"When you laugh, shift happens."
Warming up for LAUGHTER
Smile-Ups are my signature warm-up exercise and training for deep belly laughs.
A laughter session is all about laughing on purpose, but that can feel awkward and intimidating at first. According to author Mary Waldrip, “Laughter is a smile that bursts.” Smiling is indeed the gateway to laughter, and I've found that starting with a smile leads to laughter every time.
Simply smiling helps you shed your inhibitions, build connections, helps you to destress, and lightens your mood. Without saying a word about laughter, giggles often emerge and as the awkwardness subsides, genuine laughter begins to fill the room.
To warm up and stretch your cheek muscles, I invite you to try Smile-Ups, the delightful game that will have you smiling and laughing in no time at all. Try it alone (smile at yourself in the mirror) or with a friend.
The more you can let your inhibitions go and allow yourself to be playful and silly, the more easily laughter will come. The more heartily you laugh, the greater the health benefits. So go ahead, give me a little smile and don’t hold back!
How to do SMILE-UPs
How to do a Smile-Up:
-
Conjure up a feeling of joy.
-
Now smile, ear to ear, engaging your eyes too.
-
Hold the smile for a few seconds.
-
Let go of the smile and relax your face.
-
Repeat 10X for a complete warm-up.
Insert Smile-Ups into your day as needed for a pick-me-up, to destress or clear your mind before an important meeting, or just before going home at the end of a long workday. Let me know how it transforms your life.
So easy even a CHILD can do it!
One of the benefits of teaching people the chemical response the body has to smiling and laughing is: it empowers them to diffuse their upsets without a lot of effort or time.
A client of mine shared her success story. She and her son had attended a Zoom laughter session together. After a minor argument at dinner, her son left the table. After a few minutes, she found him doing Smile-Ups in the hall mirror to calm down and cheer up.
How exciting—her young son was so empowered at the young age of nine!