A 30-second Exercise to Reduce Holiday Stress

The holidays are an exciting time of the year. But it is quite stressful for most of us. Why? Because our body interprets the excess work and attention required for holiday activities as a stressor.

For a short time, nothing may happen. Although the body senses the overload, the mind can drift, away from the stressors, being occupied by something else not-so-stressful. Or course, when the mind is absent, the body suffers.

You can buffer holiday-related stressors and reduce their negative impacts by practicing Infinity Posture. This posture promotes circulation between the upper and lower parts of the body in a constant flow, so is called.

How To Do:

1. From natural stance (Start/End), point your heels outward and bend your knees. Place your open hands in front of your belly with palms facing upward. Exhale.

2. Inhaling, raise your hands above your head with your fingers wide open. Pause for 3 seconds. Exhaling slowly, bend your knees slightly. In the same position, inhale quickly and deeply; then exhale very slowly.

3. Inhaling as deeply as you can, push your hands upward to maximum extension (3a). Slowly exhale while lowering your hands sideways to your hips (3b). Keep your fingers open wide throughout. End in natural stance.

Key Points:

Infinity posture increases blood flow to the gut area in two ways: by draining blood from the arms and by pushing blood upward from the legs. Increased blood in the stomach boosts digestion and raises energy levels.

Make sure that you keep your hands at a height that is at least above the head and bend your knees (2). Heels out and toes in. For maximum impact, open your fingers as wide as you can; breathe in through the nose and out through the mouth very slowly.

Be aware of the blood flowing down from the arms to the chest area (the middle energy center) and of the energy surging from the feet to the lower belly (the lower energy center).

Daily 3-3-3 Practice:

Whenever you feel stressed, close your door for 1 minute and do this exercise completely for yourself.

To proactively prevent stress, use a daily 3-3-3 practice, one 3 minute session before your meals in the morning, noon time, and evening.

Happy Holidays!

You can watch a demonstration of this movement in this video.(This is the 3rd movement in the MBX-12 sequence.)

This article is adapted from the book, Mindful Movement: Mastering Your Hidden Energy

For more MBX-12 Exercise Articles, go to MBX-12 page.