You can use your yoga practice to heal your heart.
What You Need:
A yoga mat
A yoga belt
Three yoga eggs (www.threeminuteegg.com)
Two yoga blocks
Supported matsyasana (fish pose) with head on one yoga egg and chest on two yoga eggs with legs in baddha konasana (bound angle pose), bound by a belt – at least 7 minutes
Uttanasana (standing forward fold) with hands on yoga eggs and head resting on yoga blocks so crown is resting
Prasarita Padottanasana (wide leg forward fold) with hands on yoga eggs and head on yoga blocks
Makarasana (dolphin) holding egg between the hands
Sirsasana (headstand) against the wall
Setu bandha with egg at feet and belt at thighs, pelvic lift repetitions for 3 breaths only to build up
Urdhva Dhanursana (wheel) variation lying over chair, feet on wall, belt around thighs. First hands hold on to chair for one minute, then reaching arms over head
Ustrasana (camel) variation, hands on chair behind you
Jathara Parivartanasana (reclining twist), one yoga egg between the knees – 1 minutes each side
Sarvangasana (shoulder stand) to Halasana (Plow) variation, hips on chair – at least 7 minutes going back and forth
Viparita Karani (legs against the wall pose) – at least 7 minutes
Savasana – at least 10 minutes
Discussion: Heart disease is the No. 1 cause of death in the United States amongst both men and women. About 25 percent of all deaths in America are caused by some form of heart disease. People of all ages, shapes and sizes can get heart disease.
The top risk factors for heart disease include:
High cholesterol
High blood pressure
Diabetes
Cigarette smoking
Overweight and obesity
Poor diet
Physical inactivity
Alcohol use
Nine out of 10 heart patients have at least one risk factor.
The physical heart is a muscle in the center of the chest weighing about 8 to 10 ounces for women and about 10 to 12 ounces for men. It is roughly the size of a fist.
Energetically, the heart chakra is located at the center of the chest just above the dome of our diaphragm. It is the meeting point between the two separate polarities in the body’s energy field and unites both the upper and lower chakras as well as the right and left sides.
As with all chakras, the heart chakra may either be over energy or under energy. Over energy in this chakra may correspond with high blood pressure and co dependency, while under energy in the heart chakra may make a person appear cold and unfeeling, have low blood pressure and/or depression.
Balancing this chakra has the effect of balancing the entire person.
Even those of us who do not have physical heart disease may have experienced some form of broken heart throughout our lifetime.
I designed this yoga program to draw energy into the heart chakra in a very gentle, nurturing and supportive way. It will have the net effect of relaxing you and bringing your mind into a quieter place.
