Shake it
“Everybody, get on the floor, let’s dance,
Don't’ fight the feeling, give yourself a chance.
Shake shake shake, shake shake shake,
Shake your booty, shake your booty…”
-KC and the Sunshine Band
Yoga isn’t just holding poses. There are times you might breathe as you notice the tiny micromovements that keep you balanced; or you might make tiny shifts as you release tension and adjust your position. Other times you might open up your joints with sweeping movements of the arms and legs, or even the whole torso; maybe it’s during a sun salutation or another sequence of yoga postures.
But do you ever let yourself just shake out your tension? Do you let go of the idea of yoga as holding postures and instead practice yoga as releasing through movement? There’s all different kinds of movement, but shaking is unique. Try it!
Sometimes the hardest part of yoga is being still. Other times the difficulty is finding the right alignment or position. Then there are days when you find stillness physically, and then your mind goes racing around. If you run into any of these scenarios, try to just shake out the tension. Try 10, 20, or 30 seconds. Try a minute or more. Put on music and do a shaking dance.
P.S. Kids love it too:). Try putting on this song and have a dance party with your little ones.
Every Tuesday I’ll share a micropractice that helps busy moms (and dads and kids, and really anyone) to incorporate brief yoga practices into their day. Every Friday I’ll post ideas and inspiration for practicing yoga with kids. Here’s the post to kick off this biweekly series that will last until the end of the year!