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Relaxing Exercises for Sleep That Calm Your Body in 5 to 15 Minutes

Andy Nadal

20 Jan 2026 — 7 min read

Staring at the ceiling again, replaying the day, while your shoulders feel like they’re glued to your ears? That combo of a busy mind and a tight body can make bedtime feel like a test you didn’t study for.

Relaxing exercises for sleep are not a workout. They’re gentle movements, slow breathing, and muscle release that send your nervous system a simple signal: you’re safe, you can power down. Most people can do them in 5 to 15 minutes, right in bed, with no gear.

The key is consistency. You can mix and match based on what’s loudest tonight: racing thoughts, heavy legs, a stiff neck, or that wired-but-tired feeling. At the end, you’ll get a simple 10-minute routine you can repeat nightly.

Set up your body and room so the exercises actually work

These exercises work best when the inputs are quiet. Your brain reads the room first, then it decides whether sleep is allowed.

Start with a quick safety check. Stop and skip the routine if you feel sharp pain, dizziness, numbness, chest pain, or shortness of breath. Gentle stretching should feel mild and controlled, not risky.

Then make a few environment tweaks that lower “alert mode”:

Dim the lights (warm light if you have it).
Keep the room cool and the bedding comfortable.
Make it quiet (or use steady white noise).
Put your phone out of reach, face down, or in another room.

Here’s a 60-second wind-down checklist before you start:

Bathroom trip, then no more bright lights.
One sip of water if you need it (not a full glass).
Loosen tight clothes, remove socks if they trap heat.
Set an alarm if you use one, then stop “checking time.”
Decide: “I’m doing 10 minutes, then I’m done.”

The 60-second reset: posture, jaw, and shoulders

Lie on your back with a pillow under your head, or sit on the bed with your back supported.

Let your tongue rest on the roof of your mouth, right behind the front teeth.
Unclench your teeth, lips gently closed, jaw loose.
Drop your shoulders and let your arms get heavy.
Soften your belly (don’t “hold” your core).
Take one slow breath in through your nose, then let the exhale out quietly.

Common mistakes and quick fixes:

Mistake: holding your breath. Fix: make the exhale audible, like a soft fog on glasses.
Mistake: forcing shoulders down. Fix: think “wide” shoulders, not “down.” Let gravity do it.
Mistake: trying too hard. Fix: aim for 70 percent effort, not 100.

When to do these exercises, and how long is enough

You have two good timing options:

In bed: do the routine after you lie down, then stop and rest.
30 minutes before sleep: do it outside the bed if you tend to associate the bed with stress.

Minimum effective dose is 5 minutes. The sweet spot for most people is 10 to 12 minutes, long enough to shift breathing and muscle tone, short enough to stick with.

If you wake in the middle of the night, keep it simple and keep lights off. Pick one breathing drill and one release move. Do them for 3 to 6 minutes, then stop and let sleep return on its own.

Breathing drills that calm your nervous system in minutes

Slow breathing is a direct input to your nervous system. When you lengthen the exhale and lower your breathing rate, your body often shifts toward rest mode: heart rate trends down, muscle tone softens, and the mind has fewer sharp edges.

A few form cues make a big difference:

Breathe through your nose if possible.
Keep lips relaxed and tongue resting gently.
Aim for a quiet breath, with still shoulders.
Let the breath move low, so the belly rises slightly.

If long holds make you feel anxious or trapped, skip holds. You can get most of the benefit by lengthening the exhale instead.

If you like guided audio because counting keeps your mind busy in a good way, an optional tool is Pausa, which offers structured breathing sessions you can run at bedtime without staring at a screen.

Box breathing made bedtime-friendly (no strain)

Classic box breathing uses equal counts, which can feel too “tight” at night. Use a softer version:

Inhale: 4
Hold: 2
Exhale: 6
Hold: 2
Repeat: 4 rounds

Keep the holds easy. If you feel pressure in your chest or throat, reduce the hold to 1 second or remove it.

Even easier option (no holds):

Inhale: 4
Exhale: 6
Repeat for 2 to 4 minutes

Who should avoid holds: if breath holds trigger panic symptoms, dizziness, or a sense of air hunger, don’t force it. Use the no-hold version and focus on a longer exhale.

How you know it’s right: the exhale is smooth, the shoulders don’t rise, and your face looks neutral, not braced.

The long-exhale breath for racing thoughts

Racing thoughts hate empty space. Give your mind a simple job: track a predictable pattern.

Try this for 2 to 5 minutes:

Inhale through the nose: 3 to 4 seconds
Exhale through the nose (or soft mouth exhale): 6 to 8 seconds

On each exhale, relax one “high-alert” zone:

Unclench the jaw.
Let the hands open.
Drop the tongue from the hard palate a bit.

Use a short focus line you repeat quietly: “Out is longer than in.”

If you lose count, that’s fine. Restart at the next inhale. The restart is part of the exercise, not a failure.

Gentle stretches and muscle releases to melt tension for sleep

Think of stretching at night like updating a setting, not forcing a change. Move slow, stay pain-free, and never bounce. A useful rule: stretch discomfort feels like mild pulling or warmth; pain feels sharp, stabbing, or electric.

Use nasal breathing if you can, and time movement with the exhale. Exhale is your “release signal.” Inhale is your “hold steady” phase.

Pick 2 to 3 moves based on where you hold stress (hips, low back, neck, or jaw). Do less than you think you need, then stop. Going too hard can wake you up.

Bed-friendly stretches for hips and low back

1) Knees-to-chest (single leg, then both)
Good for low back stiffness and that “compressed” feeling after sitting all day.

Lie on your back, knees bent, feet on the bed.
Bring one knee toward your chest. Hold behind the thigh or over the shin.
Hold 20 to 40 seconds, breathing slow.
Switch sides, then bring both knees in for 15 to 30 seconds.

Modification: if your hip feels pinchy, keep the other foot on the bed instead of pulling both knees in.

Low back pain note: keep the range small. Stop if pain shoots down the leg, or if you feel numbness or tingling.

2) Figure-4 stretch (hip and glute release)
This targets the deep hip muscles that often stay tight at night.

Lie on your back, knees bent.
Cross your right ankle over your left thigh, making a “4.”
Keep the right foot flexed (to protect the knee).
Either stay there, or thread hands behind the left thigh and gently pull in.
Hold 20 to 45 seconds, then switch.

Modification: use a towel behind the thigh to avoid straining your hands or neck.

Neck and upper-back release without cranking on your neck

A lot of bedtime neck tension is just daytime desk posture showing up later. The goal here is to reduce tone, not yank joints around.

Shoulder rolls (slow, controlled)

Sit or lie down.
Roll shoulders up, back, and down in a slow circle.
Do 5 rolls, then reverse for 5.

Keep your breath moving. If you catch yourself bracing, make the circles smaller.

Gentle side neck stretch (no pulling)

Sit tall or lie on your back.
Let your right ear drift toward your right shoulder.
Rest your right hand on the left side of your head, but don’t pull.
Hold 15 to 25 seconds, switch sides.

Add-on chest opener (optional): lie on your back, place hands behind your head, elbows wide. Breathe into the front of the chest for 3 to 5 breaths. Stop if it creates tingling down the arm.

Progressive muscle relaxation you can do under the blankets

This is simple and technical in a good way: you create tension on purpose, then release it. The contrast helps your brain notice what “off” feels like.

Rule of thumb: tense 3 seconds, then relax 8 seconds. Keep breathing steady. Skip any area that cramps.

Move head-to-toe:

Feet
Calves
Thighs
Glutes
Hands
Arms
Face (squint gently, then soften)

When you relax, look for a heavy, warm, loose feeling. If you don’t feel much at first, that’s normal. The signal gets clearer with repetition.

A simple 10-minute bedtime routine you can repeat every night

You don’t need a long routine. You need one that runs like a small script, even when you’re tired. This plan keeps decision-making low, which matters at night.

The baseline 10-minute plan

1 minute: room and body setup (dim lights, phone away, jaw unclenched).
3 to 4 minutes: breathing (long-exhale or bedtime-friendly box breathing).
4 to 5 minutes: choose one: two stretches, or progressive muscle relaxation.
1 minute: do nothing on purpose, just rest and let the breath stay quiet.

If you want more ideas that connect stress, breathing, and recovery habits, Wellness Insights on Andy Nadal’s Blog is a good place to browse next.

Troubleshooting that keeps you on track:

If you get sleepy mid-routine, stop early. Sleep is the goal, not “finishing.”
If you get restless, reduce intensity. Shorter holds, smaller stretches, softer effort.
If you feel more alert, switch to the no-hold breathing pattern and skip stretches that feel activating.

Consistency beats intensity. A routine you repeat at 70 percent is better than a perfect routine you do once.

Three quick versions: tight body, busy mind, and middle-of-the-night wake-up

Tight body (10 minutes total)

2:00 figure-4 stretch (1:00 each side)
2:00 knees-to-chest (single leg, then both)
6:00 long-exhale breathing (4 seconds in, 7 seconds out)

Busy mind (10 minutes total)

5:00 long-exhale breathing (3 to 4 seconds in, 6 to 8 seconds out)
4:00 progressive muscle relaxation (feet to face, quick pass)
1:00 quiet rest, no counting

Waking at 3 a.m. (5 minutes total)

2:00 long-exhale breathing (no holds)
2:00 shoulder drop plus jaw release (reset posture, soften belly)
1:00 stop, rest, and let sleep return

Conclusion

Sleep responds best to clear signals: a calmer room, a slower breath, and less muscle tension. Set the space, run one breathing drill, release one tight area, then repeat it nightly until your body learns the pattern.

Try the 10-minute routine for 7 nights and track one simple result: time to fall asleep, number of wake-ups, or how rested you feel in the morning. Small changes add up when the input is consistent.

If insomnia lasts for weeks, or you have loud snoring or breathing pauses, talk to a clinician. Better sleep is a health issue, not a willpower issue. Keep the routine gentle, keep it repeatable, and let sleep meet you halfway.