Progressive muscle relaxation
You contract a muscle group firmly for about five seconds, then release for 20 to 30 seconds and notice the difference. Twelve groups, twenty minutes, or a compressed four-group version for night use. See the full instructions.
- Advantage: clear, structured, easy to learn, and the effect is obvious.
- Evidence: moderate and consistent for insomnia, and widely included in CBT-I.
- Limitation: requires deliberate contraction, which is uncomfortable or impossible with injury, pain, or certain conditions.
Feldenkrais
You perform a small movement several different ways, each time with slightly less effort, and notice what changes. Nothing is contracted, nothing is stretched. See the principle and the bedtime routine.
- Advantage: no contraction required; works with pain and limited mobility; addresses the habit of holding rather than an episode of tension.
- Evidence: limited for sleep, better for pain and function.
- Limitation: subtler, and easy to turn into a task if you are goal-oriented.
Which to choose
- Choose PMR if you like structure, have no injuries that make contraction uncomfortable, and want something with a clear protocol and visible effect.
- Choose Feldenkrais if contraction is painful or impossible, if your tension is chronic and low-grade rather than episodic, or if you want something you can do in bed without effort.
- Choose both in sequence: PMR to make the contrast obvious, then Feldenkrais to explore how little effort is actually needed to stay in a position.
Why the direction matters
PMR works by contrast, which is fast but temporary — the tension you recruit to demonstrate relaxation is itself an activation. Feldenkrais works by subtraction, which is slower and subtler but changes the resting level rather than producing a state. For a bedtime context, subtraction is usually more appropriate, because you are trying to arrive at a lower level rather than to produce a peak experience.