Day 3: Fluid

Welcome back. Welcome to day three of the challenge. How are you feeling so far? I'd love to hear from you. Please let me know how the first two days went for you. You can reach out in the comments or the forum section of the challenge. So let's move into day three. Day three is all about fluidity. So we're going to explore some fluid movements to get the waters of the heart flowing freely. So we're going to begin with the hand mudra. So if you'd like to join me seated, we'll find lotus mudra. So bringing the pinkies and the thumbs together and then the base of your wrist together, the heels of the hands and then let the fingers open up wide, relax the elbows and then just take a moment, maybe close the eyes and just notice the softness through the hands. So notice if you wanted to like extend the fingers out really long and see if you can soften the fingers but still allow for that opening in the hands. So the hands are said to be the motor organ of the heart. And so we're going to open our hands to open our hearts. So just take a moment, you might blink your eyes open and clench your fists for a moment and notice the energy change of holding on too tight. And then again, open up the hands into lotus mudra and feel the difference. So when we hold on to things too tight, just like if you're holding on to a fistful of sand, things start to seep between your hands. So can you loosen the grasp and maybe take a moment here to set an intention of something in your life that you might be grasping onto that you can let go of. So what is it that you might be holding on to that you can allow to let go? And we'll begin our practice with one sound of Aum. So allowing a big full breath in through the nose. Aum. Inhale and sigh it out, let it go. And just let the hands release. Good. And then interlace your hands when you're ready. You're going to reach the hands up toward the sky and lengthening up through the spine. And we'll take Cat-Cow in this position. So as you inhale, let the heart melt forward and can rock forward on the sitting bones. And then as you exhale, draw the navel to the spine rounding as you come back. Good. And let's take that again. So inhale, reach the heart forward and then exhale, round back. Good. One more. Inhale. Exhale. Good. And then coming into a twist. So bring the left hand to the outside of the right leg, right fingertips behind. On an inhale, lift up and lengthen. And then as you exhale, just find your twist. So easy spinal twist here. Good. And then reach your right arm up. We're going to take the right hand to the left knee or shin and then round back so that the chin comes toward the chest and you find that cat-like movement in the spine again. Good. And then inhale, let that go. Release. And we'll take it all to the other side. So interlacing fingers again, lift up, lengthen. And then coming into that Cat-Cow movement as you inhale, arching the back, look up. And then exhale, navel to spine and round. And then take it again. Inhale, lift up and lengthen. Exhale, release back. Soften the shoulders. Inhale, come forward. And then exhale, round back. Good. And then lengthen out. We'll take that twist again. This time right hand to the left knee, taking left fingertips behind. Inhale to lengthen. And exhale, ease into the twist. Take one more full deep breath here. Beautiful. And then lift your left arm up. We'll take the left hand to the right knee this time or shin and then round back, chin to the chest and feel that rounding in the spine. Beautiful.

And then let that go. And just release. Notice how you feel for a moment. Good. So let's move into our first Downward Facing Dog. So just letting the hands find the mat, tuck the toes, lift the hips up and back. And first Down Dog again, maybe pedaling it out. Any movement here that feels good to start to open up through the backs of the legs. Might lift up onto the toes, lifting the heels up and then lowering the heels back down. And then start to come towards stillness. If the hamstrings are tight, feel free to step the feet a little wider or soften the knees as always. And then on an in-breath, we're going to keep the toes tucked. Start to shift forward toward Plank Pose and then come past Plank Pose. Let the hips start to lower down and then reach the heart forward as you come into this modified Upward Facing Dog. And then exhale, keeping the toes tucked, lift the hips up and back into Down Dog. Let's take that a few more times. So we're starting to warm the spine, warm the body and move with the breath. So inhale, toes stay tucked, let the hips drop, let the heart melt, lift the gaze and then exhale, lift the hips up and back, Downward Facing Dog. Beautiful. Let's take three more with the breath. Inhale to come forward, picking up the pace just a bit. Exhale, come back, Down Dog. Two more, inhale. Hips lower, heart lifts, maybe bend the elbows a little bit and then exhale, Down Dog. And one more, inhale, come forward and exhale, Downward Facing Dog. So from here, from Down Dog, let's reach the right leg up and back, put a bend in the knee to open up the hip for a couple of breaths, maybe roll out the foot a few times, one direction and then the other and then straighten out through the right leg. We're going to step the right foot through between your hands and then lower the back knee down on an inhale, lift up, low lunge and then exhale, fold over your front leg for Ardha Hanumanasana. And then moving with the breath, inhale, rebend, lift up and lengthen, exhale, fold over the front leg. Good. One more, inhale, lift up and lengthen and exhale, half split, folding in and then rebend, tuck the back toes, lift the back knee up, you know, let the left hand find the earth right under the shoulder and then reach the right arm up and twist. So finding that lunge twist, hugging the right hip in, twisting from the navel up. Beautiful. And then if it feels okay, you might even take that right arm up and over the ear and then lowering the right hand down, we'll step back to Downward Facing Dog. On an inhale, shift forward to Plank Pose, let's keep the toes tucked again, let the heart melt, let the hips lower down and come to that modified Up Dog. Good. And then hips up and back, coming into Downward Facing Dog and we'll set up for side two. So on an inhale, left leg lift, bend the knee, open up the hip, maybe roll out the foot a few times in one direction and then the other. Good. And then straightening through the leg, step the left foot through between your hands, let the back knee lower, inhale, lift up and then exhale, fold over your leg. Good. Two more. Inhale, lift up and lengthen. Exhale, fold. One more. Inhale and exhale. Good. Rebend through the front leg, tuck the back toes, flatten out the right hand and then twist open toward the left. Good. So left arm reaches up, maybe gaze up toward your fingertips and then maybe take that top arm over the ear. Good. And then lowering it down, come back, Downward Facing Dog. And then again glide forward, let the belly drop, let the heart lift, inhaling and exhale, Downward Facing Dog. So inhale, rise up onto the toes, bend your knees, look forward, step or lightly float to your hands, come to the front of the mat and then inhale, offer the heart forward, come halfway up. Exhale, fold back over the legs. Good. Again, inhale, lift halfway up, lengthen. Exhale, fold in. One more. Inhale and exhale. Bend the knees, tuck the chin and roll up nice and slow, one vertebra at a time. And as you get to the top, circle the arms out and up, inhaling and then gather hands to heart. Exhale. Moving into some sun salutations. Inhale, arms lift, exhale, fold back over the legs and step the left foot to the back of the mat, let the back knee lower. On an inhale, lift up onto the fingertips and then exhale, fold over your front leg, Ardha Hanuman. Good. Re-bend, come back to your lunge, step back, Downward Facing Dog. Inhale, come forward to Plank Pose and then maybe keep the knees lifted lower all the way to the belly. Inhale, Cobra. And exhale, back to Downward Facing Dog. Good. Staying with the left side, inhale the left leg up. Exhale, step through, lower the back knee down, come onto the fingertips, inhale and then exhale, fold over the front leg. Good. Re-bend, tuck the back toes, step to a forward fold this time at the front of the mat. Root down to rise all the way up, inhale and exhale, hands to heart. Good. Right side, inhale, lift up, exhale, lengthen through the spine as you fold in, step the right foot back, lower the back knee down, inhale, lift up, exhale, fold over the leg. Good. Inhale, Re-bend, lift up and lengthen and then exhale back, Downward Facing Dog. On an inhale, come forward to Plank Pose, lower all the way down, Cobra Pose, inhale and then back to your Downward Facing Dog. Beautiful. Right side, left side, right side lifts, step through, back knee lowers, inhale, lift up, exhale, fold in and then Re-bend, tuck the back toes, step to a forward fold at the front of the mat, root to rise, inhale, lift up and lengthen and then draw your hands to your heart. Take a few breaths here. So if the eyes are closed, blinking the eyes open, let's come into Chair Pose, Utkatasana. So sinking the weight into the heels, sweep the arms up, draw your shin bones back. Good. And then taking a big full breath in, as you exhale, hands lower down, straighten the legs and fold in. Come halfway up, inhale and then plant the palms, step back, top of a Push Up Plank Pose and you might take Chaturanga this time. So shifting the weight forward, come halfway down, inhale, Upward Facing Dog or Cobra and then exhale, lift the hips up and back, Downward Facing Dog. Good. And then from your Down Dog, let's reach the right leg up, step your right foot through between your hands and open it up to Warrior II this time. So front heel is aligned with the back arch, take a gaze over your middle finger and then with the breath, start to straighten through the front leg. Inhale, reach the arms up, lift your gaze.

Good. As you exhale, come to your Warrior II. Good. And then moving with the breath, inhale, lift up and lengthen, exhale, Warrior II. One more. Inhale, lift up, lengthen and then exhale, Warrior II. This time flip your front palm, keep your Warrior II and tilt back. Inhale, exhale, extended side angle, elbow to the side, top arm over the ear. Good. And then with the breath, inhale, reach up and back, reverse. Exhale, extended side angle. One more. Inhale, Dancing Warrior. Exhale, extended side. Beautiful. And then come back, up and back, reverse. Circle your hands down and we'll step back, Plank Pose, Vinyasa if you want it or feel free to come back to Down Dog. Inhale to open the heart and then exhale, Down Dog. Take a big breath in and open the mouth, side out. Good. Left side, inhale your left leg up. Exhale, step through and then we'll open it up again to Warrior II. Take a moment to arrive here. Front knee over the ankle and then maybe take your gaze towards your middle finger. Find that point to focus the gaze and then finding that quality of fluidity on an inhale, straighten through the front leg. Lift your gaze, look up, lengthen and then exhale, Warrior II. Beautiful. And let's take that two more times with the breath. Inhale, look up and lengthen. Exhale, deepen your Warrior II. One more. Inhale and exhale. Good. And then moving into Dancing Warrior, flip the front palm, reach up and back, Reverse Warrior. And then exhale, Extended Side Angle. Elbow to the top of the thigh, top arm over the ear. Good. And with the breath, inhale, reach up and back. Exhale, Extended Side.

Inhale, reach up and back. Exhale, Extended Side Angle. Beautiful. And then one more Reverse Warrior just to come up and back. Circle the hands all the way down and through Vinyasa. Inhale, lift the heart. Exhale, Down Dog. And just take a moment to breathe. We welcome to lower the knees. Take Cat-Cow if you'd like. Rest in Child's Pose. Good. And as you're ready, we'll rise up under the toes. Bend the knees, look forward, step or lightly float to your hands. Come halfway up. Inhale, lengthen. Fold in. Exhale. Come back to Chair Pose. Reach the arms up. And then straighten the legs. Gather hands to the heart. Take a moment. Close the eyes. Maybe find that Lotus Mudra and breathe. To feel the lightness in the hands. Again, that non-grasping. Not holding on too tight. And what can you let go of right here a little bit more? And then as you're ready, we'll come back to Chair Pose. So inhale, back to Utkatasana. And let's flow with this a bit. So take a big, full breath in. And then as you exhale, sweep the arms back behind you. Lower the torso toward the thighs. And then move with the breath. Inhale, come up. Exhale, sweep the arms back. Good. Inhale, lift up. Exhale, sweep it back. Good. This time, inhale, come up. And then straighten legs. Find a lift through the heart. And then again, draw hands to heart. Good. So we're going to come into Eagle Pose. So start to let your weight come toward your left foot. And then we'll come back to Chair Pose. Cross your right leg on top of your left. And then you can wrap the foot behind the left calf. You're welcome to kickstand the toes down if you'd like, or just float that foot up off the earth. Whatever works for you. And then arms, right arm comes underneath the left. Wrap it up for Eagle Arms, either bringing the palms together, maybe the backs of the hands together. And then draw the elbows up away from you. Take a big, full breath in. And then find a point to focus the gaze. Again, if you find that you need help with balancing, toes down is great option. And then the transition out, we're going to come into Half Moon. So unravel the arms, reach the fingertips forward, reach the right leg back, flex the right foot, and then let your fingertips come right under that left shoulder. Maybe there's a block here. And then start to stack your hips and your shoulders. Beautiful. And then softly start to bend through the left knee. We'll step back to Warrior Two. So find Vera Two for a moment. And then just bringing your hands to your hips, start to straighten through the front leg parallel the feet. From here, draw the elbows back, lift up through the heart, and then hinging forward at the hips, find Prasarita. We're going to find a twist here. So bring the right hand right underneath your nose, reach the left arm out to the left, and then take your left arm to the outside of your right leg. So you can find that shin, you can find your ankle, and then whatever feels good with that right hand. So maybe walk the right hand forward and take a gaze up underneath your right hand or your right arm. And then just allow for a few full deep breaths right here. Again, just finding that nice detoxifying twist, fluidity in the breath. Good. And then release that side. We'll come halfway up on an inhale, walk back to your lunge facing the front of the mat, and then step to a forward fold at the front of the mat. Let's take a little detour here. So feet, hips, distance, hook your peace fingers onto your big toes. So the first two fingers and your thumbs. And then on an inhale, come halfway up, offer the heart forward. As you exhale, elbows out to the side, draw the low belly in and up, and let the crown of the head melt down. Maybe shifting a little more weight towards the balls of the feet. And just taking a moment to reset. Let the hands be soft and receptive. And then release your toes. And come on up. You can roll ups off of the knees.

And then we're back at the front of the mat, circle the arms all the way out and up. And again, gather hands to the heart. Lighten the hands, maybe that mudra, the heart space. And then we'll come to the other side. So we'll come back to chair pose. This time we'll take the weight into the right foot. Let the left leg cross on top of the right. Again, maybe kickstand toes down, maybe lift the foot up or wrap it around. And this time left arm comes underneath for eagle pose. Palms of hands together or backs of hands. And then let the elbows start to float away from you as you shift the weight back. So hips shift back and weight comes toward that heel. Focus the gaze. Feel the back body breathing. And then that transition into half moon. So unravel. See if you can make it nice and slow, reaching right fingertips forward. You might even float them off the earth for a breath. And then fingertips down, stacking hips and shoulders. Reach the left arm up. Maybe play with lifting your gaze up. Good. And that right leg might be talking to you. As you're ready, we'll come back to warrior two. So softly step back, straighten through the front leg, hands to the hips. And then again, elbows back, lift up and lengthen. And then hinging forward at the hips. Let your hands find the earth. Come halfway up. This time we'll take left hand right under the nose. Reach the right arm up. And then thread the right arm underneath the left, finding the outside of your left leg this time. And then maybe walk left hand forward. Maybe take a gaze under that left arm up toward the ceiling or anywhere along the way. Finding that twist in the upper body. And then don't forget to breathe. And then even as you're here, there might be little rocking, fluid movements. Find more ease in the body. Ease in the mind. Ease in the heart. Let that go as you're ready. Come forward, inhale to lengthen. Come back to your lunge. And then we'll step to a forward fold at the front of the mat. Folding in. And then heel, toe, feet, hips distance again. This time come halfway up. If it's accessible and you can bend your knees to get there, maybe step feet into palms of your hands, toes up toward the wrists. Inhale to lengthen. And then exhale. Fold over the legs. Draw the belly in. Shift the weight forward a little bit. And even let the shoulders start to creep up toward the ears. It feels good. If that's not accessible, find any fold that feels good. And then let that go. Root down. Rise up. And then again, hands in lotus mudra. Heart. And breathe. And let's come back to chair. So either feet, hips, distance, or you can step the feet together. Inhale. Utkatasana. And then exhale. Fold back over the legs. Uttanasana. Come halfway up. Inhale. Maybe hop back through your vinyasa this time. Chaturanga. Inhale up dog. Exhale. Downward facing dog. Let's reach the right leg up. Inhale. Step your foot through between your hands. Crescent pose. So stay on the ball of the back foot. Sweep the arms up. Let the back knee soften a little bit so the tailbone melts down. And we'll take a twist. So hands to the heart. Bring the left elbow on the outside of the right leg. And then take your prayer twist. And again, just like in the last practice, if you want to lower that back knee, go for it. If you want to go a little deeper this time, you might open up the arms or even find a wrap with your arms here. Maybe take the gaze up. Breathe. Good. And then let that go. Hands come down. Step the back foot in. Folding into pyramid pose. So folding over that front leg. Grounding down through the left heel. And breathing. So you can stay right here. Or we'll come into revolved triangle. So if you're coming into revolved triangle, come halfway up. And then let your left hand come to the inside or outside of your front foot. You might have a block under your hand here as well. That's usually a little bit more accessible. And then bring your right thumb to your right hip crease to encourage the right hip to draw back. And then any amount, start to peel the chest open to the right.

And then maybe add the right arm straight up toward the ceiling. Good. I know. Revolved poses. Big IT band opener. Play with the balance. Not my favorite. But that's why we do it. And then fold back over that front leg. And let's make a transition into standing split. So reaching the arms forward. Lift the left leg up. And then keeping this active. So on an inhale, lift the leg up. As you exhale, bend your left knee and tap the outside of your right ankle. And then we'll come back up to standing split. Folding over the front leg. And so again, bend the left knee. Bend the right leg. Tap the outside of the right ankle. And then one more time. Inhale, standing split. Exhale this time. Bend the right knee. Tap the outside of the right ankle with the left knee. And then sit it back so that you're in a seated spinal twist. And if this is too crunchy in the legs, feel free to straighten out through that left leg. And you can take your twist here. Otherwise, right fingertips back. Inhale, left arm up. And then find a twist. So you can bring the left elbow to the outside of the right leg. You can hug that right knee in if you'd like. Maybe take a gaze over the right shoulder. Come back to your breath. Beautiful. And then to unravel, look forward. Bring your hands behind you. Step the feet to the mat. And then inhale to lift up through the hips, taking reverse tabletop. Allow a big breath in through the nose. And then stick out your tongue, lion's breath. Let something go. Good. And then lower the hips down. Cross at the ankles. And then however you choose to get back to down dog. So you might reach the arms forward and hop the legs back. Inhale, up dog or cobra. Exhale, downward facing dog. And we'll meet there for a few full deep breaths. Let go of that first side as we prepare for side two. Inhale the left leg up. Exhale, step through. Again, crescent pose. So stay on the ball of the back foot. Soften the back knee. Actively reach the arms up. And then just take a moment to settle in. Notice what feels good. Beautiful.

And then hands to the heart and we'll find that twist. So keeping length in the spine. Come halfway down and then you can hook the right elbow on the outside of the left. And you might stay here. You might lower the back knee down. If you want to go a little deeper, you can find that arms open or find that wrap in the arms. Take one more breath in. And then hands down, step the back foot in. Flatten out the back foot. And just make sure your feet are hips distance here so you're not on a tight rope. And then inhale, find length. Exhale, pyramid pose. Fold over that front leg. And then find the breath. Good. So either stay here if you're taking revolved triangle. Come halfway up. Bring the hand to either a block or the earth on the inside or outside of the front foot. Left thumb to left hip crease. Encourage the left hip back. Find length. And then start to peel the chest open to the right. Maybe add the arm. If that feels sticky in the shoulder, then it's nice to just bring the arm out. Whatever feels best for you. Try not to have tension. Yeah. Point here, create some space and ease in the body. Doesn't mean it's not challenging. And then fold over the front leg, standing split. Walk the hands forward. Lift up through the back leg. Inhale, lengthen. Exhale. Bend the left knee. Bring the right knee to the outside, just tapping the ankle. And then inhale, sweep the leg up. Two more. Tap the outside of the left ankle. And then inhale, lift up. And then this time, we'll sit all the way back preparing for our twist. So again, if this is too much in the legs or just feels too crunchy, create some space by straightening out through the right leg. And the way staying here, sitting up nice and tall. Left fingertips behind. Inhale, right arm up. And then find your twist. Inhale to lengthen. Exhale. Keep it fluid. Keep it moving. And let that go. And this time, we'll find boat pose. So bringing the hands to the backs of the knees, sit up nice and tall. You're welcome to bring fingertips down to the earth. Otherwise, bend the knees. Bend up through the spine. Reach the hands forward actively. And maybe straighten out through the legs if you'd like. And we'll hold here for five, four, three. Spread the toes. And one. Same idea to get back to down dog. Play with it or just step back. Doesn't matter. Cross the ankles. Maybe hopping back. Cobra or up dog. Inhale. Downward facing dog.

Exhale. And let's lower the knees for a well deserved child's pose. Let the hips sink back to the heels. Maybe take the hands back behind you and let the forehead rest down and just relax. Stay here as long as you like. I'm gonna move into a nice hip opener from here. So whenever you feel ready, we'll roll up. Make your way back to downward facing dog. Take your time. Leisure down dog. And then as you're in your down dog, let's reach the right leg up. Bend your knee to open your hip. Maybe flip your dog. If you're flipping your dog, start to shift the weight forward. Shoulders over wrists. And then take the right toes behind you. Reach the right arm up and over your ear. And then feel the lift through the back of your heart. Good. Let the fingertips reach out. And then unravel. Right hand comes down to the earth. Right leg lifts up to the sky. And then draw your right knee to your nose and start to parallelish in toward the front of the mat. And we'll lower it toward pigeon. But just taking a moment here at the top and then bringing the hands out on either side of your yoga mat, we'll take a few fluid movements with the heart. So inhale to lift up. Exhale, bend the elbows and bow over your leg. Good. Inhale, peel the chest up and lengthen. Exhale, bend the elbows and fold in. One more. Inhale, peel up. And then this time we'll release into the fold. Feel free to grab any props here. You might have a bolster or blanket under that right hip. Otherwise walking hands forward, just surrendering into this hip opener. And then notice as we come towards stillness after all that fluid movement, notice that this fluidity still exists in the breath and the beating of the heart. And as you're here, can you allow your mind to stay on the waters of the heart? So as the mind starts to drift or take you away, come back to the heartbeat, come back to the breath.

Exhale, bend the elbows. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. Inhale. And slowly peel your way back up. Nice and slow. That was a nice long hold. So take your time getting out of there. And then we'll bring it back to down dog. Whatever you need to let go of that first side. So maybe shake the right leg up. You can pedal it out. Might take a cleansing vinyasa here if that's calling you. Otherwise we'll move to the left side. So inhale, sweep the left leg up in the knee, open up the hip. If you flipped your dog on the first side, maybe take that here, shifting weight over the wrist, step the left toes behind you. And then turning your dog inside out, lift up through the back of the heart, reach actively through the left fingertips. Breathing. Beautiful. And then unravel from here. Reach the left leg up, draw the knee to the nose, start to parallel the shin toward the front of the mat. And then same thing on this side. Let's bring hands on either side of your yoga mat and just keep it fluid. So inhale, peel the chest up, lift the heart. Exhale, bend the elbows, fold in. Good again. Inhale, lift up and lengthen. Exhale, bow in. Good. Inhale, lift up. And then when you're ready, we'll fold in, walking the hands forward, allowing in, relaxing through the head, the neck, shoulders, and tuning into the breath and the beating of the heart. Allowing, a few more breaths here.

A few more breaths here. Let the palm of the hand be soft. Relax through the backs of the eyes. And if you have that desire to want to get out of here, notice that and be with that. Allow it. When you're ready, walk your hands back in. This time just shift the weight off to one side, bring the legs out in front of you, and we'll roll onto our backs. So rolling back down, step the feet, hips distance, walk the heels in, fix your ponytail, and then we'll take some dynamic bridge poses to stay with that fluid quality. So pressing through the soles of the feet, lift the hips up, reach the arms up over your head, and then slowly roll down, let the arms roll down, let the hips come back down to the earth. I'm just taking a few more like that. So inhale, arms lift, hips lift, exhale, hips lower, arms lower. One more.

Inhale, lift up. Good. And then this time, leave the arms up over your head and slowly roll down, one vertebra at a time. Scoop the low belly in and out so you can really see how much of the spine you can allow to ground down. Good. And then as you get to the bottom, let the knees drop to the right side. So take a nice final twist and just wringing it out. Come back through center, exhale, knees left. And then with your breath, just moving side to side a few times, wringing everything out. Beautiful. And when you feel like you're good, come back to neutral, hug your knees in toward your chest, and then draw your nose up toward your knees, hugging everything in. Take a big breath in and then exhale side out and the legs go long, bringing the palms to face up on either side of the body. And then just making your way into your final resting pose, whatever that means to you, whatever you need to set yourself up in a way where you can just let go and let be. Good. Good. Good.

Good. Good. Good. Good. Let the breath deepen. Let it wash over you like the waves and just gently allow any movement back in. And then keeping the ease of Shavasana, we'll make our way up to a comfortable crossleg seated position. So however you'd like to get there, you might pause on your side for a couple of breaths. And then maybe the eyes stay closed, the gaze stays on the internal space. Just take a moment to find your seat, bring the hands together in front of your heart and Anjali mudra, and then from your Anjali mudra, again, opening it up into your lotus mudra. So feeling that blossoming the heart and the hands. Thank you so much for joining me for day three. I will look forward to seeing you tomorrow. And again, please let me know how it's going for you.