[social-share-display display=”1563392833″ force=”true”]Feeling and expressing gratitude is a primary component of living a happy, healthy, and joyous life. You can practice gratitude, thankfulness, and gratefulness anytime and anywhere, but when you combine an attitude of gratitude with yoga practices, you can create a powerful synergetic effect on the body, mind, and heart.
A gratitude yoga class includes the practice of specific yoga poses, meditations, mantras, and breathing exercises with the goal of cultivating a sense of gratefulness and appreciation. Gratitude yoga helps us to become aware of the many blessings we receive every day. We begin to see the world around us differently as we focus the positive aspects of each moment, even in a challenging yoga pose. Gratitude yoga is a simple practice that helps us feel better physically, emotionally, mentally and spiritually. It teaches us to live in the moment and to be grateful for all of the things we have in our lives.
A yoga practice focused on thankfulness, appreciation and gratefulness has powerful benefits on the body, mind and heart. The psychological benefits of a regular gratitude practice include improved mental health, increased positive emotions, greater self-esteem, better relationships, less anxiety, more optimism, improved productivity, and higher levels of energy and vitality. The health benefits of a practice of gratitude include lower blood pressure, reduced stress hormones, better sleep, and improved immune function. A daily practice of yoga has many of the same benefits of practicing gratefulness, so combining the two create a powerful method for increasing your overall happiness and wellbeing.
Gratitude is easy to incorporate into a yoga session by shifting our attitude and thoughts to focus on appreciation and thankfulness. In each asana and breath we can cultivate gratitude by being grateful for everything we are experiencing, including our bodies, minds, and souls. Heart openers will be the most effective poses to experience feelings of gratitude, thankfulness, and appreciation.
Be inspired to be more grateful to your body, your practice, and for the people in your life by exploring the articles in our Yoga for Gratitude section. Remember, being thankful for all the beauty, love and ease in your life is vital to long-term happiness and contentment.