02/15/2026
Focus of the week: Sensing Your Heartbeat - Your Rhythm Within ✨
(Part 5 of our series on Cultivating Organic Fitness)
Ooh, friend. Last week’s dive into our breath & lungs was so beautiful. Thanks so much for joining me. This week, we’re gonna keep on focusing on “cardiorespiratory” aspects of fitness, but from a slightly different angle. Whereas last week we focused on the “respiratory” side (via our breath), this week, we’ll be tuning into the “cardio” side by sensing our heart and tuning into its ability to pump blood throughout our body.
We can even begin right now. Wherever you are, whatever you are doing, simply pause for a bit and sense your heartbeat.
Some folks can simply slow down, tune in, and feel their heart beating. Personally, I find sensing my heartbeat to be muuuuuuuch more challenging than sensing my breath (especially at rest or lower intensity levels). If you find it more difficult too, please feel free to do what I do and place your hands gently on your chest/heart, or use your index and middle fingers to find your pulse to sense this beautiful inner rhythm of yours.
Two common ways to find your pulse:
1). Wrist (Radial Pulse): Place your index and middle fingers on the palm-side of your wrist, about an inch below the base of your thumb.
2). Neck (Carotid Pulse): Place your index and middle fingers in the hollow beside your windpipe, just below your jaw.
I find it much easier to sense my heartbeat when I move more vigorously. I lovvvvvvve those moments when I can simply feel my heart really pounding in my chest mid-class! Ah!!! I feel so ALIVE! :)
Similar to how our breath supported us as we danced through a variety intensities last week, this week we’ll notice how our heart does the same. We’ll explore how, just like we can challenge our breathing by moving in larger, faster, and more intense ways (in order to spark the fitness benefits we desire), we can also really nourish and challenge (and spark many fitness adaptations in) our heart.
Our heart is an incredible muscle that we definitely want to keep healthy and working well as we move through life. A cool thing is that the more we purposefully work it, the stronger and more efficient it gets at what it does best (pump blood throughout our entire body). The more intensely we move, the more quickly and forcefully our heart will pump in order to deliver fresh oxygenated blood (through our arteries) to our muscles, and transport waste gases (via our veins) back to our lungs for exhalation. Working together, they provide fresh oxygenated blood to everything in our body that needs it, while simultaneously clearing out some of the waste produced through energy metabolism. Isn’t that so neat? They bring in nourishment and remove garbage all at once, all the time! They never take a break — they’re always ON. Always working. Thank you, heart & lungs!
The more often we challenge our heart in this way, the more our body will adapt and then be able to pump more blood per beat (via increased stroke volume/cardiac output). Our blood vessels (arteries and veins) will also become more effective and efficient at transporting blood and exchanging nutrients (and waste products). Also, as we continue to train, our muscles will become more efficient at utilizing that oxygen (via more mitochondria and enzymes). Not only that, but another cool thing is that we also become more tolerant of (and capable of handling) the discomfort of working at intensity levels where we are challenging these systems.
And something so cool? Like all of the other forms of training we’ve discussed, “cardio” training is important (and works!) all life long. We want to “use it” not only so we don’t “lose it” (that’s definitely important), but also so that we can continue to improve & enhance it. It’s never too late in life to begin. This sort of training is always helpful. We can start (and begin to reap the maaaaaaaaany incredible benefits) anytime. The sooner the better!
All we need to do is sense our heart beat, and then move in ways that challenge our heart to work hard (which will cause our heart beat to increase in speed).
Like all of the other aspects of fitness we’ve been exploring (mobility, stability, etc.), the opportunity for cardiorespiratory conditioning is always woven right into class. This week, we’re simply highlighting it as a way to really tune into this system, learn more about it, and (if desired) challenge it. Similar to how we sensed the general arc of intensity as it builds and recedes throughout class last week, we’ll sense it again this week as we tune into our heartbeat. We’ll warm up nicely, then have that middle portion of class to move more vigorously (challenging our heart to work harder), before we eventually cool back down, and settle into stretching and stillness.
That said, as always, please feel free to really personalize what that arc is like for you on any given day. In Aya, you always have the power to choose your unique, personal movement intensity level, moment to moment. Perhaps it’s a day where you’d like to move much more vigorously. Perhaps it’s a day where you’d like to be more mellow. Class will always be a beautiful blend of individuals honoring their own needs & preferences for any given day…. so it is all welcome. It’s always up to you, my friend. Whatever intensity feels right to your body, mind, emotions, and spirit on any given day is perfect.
So…. Sensing our heartbeat. We’ll dance, celebrate, and challenge our heart and beautiful network of blood vessels as they transport blood, oxygen, and nutrients throughout our body, allowing us to do all that we do. That’s what we’re exploring with this week, and (as always) I can’t wait to see what we discover together!
See you soon!
Much love,
💛 Dani
CLASS SCHEDULE
• Sundays, 10 AM central, live on Zoom (or 7-day replay)
• Mondays, 5:45 PM, at the Cedar Falls Woman's Club
• Tuesdays, 5:30 PM, at Dani's house
• Wednesdays, 5:30 PM central, live on Zoom (or 7-day replay)
• Thursdays, 9 AM central, live on Zoom (or 7-day replay)
1st time? Welcome! Please be my guest! Code: FIRST
