What benefits do you receive from practicing Honoring Your Belly? Patty: The benefits I receive are feeling centered, feeling strengthened, feeling grounded. I feel more energized when I do the ritual. I feel like I can function better, perform better, live better when I'm centered in my belly. Sue: It's a great way to start a creative process because you get so much energy from it. Patty: It doesn't take a big amount of time or effort. And it's fun! It's fun to do together, as much as it is to do alone. What first attracted you to the practice? Patty: The title, Honoring Your Belly, just really appealed to me. In the past I'd studied yoga in different forms. And before giving birth to my children I studied belly dancing. I always enjoyed that movement from the belly.... Teresa: I was searching for a fitness program for myself, that I wasn't finding in aerobics or gyms. It was a gentle way, and I felt energized, yet I wasn't exhausted. It felt very natural. I knew I had tapped into something. What do you especially enjoy about the practice? Sue: I love the whole ritual for the emphasis on breath. It's very powerful — it really is! Patty: It has a real nice flow to it. And to just go with that flow seems like a beautiful dance, with all the stretching and all the breathing you need. And if I have to prepare for something where I really need my best energy, to do the movement is a big plus to have under my belt! • Lisa Sarasohn is a certified Kripalu yoga teacher and yoga therapist with more than twenty years' experience teaching therapeutic movement and facilitating mind-body integration.