Minutes

Purpose: Being mindfully aware

This combination of morning sounds by the beach with a relaxing, soothing voice will help you start your day with great energy and positivity.

And there you have it! A complete list to start your 10-minute practice today, using Guided Meditation and Meditation Music.