5 Brief Somatic Exercises for Regulation

Stress and overwhelming emotions can take a toll on your mental and physical health. When you're having a bad day at work, someone else wrecks your mood, or you just can't seem to get started in the morning, these simple somatic exercises can help with getting you out of your head and return to the present moment. These small physical shifts in energy will focus on tuning into your body’s sensations to release tension and regulate the body organically.

These brief somatic exercises you can do anywhere to open communication between your mind and your nervous system. Each exercise takes just a few minutes and requires no special equipment. By practicing any of these regularly, you can build resilience against stress and improve emotion regulation. Pick one or two that you enjoy or try them all!

1. Grounding Through Foot Sensations

Start by sitting or standing comfortably. Close your eyes or lower your gaze toward the floor. Focus your attention on the soles of your feet touching the ground. Notice the pressure and texture where your feet connect to the floor. Feel the connection between your feet and the surface supporting you. Notice your feet in your socks and in your shoes, if you are wearing shoes. If you have taken your shoes off, bring awareness to your feet without the confinement of your shoes, the ability to wiggle the toes or apply pressure in different points.

This grounding exercise helps anchor your awareness in the body and away from worries that produce unhelpful thoughts. Spend 1 to 2 minutes simply noticing these sensations.

2. Gentle Neck Rolls

Slowly drop your chin toward your chest. Roll your head slowly and gently to one side, then pause in this position and allow your eyes to notice what you see. Move the head down to the middle and roll to the other shoulder. Again, pause here and let your eyes move slowly around orienting to notice what is on this side of your body. Repeat 3 to 5 times in each direction while allowing your breathing to lengthen and soften.

Neck rolls relieve tension that often builds up from stress and improve circulation. It can help to reduce "office chair fatigue" or phone neck that can increase neck pain and contribute to headaches. Move slowly and stop if you feel any discomfort.

3. Body Scan Awareness

Sit comfortably or if you have the ability to lay down, I would encourage you to do so. Close your eyes and start with your attention at your feet. Slowly move your focus upward like filling up a glass of water. Move up past your ankles into your calves and up to your knees. As you do this, notice any sensations, tightness, soreness or places that feel loose, relaxed and pleasant. Continue moving up the body through the thighs and into the hips. Add the hands and arms as you move up your torso from your gut and your stomach into your lungs and chest. Reconnect at the shoulders and neck allowing the awareness of your body to expand all the way through your skin. End with bringing full focus to your head up to the scalp. Take a few moments here noticing how it feels to be fully in your body or to notice any areas that you were unable to connect with.

This mindful body scan increases your awareness of physical and emotional states. Spend 5 to 7 minutes scanning your body without judgment. Be aware this takes practice, but I encourage you to do this first thing in the morning before getting out of bed and again at the end of the day noticing any differences that occurred throughout the day for you.

4. Arm raises and lowers

Stand or sit up straight in your chair with your arms hanging loosely at your sides. AS you take an easy breath in, allow your arms to raise out to the side and up to touch above your head. Lower your arms back down on a gentle exhale. Repeat 5 times. If it feels useful to add a gentle stretch of the arms while raised, I invite you to add this as it signals oxygen to the blood stream and encourages blood flow to the extremities, waking up the nervous system. This can be particularly useful around the 3pm slump.

This simple movement releases shoulder tension and neck strain. It signals your nervous system to reset to parasympathetic rest instead of fight or flight.

5. Tactile Grounding with a Small Object

Hold a small object like a smooth stone or stress ball. Focus on its texture, temperature, and weight. Move it slowly between your fingers or from one hand to the other. Notice how the object feels and also how your skin feels as you touch the object. Enjoy the sensation in your hand as the object moves to different parts of the hand, waking up the nerve endings in the skin.

This tactile exercise brings your attention to the present and can reduce feelings of overwhelm. This is also a helpful exercise if you enjoy tactile sensation like smooth stones, soft fabrics or flowing water.

These brief somatic exercises offer practical ways to regulate emotions anytime you feel anxious or unsettled AND encourage present moment awareness to allow for gentle responses to every day stressors. By opening the connection from your mind into your body’s signals, you create a pathway to greater emotional balance and resilience.