My friend Lexi and I have been hosting Lunch Club once a month for three years now. We were already collaborating on our Better Together Supper Club, but we wanted to create a space for deeper connection, to share HeartMath practices alongside Lexi’s love-filled food, and to bring people together to simply feel better together. We choose a heartfelt theme each month, share our own reflections, and invite others to do the same.

We are always so grateful that people choose to join us. We are passionate about what we do, but the real magic lies in the feeling of togetherness and genuine, authentic connection. We invite people to come as they are, and we very much do the same.

Bringing people together is my passion and my joy. The magic of it was instilled in me from a young age, through years of gathering around the table with my family and friends as I grew up.

Another person’s energy has the power to lift us beyond words. Being in the energy of a warm welcome is a medicine all of its own, so we extend a warm welcome and let the experience unfold.

We share HeartMath practices because they help us both so much and we want others to experience the magic of it too!!

Just a little science

The HeartMath Institute has spent years researching the relationship between our hearts, emotions and physiology. When we experience heartfelt feelings such as love, gratitude or awe, our heart rhythms can become more ordered, creating a physiological state known as coherence. HeartMath practices can also help increase heart rate variability (HRV), which is widely recognised as a measure of our ability to adapt to stress.

HeartMath also researches the heart’s electromagnetic field and how our physiological states may influence those around us. Its wider mission is to bring more love, peace and joy into the world through initiatives such as the Global Coherence Project, We Add Heart and Help Love Go Viral.

We love being part of this bigger picture.

It’s a feeling

For me, it is the feeling that draws me so powerfully to HeartMath. It isn’t a cognitive thing. We invite people to quieten the thinking brain and bring their attention to their hearts. We then invite them to lean into regenerative, heartfelt feelings and allow these feelings to grow and expand.

When we experience regenerative feelings such as love, gratitude or awe, our hearts, brains and emotions can begin to work more in harmony. We know the feeling. It feels really good. We feel relaxed, at ease and more able to connect authentically with others. We come together as equals, recognising ourselves in each other as we share the experience of being human. Our minds can begin to clear, our hearts can settle, and we may find ourselves moving through life with greater ease and flow.

We believe that when we intentionally cultivate these feelings, we can also positively influence the people around us. That is why practising HeartMath together feels like such a magical thing.

Life can be really challenging at times, and when difficult feelings arise, we can often withdraw from others and try to push those feelings away. We are not encouraging people to ignore their feelings. Instead, we invite them to pause, check in and notice how they are feeling, with compassion and care.

The invitation is to lean outwards, towards connection, rather than inwards towards isolation. To choose kindness, care and connection, and to reach for whatever feeling might help us feel better. That might be gratitude, love, the awe of nature, or something else entirely.

We can hold both regenerative and difficult emotions at the same time, and this is so important.

We also offer everyone the opportunity to share their personal experiences of feeling regenerative heart felt emotions, and these moments can be truly magical and inspiring. Genuine, heartfelt connection is something I feel so strongly about, and it is a privilege to create the space for it. I was so thrilled when one of our regular and cherished guests simply said, “I have conversations here I don’t have anywhere else, and I look forward to this Friday when I can simply press pause so much.”

Creating space to press pause, and practice HeartMath isn’t always easy, but the more we do, the more familiar these feelings can become. Practice is everything. We truly believe that intentionally leaning into regenerative feelings of care, compassion, love and gratitude really can change the world, which is why this monthly gathering is so important to us.

Lunch Club is a pleasure and a privilege. We feel better ourselves because of the wonderful people who join us, and when we come together with open hearts, something very magical happens.