Open your heart, love yourself | hOMe Practice

It’s hard to escape the shades of red and pink and showers of hearts that seem to pop up in stores this time of year. Florists almost demand that we show our affection with red roses, and my hands seem to grab a palm-full of pink M&M’s every time I walk by the candy dish in my kitchen. Ah yes, it’s February, and it’s time to grab Cupid and a Valentine.

However, in order to be fully open to loving others, we must be madly in love with ourselves. Add these three heart opening pose variations to your home practice, and set an intention of loving the greatest person there is to love: you.

As you flow, with each inhale feel the space surrounding your heart fill with all of the good that you see yourself do on a daily basis–the stuff that people smile about when they see you. With each exhale, allow yourself to send that out into the world.

Remember to counter-pose each heart opener you do. Any forward fold that follows a heart opener is a great counter-pose.

Warrior 1: As you come into your warrior, clasp the fingers behind the low back, squeezing the shoulder blades toward one another, knuckles moving toward the earth. Inhale to grow the spine long, pulling in the low belly to protect that spine, and as you exhale, lift the heart skyward. Stay for five breaths, and vinyasa through.

Fallen Triangle: From downward facing dog, lift your right leg toward the sky. Bring the knee into the chest, and then shoot the right foot under the left arm. Spin the left foot flat, and lift the left arm to the sky. Start to feel the whole front of the body lift open, then move the left arm overhead. Stay for five breaths, return the left arm to the earth and bring the right leg back to downward facing dog.

Savasana with yoga blocks: Grab two blocks or a bolster as you prepare for savasana. Place the first block or bolster just below the shoulder blades as you lay yourself down. Rest your head on a second block or on the remainder of the bolster. Allow the arms to move away from the body. Feel the space surrounding the heart start to break apart, as though whatever it is that’s keeping you from loving you is slowly cracking, and you are able to breathe love into those openings once again. Smile.

About Kristin

Kristin completed her 200-hour teacher training with yogahOMe in 2007. Her yoga journey began in 2003 with a “gym yoga” class. When she discovered hOMe in 2005, it was then her practice really began to unfold. She has benefitted so much from yoga’s emotional benefits, her favorite part of teaching is being able to help her students get that same emotional release out of a class. Her favorite practice is in a hot room, going deeper in new and challenging poses. A former runner who battled injuries for years, yoga has changed her physically for the better. Kristin is a middle school French teacher by day, using relaxation techniques with her students to release test anxiety. Yoga in the classroom is always an adventure! If there were a theme to her teachings, it would be “letting go.” When you can let go, you smile more, you love life a little more, and you get a little bit closer to that ultimate inner-peace.