Laughter Yoga

Laughter. I release the gladness of my soul into the environment.

If I want to feel younger and look younger, then it’s only natural that part of my daily routine is to laugh more. Laughing gives the muscles of my face, chest, and abdomen a workout. A hearty laugh stimulates my heart rate, causes me to breathe deeply, and releases happiness hormones, my endorphins.

Laughter is one of the ways I express my gratitude to God. As I laugh, I release the gladness of my soul into the environment–creating something that’s good for me and good for all those around me.

A typical Laughter Yoga session involves some warm-up clapping and chanting (“Ho, ho, ha, ha, ha”), a few deep breaths with prolonged exhalation, 15 to 20 minutes of laughter exercises interspersed with deep breathing, and then 15 to 20 minutes of laughter meditation.

How do you laugh when nothing’s funny? Just open your mouth into a wide smile and force the breath out. You may feel silly at first, but when you’re in a group of people committed to laughing, the make-believe version often transforms into the real thing.

Here’s a primer to help you get started:

Greeting Laughter
Walk around to different people with palms pressed together at the upper chest in the Namaste greeting or shake hands and laugh, making sure to look into other people’s eyes.

Lion laughter
Thrust out the tongue, widen the eyes, and stretch the hands out like claws while laughing.

Humming laughter
Laugh with the mouth closed and hum.

Silent laughter
Open your mouth wide and laugh without making a sound. Look into other people’s eyes and make funny gestures.

Gradient laughter
Start by smiling and then slowly begin to laugh with a gentle chuckle. Increase the intensity of the laugh until you’ve achieved a hearty laugh. Then gradually bring the laugh down to a smile again.

Heart-to-heart laughter
Move close to a person and hold each other’s hands and laugh. If people feel comfortable, they can stroke or hug each other.

~ by kennybeal on March 17, 2009.