Happy Valentine’s Day, everyone! Even though today is a holiday, I still wanted to post my regular “Sunday Sutra” post to talk about yoga and wellness, so bear with me. So I went to one of my favorite yoga classes this past Wednesday, called “Sweat and Surrender”. The class starts off with about 15 minutes of yin yoga poses, followed by an hour of vinyasa, then ending with 15 minutes of restorative yin poses. It’s usually an incredibly invigorating yet relaxing class. And I say “usually” because for some reason last Wednesday, I was in a mood. No particular reason, just in a mood. Which was ironic, because the whole theme of the class was heart-openers (for Valentine’s Day). But we ended up doing the same sequence of poses for the entire hour of vinyasa, which frustrated me for some reason. I was expecting some backbends or real heart-opening poses, instead of just crescent or warrior one. But we just did this repetitive sequence, a modified sun salutation progression. (Which is ironic also, because today’s Sunday Sutra recipe is a sun salutation smoothie!)

While I was in the yoga class, I could hear the yoga teacher talk about having an open heart. It went through my mind and then I set it aside. I was so caught up in my mood that I didn’t really stop to think about what it means to have an open heart. But now, looking back, I can understand my frustration with the class better. It was my first yoga class I’d been to since that terrible stomach bug I had the other week, and I was feeling weak and out of shape. The repetitive sun salutation sequence was frustrating me because it had a series of difficult plank poses and one-legged transitions, straining my practice to its limits. And I think the reason the yoga teacher’s message of having an open heart didn’t really process is because I thought my heart was already open – I wasn’t mad at anyone, right? I wasn’t not letting anyone in or anything. But what I missed was that my heart wasn’t open to myself. I wasn’t allowing myself any slack; giving myself any leeway for being out of practice. It’s such a weird concept to be closed off to yourself, but it’s a very real and detrimental phenomenon. How many times are we unkind to ourselves? How quick are we to be hard on ourselves, but easy on friends or loved ones in the same situation? This is something I’ve struggled with for my entire life.

So maybe this Valentine’s Day, instead of focusing on the heart-shaped boxes of chocolate or fancy dinners, maybe we can all focus on loving ourselves a little bit more. Looking inward with an open heart.

♥

Print

Sun Salutation Smoothie

Open your heart and liberate your senses with this double-layered sun salutation smoothie,

Prep Time 5 minutes minutes

Cook Time 5 minutes minutes

Total Time 10 minutes minutes

Servings 2 Smoothies

Ingredients

Yellow Sun Layer

• 1 Cup Frozen Mango
• 1/2 Cup Fresh Pineapple
• Juice from 2 Clementines
• Splash Almond Milk

Pink Sky Layer

• 1 Cup Frozen Mango
• 1/2 Cup Fresh Pineapple
• 1/2 Cup Frozen Strawberries
• 1/4 Cup Fresh Red Beets peeled

Instructions

• In a blender, combine all yellow sun layer ingredients. Blend on high until smooth and creamy. Pour equally into two glasses.
• Then, add all of the pink sky layer ingredients into your blender, and blend on high until smooth.
• To get the ombré effect, spoon the pink layer gently on top of the yellow sun layer. If you’re not worried about aesthetics, just pour the pink layer right in.
• Enjoy!

Quote of the Day:

Remember the emphasis on the heart. The mind lives in doubt and the heart lives in trust. When you trust, suddenly you become centered.

– Osho

P.S.

If you make this recipe and post it on Instagram, be sure to tag me @wellandfull and #wellandfull so I can see! I love seeing your takes on my recipes :)