Humans are all born naturally creative beings.
We each have unique ideas, stories and possibilities dwelling inside us, just waiting to burst out into the world.
But sometimes, our creative juices get a bit… stuck.
Emotional and mental blockages build up and impede us from realizing our full creative power. The good news is that it is fully possible to get our creativity flowing once more through the power of yoga.
Next time you feel like your creativity is stuck at zero, take a break from the task at hand and try some of these 6 yoga poses. With regular practice, you might just be surprised how potent they can be!
1. Easy Seated Pose
Begin in a comfortable seated position on your mat. Don’t hesitate to sit up on blocks or blankets if it allows you to be more at ease. The goal is to feel little to no effort whatsoever in the posture.
Once you are in Easy Seated Pose, begin to focus on your breath. An easy but effective breathing exercise to quiet the mind is one-to-one breathing. Essentially, it means inhaling for the same length as you exhale. So for example, if you inhale for four counts, you would also exhale for four counts.
Continue this mindful breathing for a few moments, visualizing the flow of breath rising from the ground beneath you and flowing all the way to the crown of your head before circling back down once more. This posture is highly effective for creativity as it quiets our “monkey minds,” making room for our creativity to surface.
2. Sun Salutations
Sometimes we struggle with creativity because our minds and bodies are stagnant. But by increasing oxygen flow throughout the body, we can wake everything up—including our creative ideas!
If you’re feeling lethargic or fuzzy, try moving through five to ten traditional sun salutations. Focus on matching each movement with the inhale or exhale of the breath.
If you need a reminder, this is a great tutorial to moving through sun salutations with proper alignment.
3. Pigeon Pose
Pigeon pose — the posture that all yogis love to hate. This pose gets deep into the hips, where many of us store a lot of our emotions. You might find that you are subconsciously holding on to emotional baggage that does not serve you any longer—and is keeping you from digging deep into your creative recesses.
To get the most out of Pigeon Pose, keep your hips square to the front of your mat. The back leg extends in line with the hip without sickling the ankle. Lengthen through the spine and chest, and then if you feel you can move deeper, begin to fold the torso over the bent front leg. Try to acknowledge the difference between being in pain and being uncomfortable. If it’s anxiety you’re feeling, then stay in the pose and allow that which does not serve you to come up to the surface and fully release.
If you are feeling especially tight in the hips and want to continue working on this area of the body for emotional release, then be sure to also incorporate these four other juicy hip-openers.
4. Wheel Pose
It takes a lot of vulnerability in order to be creative. If you fear rejection or that your ideas aren’t “good” enough, then try yoga poses that open the heart. This can be a powerful way not only to offer love out into the world but to cultivate love and acceptance for ourselves. And of course, by opening up our heart, we tap into our center of emotion and passion—two of the characteristics that often lead to the most creative expressions!
If you’re feeling open and flexible through the spine, then prepare for Wheel Pose. Lie on your back with the soles of your feet firmly connected to the ground beneath you. Place the palms beside the ears with fingertips pointing back towards the toes. Keeping the thighs hugging in towards one another, begin to lift the hips up towards the sky, rolling the spine up off the mat and pushing up onto your hands. Allow yourself to feel the energy from the ground traveling through the soles of your feet through the front of the body, opening up your heart to expand and receive fully.
5. Headstand
Sometimes all we need is a shift in our perspective; a new way of looking at the world around us to receive inspiration for our next project or idea. And if you are in need of a flip in your world view, then there’s no better way to do it than byactually turning upside-down.
If you’re new to headstand, then practice the posture near a wall where you will have the support if you need it. Clasp your hands together, keeping your elbow about forearm-distance apart. Nestle the crown of your head between the hands, coming up into a Downward Dog variation. Walk the toes toward the hands until the hips align above the head. If this feels comfortable, begin to lift the legs up with control (avoid jumping here.) Shoulders should stay strong and engage. Stay in Headstand for as long as is comfortable.
6. Child’s Pose
Finally, one of the best ways to ignite our creativity is by dropping down into a resting pose, otherwise known as Child’s Pose. In Child’s Pose, our third-eye center is connected to the ground beneath us. And our third-eye center is considered to be our source of intuition and creativity.
Sitting back on your heels, spread the knees wide apart with the toes touching. Inhale to lengthen the torso, then on the exhale fold over the knees, stretching the arms out on the ground ahead of you. Your third-eye center should come to rest on the mat. Breathe in this posture, visualizing the connection between your third eye and the ground beneath you.
There’s no quick cure for igniting our creativity. However, by regular incorporating yoga poses to ignite creativity, you might just find that the mental and emotional blocks that were previously holding you back begin to melt away.
Now tell us: what do YOU do when you feel your creative juices are stuck? The comment section below is all yours… and we’re eager to listen.
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