Chakra Basics: Balancing the Third Chakra

I recently wrote a post talking about the third chakra. In that post, I discussed what a healthy, balanced third chakra looks like. I also talked about what it looks like to have an imbalance in the third chakra. Whether you’re in balance or not, it’s important to know what we can do to maintain a healthy chakra three!

Movement

When we find ourselves out of balance in chakra three, rebalancing through movement is relatively simple. There isn’t a whole lot we can do wrong when it comes to balancing our third chakra with movement.

More vigorous activities are going to ignite a fire within our belly, opening and activating our third chakra energy. When we are deficient in our third chakra, and we want to balance through movement, we should choose more cardio inducing activities. Running, HIIT, cycling, and even jumping jacks are great ways to open our third chakra energy.

However, cardio inducing activities aren’t just great for opening up our third chakra energy. Practicing cardio can also clear away any excess energy in our third chakra by providing a release.

While most movement is efficient for our third chakra, if we feel sluggish or low in our it’s more valuable to choose vigorous activities. If you are extremely overwhelmed with third chakra energy, choosing a more relaxing exercise might be more beneficial. Going on a hike, a walk, or light aerobics can help.

Positive Affirmations and Self Talk

One of the main components of the third chakra is a strong sense of self. Having confidence in yourself leads to confidence in your decision-making abilities and a balanced will. Check the way you speak to yourself. If you’re not a super confident person, having negative self-talk can dig you even deeper. Instead, make a list of three to five positive affirmations about yourself. These affirmations can be about your physical appearance, your mind, or your accomplishments. Commit to saying these positive affirmations to yourself at least twice a day. Once when you wake up and once before you go to bed can help set you up for success, and leave you feeling balanced!

However, if you tend to have trouble listening to others, or you’re quick to judge those around you, you may be over-active in your third chakra. This doesn’t mean we can’t love ourselves, we should always love ourselves. Still, we want to make sure we are keeping others’ perspectives in mind. Instead of listening to the way you talk to yourself, listen to the way to talk about others. These can be personal thoughts or vocalizations you’ve said out loud to yourself or friends. Try to see situations from others’ perspectives. You cannot control those around you, but you do not have to let them bring you to anger and resentment.

Diet

I am not going to say a whole lot on diet since everyone’s body is so different. However, because the third chakra rules over our digestive system having a balanced diet is crucial to having a balanced third chakra. As I said, this diet will be personal to you. This means that paying attention to what you eat, and how it affects how you physically and mentally feel is wise. Choose foods that leave you feeling energized, not sluggish. Eat at proper times of the day to keep a strong metabolism, and don’t be hard on yourself if you do indulge. We’re human, pleasure is a natural feeling to seek and it’s ok! Beating yourself up for the way you eat will only cause a stronger imbalance in your third chakra. Instead, take note of the affects food has on your body, and conscious decisions to choose nourishing foods.

There is a strong link between our gut health and our mental health, therefore having a balanced, healthy gut, can provide so much more than a balanced healthy third chakra. Treat your body right!

Yoga

Utilizing yoga is a great way to tap into the third chakra space. I already talked about movement, so we’re going to focus on specific postures that tap into our third chakra.

First and foremost, any type of core will ignite the fire of our third chakra. Plank poses, chaturanga, inversion, and arm balances can all light that flame within. Still, there are more postures that tap into this space without being too vigorous. Twists being one of them.

When we move into a twist, we are wringing out our internal organs in our abdomen. This acts as a massage for our digestive tract, improving our natural digestive abilities. Twists can also bring heat to the body in a more gentle way than a strong core exercise.

On top of twists, forward folds can also help release toxins in our digestive organs. While forward folds are typically a chakra one exercise, it can be nice for a hyperactive third chakra to gently to utilize folds. Forward folds can relieve tension and anger, while also tapping into our third chakra energy.

With anything in life, our chakra’s energies are always fluctuating. Now that you know the attributes of the lower three chakras, you can observe yourself, your emotions, and your physical body in order to see how balanced you truly are.

If you have questions about the third chakra an how to balance it, let me know in the comments below! As always, I love referring to Anodea Judith’s work. Chakra Yoga is a great book to acquire if you are seeking to balance your energy through the practice of yoga.