diff --git a/src/modules/bmgd/workflows/4-production/code-review/instructions.xml b/src/modules/bmgd/workflows/4-production/code-review/instructions.xml
index e57a940d..d639df2b 100644
--- a/src/modules/bmgd/workflows/4-production/code-review/instructions.xml
+++ b/src/modules/bmgd/workflows/4-production/code-review/instructions.xml
@@ -12,6 +12,7 @@
   <critical>Read EVERY file in the File List - verify implementation against story requirements</critical>
   <critical>Tasks marked complete but not done = CRITICAL finding</critical>
   <critical>Acceptance Criteria not implemented = HIGH severity finding</critical>
+  <critical>Do not review files that are not part of the application's source code. Always exclude the _bmad/ and _bmad-output/ folders from the review. Always exclude IDE and CLI configuration folders like .cursor/ and .windsurf/ and .claude/</critical>
 
   <step n="1" goal="Load story and discover changes">
     <action>Use provided {{story_path}} or ask user which story file to review</action>
diff --git a/src/modules/bmm/workflows/4-implementation/code-review/instructions.xml b/src/modules/bmm/workflows/4-implementation/code-review/instructions.xml
index e57a940d..e5649559 100644
--- a/src/modules/bmm/workflows/4-implementation/code-review/instructions.xml
+++ b/src/modules/bmm/workflows/4-implementation/code-review/instructions.xml
@@ -12,6 +12,8 @@
   <critical>Read EVERY file in the File List - verify implementation against story requirements</critical>
   <critical>Tasks marked complete but not done = CRITICAL finding</critical>
   <critical>Acceptance Criteria not implemented = HIGH severity finding</critical>
+  <critical>Do not review files that are not part of the application's source code. Always exclude the _bmad/ and _bmad-output/ folders from the review. Always exclude IDE and CLI configuration folders like .cursor/ and .windsurf/ and .claude/</critical>
+
 
   <step n="1" goal="Load story and discover changes">
     <action>Use provided {{story_path}} or ask user which story file to review</action>