How to Start Meditating: An Honest Beginner's Guide From a Meditation Teacher
Starting a meditation practice is simpler than most people think — and harder to sustain than most people expect. The good news is that the barrier to beginning is genuinely low: you need no equipment, no special clothing, no prior experience, and no particularly quiet mind. As a meditation teacher in Forest Hill, the most common thing I hear from people who want to start meditating is "I don't think I can do it." The truth is that the feeling that you can't do it — the restless, wandering, doubting mind — is exactly what the practice is designed to work with. Here is everything you need to begin.
What Do You Actually Need to Start Meditating?
Very little. Here is the complete list:
A comfortable place to sit or lie down — a chair, the floor, your bed, a cushion
A timer — your phone is fine; set it and turn the screen face down
Five to ten minutes — that is all you need to begin
A willingness to sit with discomfort — both physical and mental; this is the practice
That's it. You do not need:
Silence (though it helps in the early stages)
A meditation cushion or special posture
Incense, candles, or any particular atmosphere
An empty mind (this is the most persistent myth about meditation — the mind never empties)
Previous experience with yoga, spirituality, or any wellness practice
If you have those five minutes and those four things, you can begin today.
A Simple First Meditation: Breath Awareness
Breath awareness is the most accessible and well-researched entry point into meditation. Here is a step-by-step guide to your first session:
Find a comfortable position. Sit in a chair with your feet flat on the floor and your hands resting in your lap, or sit cross-legged on the floor with a cushion supporting your hips. You can also lie down — though if you're tired, you may fall asleep, which is fine but not quite the same as meditating.
Set a timer for five to ten minutes. Use a gentle alarm tone — something that won't startle you.
Close your eyes. If that feels uncomfortable, a soft downward gaze at the floor in front of you is equally fine.
Take three slow, deliberate breaths. Breathe in through the nose for a count of four, hold briefly, and breathe out slowly through the mouth. Let the third exhale be a genuine release — a signal to the body that something is different now.
Allow the breath to return to its natural rhythm. Don't control it. Just notice it. Notice the sensation of air entering the nostrils, the slight rise of the chest or belly, the moment of pause at the top, and the release of the exhale.
When the mind wanders — and it will — simply notice, and return. You might notice you've been planning dinner, replaying a conversation, or writing a mental to-do list. That noticing is not a failure. It is the practice. Every time you notice and return, you are doing exactly what meditation asks of you.
When the timer sounds, don't rush. Take a breath, open your eyes slowly, and give yourself a moment before moving.
That is a complete meditation session. Do this every day for two weeks before deciding whether it is working.
What Should You Expect in the First Few Weeks?
Honest expectations are the single most important factor in sustaining a new practice. Here is what most people actually experience, week by week:
Week 1 — The mind wanders constantly. Sessions feel effortful and slightly pointless. Some people find they feel more aware of their stress during this period, not less. This is normal: you are simply noticing what was already there.
Week 2 — A very slight sense of something settling begins to emerge. There are moments of genuine quiet between thoughts, though the practice is still mostly restless. The key is simply showing up each day.
Weeks 3 to 4 — A noticeable difference in how you feel after sessions begins to appear. Many people find they start to look forward to the practice rather than endure it. Small changes in daily life — a slightly steadier response to a stressful moment — may become visible.
Weeks 5 to 8 — Cumulative changes become more obvious: better sleep, a slightly lower baseline level of stress, and more space between a trigger and a reaction. The practice starts to feel less like effort and more like something the body recognises.
Beyond eight weeks — The practice begins to feel like a genuine resource rather than an obligation. Research supports this: neurological changes associated with regular meditation become measurable after approximately eight weeks of consistent practice.
The most important thing to know: feeling like you're "bad at meditation" in the first two weeks is universal and completely normal. Mind-wandering is not a sign that meditation isn't working — it is the content of the practice. Every return of attention to the breath is one repetition of the mental equivalent of a bicep curl.
How Do You Build a Habit That Sticks?
The research on habit formation is clear, and it applies directly to meditation. Here are the factors that determine whether a practice becomes sustainable:
Anchor it to something you already do. The most reliable way to make meditation stick is to attach it to an existing habit — immediately after brushing your teeth in the morning, before your first cup of tea, or right after you sit down at your desk. Do not leave it to find its own moment in the day; it will not.
Start smaller than you think you should. Five minutes every day will outperform twenty minutes three times a week. Consistency is the variable that matters. Start with five minutes and add two minutes each week once it feels natural.
Remove friction. Keep your meditation cushion or chair in your sitting spot. Have your timer ready. Reduce the number of decisions the practice requires — the more automatic it becomes, the more reliably you will do it.
Don't aim for perfect sessions. There is no such thing. A session in which the mind wandered fifty times and was gently returned fifty times is a good session. A session that felt difficult or uncomfortable has still produced the physiological benefits of the practice.
Practise with others when possible. Meditating in a group — whether in a class, a course, or even a regular practice with a friend — significantly increases both motivation and depth of practice. This is one of the most underrated advantages of a guided course over solo app use.
What Are the Most Common Mistakes Beginners Make?
Even with the best intentions, most beginners make at least one of these:
Waiting until the mind is calmer to start. The calmer mind is the result of the practice, not the prerequisite for it. Start now, with the mind you have.
Stopping after a difficult session. Difficult sessions are often the most valuable ones — they reveal exactly where the mind tends to go when left to its own devices. Stay curious rather than discouraged.
Trying to stop thoughts. Meditation does not ask you to stop thinking. It asks you to change your relationship with thoughts — from being swept along by them to observing them with a degree of distance. The thoughts continue; the reactivity reduces.
Meditating only when stressed. Using meditation only as a crisis tool — reaching for it when things are already overwhelming — is far less effective than a daily practice that prevents that level of overwhelm from building. Regular practice is maintenance, not emergency repair.
Comparing their experience to others. Every person's meditation experience is different. Some people find early sessions peaceful; others find them frustrating and claustrophobic. Neither experience predicts long-term outcomes.
When Is a Course or Teacher Worth Considering?
A solo home practice, built from a guide like this one, is a completely valid and effective way to begin meditating. Many people sustain a rich practice entirely independently for years. That said, working with a teacher — particularly in a group setting — offers things that self-directed practice cannot:
Live guidance that responds to what is actually arising in the room
Progressive structure that builds skills systematically over weeks
Community — practising alongside others deepens the experience considerably
Answers to questions as they come up, rather than turning to Google at 11pm
Accountability — the simple fact of having somewhere to be, on a set day, each week
If you're based in the Forest Hill, Brockley, or East Dulwich area and want to begin with a teacher rather than alone, Gillian Evans' six-week Cultivating Presence course at The Honor Oak Wellness Rooms is designed precisely for this. It is open to complete beginners, moves progressively from simple breath awareness through to somatic and chakra meditation, and is held in the calm, multi-disciplinary space of The Honor Oak Wellness Rooms in SE23. Full details are on our courses page.
You might also find our related posts useful wherever you are in your journey:
Ready to Begin?
If you'd like to find out more about meditation courses or any of the other wellness services at The Honor Oak Wellness Rooms, we'd love to hear from you. Get in touch at info@honoroakwellnessrooms.com or call 0208 314 5535.
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Frequently Asked Questions
Q: How long should I meditate as a complete beginner? Five to ten minutes per day is the right starting point for most beginners. This is enough to begin building the habit and experiencing the practice without it feeling overwhelming or unsustainable. Duration can be increased gradually — adding two to five minutes each week once the current length feels comfortable. Most experienced practitioners meditate for 20–30 minutes daily, but that is a destination, not a starting point.
Q: Is it normal for my mind to wander constantly during meditation? Completely normal — and not a sign that you're doing it wrong. A wandering mind is the universal starting point for every meditator, regardless of experience. The practice is not to prevent the mind from wandering, but to notice when it has and to gently return attention to the breath or body. Each time you notice and return, you are practising. Over weeks, the gaps between wandering become longer, but the mind never stops entirely — and it doesn't need to.
Q: What is the best time of day to meditate? Morning is the most commonly recommended time, and for good reason: the mind is relatively fresh, the day hasn't yet accumulated its demands, and meditating first thing sets the nervous system's tone for the hours ahead. That said, the best time is the time you will actually do it consistently. If mornings are chaotic, a lunchtime or early evening practice is perfectly effective. The only time to avoid is immediately before sleep if you tend to fall asleep — unless improving sleep is specifically your goal.
Q: Do I need to sit cross-legged on the floor to meditate properly? No. Sitting cross-legged on the floor is one of many perfectly valid meditation postures, but it is not necessary and can be actively unhelpful if it causes discomfort. Sitting upright in a chair with feet flat on the floor is entirely correct. Lying down is also valid, though the risk of falling asleep increases. The most important qualities of a meditation posture are comfort (so the body isn't a distraction) and enough alertness that you don't drift off.
Q: How do I know if my meditation is working? The signs that a practice is working are usually subtle and cumulative rather than dramatic. Most people notice: a slightly quicker return to calm after a stressful event; a small gap between an impulse and a reaction; marginally better sleep; slightly less background anxiety; moments of genuine presence in ordinary activities. These changes tend to accumulate over weeks rather than appearing suddenly. If, after four to six weeks of daily practice, you notice none of these, it may be worth trying a different technique or working with a teacher.
Q: Is a meditation app enough, or do I need a teacher? Apps are a reasonable starting point — they provide structure and guidance for the early weeks and are far better than no practice at all. For many people, an app-based practice is entirely sufficient to build a lasting habit. However, a teacher offers things an app cannot: responsiveness to what's happening in real time, progressive skill-building, community, and the ability to answer questions as they arise. If you've tried apps and found the practice hasn't stuck, or if you want to go deeper than introductory techniques, a guided course is a worthwhile step. Gillian Evans' Cultivating Presence course at The Honor Oak Wellness Rooms in Forest Hill is a natural next step for anyone in SE23.
Gillian Evans is a meditation teacher and yoga instructor at The Honor Oak Wellness Rooms, 82 Brockley Rise, London SE23 1LN. She runs regular meditation courses and classes at the Rooms, welcoming students at every level from complete beginners to experienced practitioners. Follow her work at @drgillianevans.