The Ride of Your Life
You’re Up Then You’re Down is in the Twist and Shine sequence of our Grounded Elevator Pose Series. In this sequence, the focus is on the Third Chakra located in the solar plexus, the core of your body. These poses challenge you to exert your personal power and strength of character. Self-esteem is born out of actions and a direct result of the choices we make in life. We feel good about ourselves by acting in ways that show our goodness and represent a commitment to living our best life.
A strong third chakra gives us the courage to trust our gut feelings and follow our intuition. By tuning inward, you access the YOU that is connected to an unlimited source of energy available to fuel your inner fire. Each breath is an opportunity to stoke that fire and begin again. Every moment is an opportunity to say YES to life. Think of all you’ve learned from overcoming obstacles and surviving hard times. Without falling down, you would not know how to rise up. You would not be afforded the chance to pick up the pieces and create a new structure. The difference between something living and non-living is the capability of remaking itself from within. Life is emergent. Getting up is an affirmation of being alive.
Choosing UP after being DOWN is a powerful expression of YES. We vitalize the third chakra and earn self-esteem
in the process of living as we face our challenges one at a time.
Begin in Mountain pose. Inhale and cross your right foot over the left. Both feet are touching the floor. Engage your core, powering your entire body. Extend your arms out. You’re up! Exhale with strength as you lower down gracefully into a crossed-legged position. You’re down! Keep your same footing and with steadiness stand up as you take a long, deep breath. You’re up! Exhale back into Mountain pose. Repeat by crossing your left foot over your right. Whether you’re up or down, the choice is yours.
Yoga has become a great way for children of ALL abilities to become aware of their body, in line with their breath, and connected to the beautiful truth and peace within them. As an occupational therapist and devoted yogi, Allison Morgan of Zensational Kids (see 
Have you ever felt not worthy? Maybe you lacked Self-love or maybe you didn’t surround yourself with goodness at the time. Who we surround ourselves with is who we become. If we surround ourselves with downers we begin to feel down. If we surround ourselves with happy, joyous, and delightful people we become more happy and joyful. If we were to eat junk food every single day we would begin to feel down and ucky. When we eat healthier we experience delight and Self-love. Honor Your Self! Surround yourself with goodness. “The first step toward awareness is being willing to look at yourself and your life without judgment or self-criticism.” (Iyanla Vanzant) Awareness opens the heart to new possibilities.
