Meditation Spots: 7 Places To Sneak In Some Zen (PHOTOS)

LOOK: 7 Sneaky Places To Meditate

With your inbox overflowing and your to-do list trailing behind you like a tall, dark shadow, you might be prone to defending your time. But the truth is that we could all benefit from breaking up our busy days with a short meditation session.

Routinely scheduling breaks, some argue, is your ticket to success. And it wouldn't hurt to sprinkle in some meditation: The practice has been shown to lower stress, improve focus and increase emotional awareness (along with a hefty number of other benefits).

Convinced? For many workers there's just one problem: Where, exactly, should this transformative meditation happen? We've rounded up seven sneaky places to clear your head -- both in and outside of the office. Check them out below, then tell us your favorite place to find clarity in the comments section.

On The Elevator
elevator
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Your elevator ride is a perfect opportunity for a body scan. Just waiting for the elevator to arrive can be part of your practice, too. If the lift is empty, stand in one of the back corners -- this way, you won't be disrupted as people filter in. Find step-by-step instructions for this kind of practice from the Meditation Geek, here.

In The Bathroom Stall
bathroom stallPhoto Credit: Shutterstock
Here's privacy at its most natural state, perhaps. Sit with your feet flat on the floor and close your eyes -- it's the one place where you're virtually guaranteed to be left alone. As for those extraneous flushes? Consider them the elegant flow of a waterfall.

In The Shower
shower
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This is a sneaky move because you'll kill two birds with one stone: you'll achieve both physical and mental hygiene, all in one morning! The mindfulness experts at Headspace describe a practice that is pretty simple:

Be mindful of the need to set the temperature before getting into the shower; mindful of the wave of pleasure as the warm water washes over you; mindful of the smell of the shower gel, soap or shampoo; mindful of the mind jumping forward, imagining conversations that have yet to happen; mindful of the amount of water you’re using; and mindful of the sound of the water coming to a stop.

On A Park Bench
park benchPhoto Credit: Shutterstock
What's more zen than the sound of birds chirping or the shrills of happy children on the playground? Take a deep inhale and make these noises part of the soundtrack of your outdoor meditation.

In A Stairwell
stairwell
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Your office may be the last place you'd think to find peace: Your cubicle at work is in the middle of all the action and the communal cafeteria could be better described as a jungle. But there's bound to be an unoccupied stairwell somewhere in the building. Find it, then claim it as your sacred stairwell.

At A Red Light
red lightPhoto Credit: Shutterstock
When you're running late, Murphy's Law will undoubtedly serve you up a series of consecutive red lights. But instead of gripping the wheel in frustration, you can take this red light as an opportunity to pause. As Donna D'Cruz puts it in her "Red Light- Green Light Meditation (watch it here), the light is a gift of time to find stillness. You don't need to close your eyes (in fact, we strongly suggest you keep them open when behind the wheel): By the time the light changes you feel a greater sense of clarity.

On The Subway
on subwayPhoto Credit: Getty
Sweaty, sneezy, germy, hot and sticky are not the ideal conditions for a peaceful meditation. Or are they? This moment could be the perfect time to choose calm -- to be unaffected by all the hustle around you. If you're struggling to tune out the crowd, try a meditation app for some extra support.

For more on meditation, click here.

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