Floor Opening (10 Minutes)

Welcome, this is a brief floor opener, mostly targeting hip opening and a little spine back opening and warming to prepare you to sit more comfortably for your meditation. So we'll begin in Baddha Konasana, soles of the feet together, knees out to the side. If you like a blanket at any height underneath the sit bones, definitely feel free to grab one, and then just holding the feet, let's take a big inhale together, lifting up through the spine, and exhale, start to ease forward. So you're welcome to stay upright with a straight spine, or if at a certain point you'd like to kind of round the back and let the head start to fall forward, feel free. Just easing into it, finding your own edge and give it three more breaths, and then slowly with the inhale, if you're in the fold, walk it all the way back up, and then nice and easy, exhale, just extend the legs straight out, root the hands for support and kind of shake it out a little bit, rock the legs in and out, flex the feet, whatever feels good.

And then we'll move into Artimatsi and Drasana, twist. So let's bend the left knee, draw that foot in, and just step the right foot outside of the left knee. If you'd like it in front of the shin, that can be slightly more gentle. From here, inhale, extend the left arm up, and then exhale, take it into the twist, hooking the elbow outside of the knee, and gently gazing back over the right shoulder. Let each inhale lengthen the torso, and just kind of ease into it with the exhales.

Don't stay for three, two, and then inhale, just come on back to center, take a counter twist to the other side just for a breath. And then again, back to center, extending both legs, and switching sides. So bend the right knee, draw that foot in, take the left foot outside of the right knee or just in front of the shin, inhale, reach that right arm up, nice and tall, and exhale, twist, hooking the elbow outside of the knee, and spiral the spine, gazing back over the left shoulder, lengthen with the inhales. Deepen a little into the twist with the exhales, three, two, and with the inhale, come on back to center, exhale, unwind again, just extend the legs out, kind of shake them a little bit, and from here, we're going to roll all the way onto the back. So just draw the legs in, and ease yourself down.

When you land, hug the legs in towards the chest, and kind of rock the body a little side to side, soft through the jaw, let the eyes and the brow relax, good, and then exhale, and then moving a little deeper into the hips, just start with both feet on the earth, and then cross that right ankle over the left knee, keep the right foot flexed, and then draw the legs in, holding either behind the left thigh or on the left shin, and draw it in. Deep breath, just take your time here, breathing into any resistance, and just a couple more breaths. With your next exhale, let that go, releasing both feet back on the earth, and change sides. Cross the left ankle over the right knee, flex that foot, loop the hands around the right thigh or the right shin, and gently draw it in. You might ease the hips just a little side to side, feeling for the deepest stretch, and then just pausing there, three, two, one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, and again, just release, take a moment, plant both feet on the earth, take a big inhale deep into the belly, open the mouth, exhale, just finding some ease and release, and then we'll draw both knees in towards the chest again, and kind of rock a little side to side, keep the right knee hugging in, and extend the left leg out again, just lay it on the earth, big inhale, and then exhale, we'll cross that right knee over the body, drop it towards the left, and as you go, extend the right arm out to the right, right, heavy through the right shoulder, you can even follow the right fingertips with the soft gaze, so the neck completes the twist of the spine, and that left hand resting on the right knee for a little added weight, breathing through the whole length of the spine, the muscles of the back, down into low back and sacrum, and stay for five, okay, so we're going to do this, and then with your next inhale, draw it back to center, keep the right knee hugging in towards the body, and add the left knee, and then just extend that right leg, reach it out, big inhale, and exhale, let the left knee fall across the body, right hand, giving it a little added weight, and then just reach the left arm out to the left, breathing through the whole back, down into low back and sacrum, and five, and five, okay, so we're going to do this, and then again, inhale, just let yourself roll back to center, hugging both knees in towards the chest, rocking a little side to side, and shifting into happy baby, take hold of the feet or the ankles, and you're welcome to keep it neutral here, or you can rock it a little side to side, you might even extend one leg for a breath or two, and then the other, whatever feels best, just a few more breaths.

And then we'll simply draw it back to center, hug the knees in towards the chest, curling into a little ball, draw the forehead towards the knees, and let that all go, complete release if you have a moment for Shavasana, you're welcome to just drop down into it, otherwise, rock yourself up to a comfortable seat, and you should be ready for your meditation. Thanks for your work, namaste.