Open Hearts

Over the past few months, I have found myself rediscovering my gratitude and passion for yoga. As a former professional dancer, I thrive on movement - and while yoga never played a starring role in my life, it was always a strong supporter. Since I  left the dance world and became a massage therapist, however, it has suddenly become something that I not only need, but that I thrive and flourish on - something that supports and nurtures me both physically and spiritually.

Some of my favorite postures as of late have been different types of heart openers - extremely fitting, seeing as Valentine's Day is right around the corner! In an effort to share a bit about these poses with you, I reached out to one of my favorite teachers, Leslie Edsall, for some further insight. Seeing as she described everything I wanted to talk about with such grace and depth, I figure that I'll let her do the talking. (Hey.. I'll do the poses!)

"In order to give, one must have a willingness to receive. In order to receive, one must have a willingness to give. Inhale (receive). Exhale (give). Inhale (opening up) Exhale (folding in). In yoga, we can access this source of giving through the heart center (heart chakra), a place that fosters compassion toward one’s self and toward others. This is the largest benefit of heart openers, but the effects of the postural alignment is also profound. Heart openers help to reduce chronic neck and shoulder pain, typically due to at length sitting and driving. Students can use heart openers to bring the upper body and head back in to alignment over the hips and knees; therefore, improving the energy flow (prana) throughout the body while increasing the lung capacity, taking in full body breaths (pranayama). Prana and pranayama will bring more ease to the mind for improved health and vitality in the body.

It is recommended to ease in to heart openers and back bending so that the spine is warmed up properly. Yoga classes are typically structured with a few different variations of three or more heart openers."

That being said, "heart openers can be confronting, especially if the physical act of opening the front body and bending back creates a sense of fear. For some students, the energetic opening of the heart makes them want to pull back inward. The best way to overcome these hurdles is to practice and start with what feels right. Students can experience passive heart openers by resting the spine on a bolster or block, allowing the shoulders to fall open and the heart to begin to lift."

Some other, more subtle heart openers are:

Eka Pada Rajakapotasana (Pigeon Pose)

Bitilasana (Cow Pose)

Anjaneyasana (Low Lunge)

Students can also approach heart openers “belly-down” with poses like:

Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose) - not pictured

Salambasana (Locust Pose)

Sphinx Pose - not pictured

Dhanurasana (Bow Pose)

Deeper, more advanced heart-opening backbends include:

Ustrasana (Camel Pose)

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Bridge Pose)

Urdhva Dhanurasana (Upward Facing Bow Pose).

Let's not forget a fun balancing pose, like Natarajasana (Dancer’s Pose)!

To wrap it all up, I asked Leslie if she preferred certain heart openers to others (since I'm personally a sucker for a good dancers pose!).

"I don't have a favorite since they all have their place in my yoga classes and in my own practice. Every time I come to the mat, my energy is different and I must honor where I am that day, working from that place of kindness towards myself. Some days it's a gentle practice and others it is more intense. We all must work from that place of honoring what our body needs at any given time that we come to the mat."

Honestly, I couldn't have said it better myself!

In what ways will you honor your body, mind, and spirit this week? Do you personally have a favorite heart opener?