Breath of Joy
A Holiday Tradition
Your breath pattern for this exercise will be “inhale, inhale, inhale, exhale” (inhaling through your nose, and exhaling strongly through your mouth while making a “ha” sound).
Begin by standing with your feet parallel, a little wider than hip-distance apart, with knees softly bent.
• Inhale (but only about a third as much as you could), as you sweep your arms forward and up to shoulder height, elbows bent and palms facing upward.
• Inhale again (another third) as you sweep your arm out to the side, again at shoulder height, and with palms up and elbows bent.
• Take the final third of your inhale as you sweep your arms forward and overhead (as you would for urdhva hastasana, upward salute), palms facing in.
• Exhale powerfully through your mouth, making a “ha” sound, as you bend your knees a little more, hinge forward, and sweep your arms back behind you.
• Then inhale right back up into your next round. If it feels good, you can do up to ten rounds. When you’re finished, take a moment or two to rest in stillness. Notice how you feel before returning to the rest of your practice or the rest of your day.