Are you ready for a pranayama pick-me-up?
Let's practice breath of joy.
This brief practice that's energizing for the body is a wonderful way to shift your state of being and to bring a little playfulness into your day.
Start by just coming to a comfortable position,
Standing,
Or if you prefer,
Sitting.
And Breath of Joy uses a three-part sniffing inhale through the nose,
Followed by a forceful exhale through the mouth.
And it coordinates that breathing pattern with the movement with the arms.
This combination of the pumping movement of the arms and the forceful in and out of the breath.
Has a really wonderful uplifting quality.
So I'll break it down for you.
Start out by the inhale through the nose,
Three-part inhale.
Sniffing through the nose,
And then exhale,
Open the mouth.
A nice,
Forceful,
Smooth exhalation.
Let's try that a couple times.
Okay,
Now adding in the arms.
So start by having your arms out to the sides.
As you inhale,
First,
Cross them in front of you.
As you inhale again,
Cross them out to the sides.
As you inhale,
One more time,
Arms come up,
And then exhale through the mouth,
Your arms can come down.
If you like,
You can also fold down,
Up to you.
If you tend to get dizzy,
I don't recommend doing it.
So again,
This is how it starts.
Inhale,
Inhale,
Inhale.
I really recommend smiling as you do this and it can be the pace of your choice.
You do not need to match my pace.
Try to let your arms be really floppy and swingy and just notice this pumping motion and what it creates for you.
You'll take just two more rounds of this breath and then let your arms swing.
Pay attention as the arms keep doing their thing.
Tune into the sensation in the body,
The heart beating,
Your energetic state.
And notice the impact of this practice compared with a slower,
More calming type of a breath.
Take just one more moment here,
Savoring the impact of breath of joy.
And know that you can practice this anytime you need a little pick-me-up.
Thanks so much for joining me and I'll see you again soon.
