| If you have taken or seen a Yoga class you may | | | | heart, lungs and the rest of the body. This also can |
| have heard "Lead with your Heart Center" (or | | | | bring us better posture, bigger lung capacity, better |
| something else similar). The Heart Center in Yoga | | | | circulation, making us feel better and making it |
| refers to the Heart Chakra. The Heart Chakra is the | | | | possible to pass on these great feelings to others. |
| 4th of 7 Chakras (or Energy Centers in the body). | | | | A simple way to open up the heart Chakra is a Chest |
| These centers are often used as reference points in | | | | Expansion: |
| Yoga, Chinese Medicine, Thai Massage or other | | | | 1.)Starting in a neutral standing position or mountain |
| traditional healing methods. | | | | pose |
| We are referring to the area of the body in and | | | | 2.)Reaching out palms back behind each other |
| around the heart and lungs, including the shoulders, | | | | 3.)Imagine that you are holding a giant beach ball |
| upper back and chest. This area is known as the | | | | behind your back |
| domain of human intimacy - and is associated with | | | | 4.)Squeezing the shoulder blades together |
| love, acceptance, forgiving, devotion, understanding, | | | | 5.)Inhaling into the expanded lungs |
| acceptance, peach, harmony, contentment, | | | | 6.)Gazing gently up and forward and closing our eyes |
| compassion and relationships. I feel the most | | | | 7.)Taking as many breaths in and out as you feel |
| important of all this is self-love, we can't love and | | | | comfortable |
| care for others if we don't do the same for | | | | 8.)Releasing arms down to your sides |
| ourselves first! | | | | This can be repeated as often as is comfortable. Also |
| The best thing we can do for ourselves is to open | | | | a great pose to use after driving, sitting at a desk or |
| up the heart chakra, increasing blood flow to the | | | | anything that makes us prone to hunching forward. |