Refreshing Flow

Welcome to our practice, thank you for being here. Our practice today is designed to increase the flow of energy and hopefully awareness through the body and hopefully release some tension and sticky spots in the neck, the shoulders, the back and the hips. So join me standing and we're going to start with a little bit of a bounce here so you can bring your feet wide and let the soles of the feet open and bend your knees and just begin to let yourself bounce up and down and maybe move a little bit faster, letting the skin move, letting the shoulders move, the face move and maybe a little bit faster. A few more moments here, just kind of shaking off, letting go, arriving and then pause, take a few moments here, just check in, feel, just allow for an inhale, nice full clearing exhale and then draw your shoulders up around your ears and as you exhale drop them down and again inhale roll the shoulders up and exhale drop. Let's do that one more time, drawing them up, dropping them down and let's roll them back one at a time, starting to move the upper body, the shoulders, the ribs, up into the heart, the throat, yeah. And then let's reverse that, maybe it's back up and forward, getting into the back of your shoulder blades, back of the heart, breathing, feeling into your body, nice. And then reach the arms out, let's round and roll the shoulders forward and then press through the feet and open up and then round and stretch the back body, press and open a few more times like this, feeling the essence of your cat cow through your spine, the shoulders and then stretching the arms out, press and reach, find that ease in your neck and then draw the fingers in and stretch the top of your wrists here, inhale, nice full exhale, release, draw the shoulders up back and down a few times, nice. And let's make our way towards the top of the mat, as you arrive, interlace your fingers, stretch the palms away and reach the arms up, spread your toes and feel that lift up through your spine, inhale to lengthen and take it over to the right, pressing through your left foot, lengthening, inhale back to center and over to your left, press through your right foot, opening, inhale back to center, release the arms, roll the shoulders forward, find that, interlace as you inhale, lift the heart, open the chest, exhale, bend your knees, forward fold, let the head and neck soften, stretch your arms up out and over, tap into the strength of your legs, inhale here, exhale, release the arms, soften your knees, chin into your chest, begin to gently roll up through your spine, curl the tailbone, stacking the bones, feeling your heart, feeling your shoulders, your head and paws, and feeling yourself arrive here in your practice, tuning towards the quality of the breath. Let's carry this into our sun salutations, bringing the hands together at the heart, Surya Namaskara A, as you inhale, circle your arms up to the sky and lengthen, and as you exhale, fold forward and in, releasing the head, maybe a soft bend in your knees, inhale draw the hands up the shins, half arch to lengthen, exhale bend the knees, ground your hands and step back into your down dog. In this first down dog you might pedal your feet, walk it off, wiggle, lengthen, breathe, and as you're ready on an inhale join me in plank pose, shoulders over the wrists, strong through your legs, reach back through your heels, forward through your heart, and then lower on down for cobra, on your inhale roll the shoulders up, back and down, lift the heart, the chest, and exhale lead with the heart lower, tuck the toes, press up and find your down dog, few breaths here, breathing into the back of the legs, lengthening the back of the neck, easing your feet towards your hands as you're ready. Once you arrive inhale half arch to lengthen, exhale bend your knees to fold, ground through your feet and on an inhale sweep your arms up to the sky and exhale hands together at the heart, taking a moment here to pause and notice and feeling that internal warmth and heat, your heart beat, the life pumping through you, the energy. Let's play towards Surya Namaskar B moving towards chair pose as you inhale reach your arms up and as you exhale bend your knees for Utkatasana, sink back into your chair, inhale here strong legs exhale forward fold, release the head, inhale half arch lift and lengthen, exhale bend the knees, ground the hands, plank pose and pause in your plank. From plank lower all the way down for cobra, inhale lift in your heart, exhale lower, tuck your toes, press up, find your downward dog. As you're ready inhale lift your right leg up towards the sky, exhale step through warrior one, ground for the back edge of your foot, stay low and strong in the legs, as you're ready inhale rise up, feel your ability to draw the tailbone under, draw the back right lung and lift the heart. Inhale inhale, exhale release plank pose, step back and lower, inhale to cobra lifting the heart, exhale lower, let's meet in downward dog, tuck the toes, press up, down dog. As you're ready inhale lift the left leg up, exhale step through warrior one, ground for the back edge, low and strong in the legs, inhale rise up, tailbone draws under, wiggle and lengthen up through the spine, drawing the left lung back, inhale, exhale release plank pose, spin onto the ball of your back foot, step the left foot back and lower, inhale to cobra, roll the shoulders back, lift the heart, find your cobra your edge, exhale lower, tuck the toes, downward dog, a few breaths here, take your time, bend your knees, walk or hop your feet to your hands, inhale half arch, find your length, exhale bend the knees in preparation for chair, stay low in the legs, inhale reach the arms forward and up, nice and wide in the back ribs, inhale, exhale press through the feet, stretch the arms up and exhale release, pause and notice again, feeling that internal warmth, heat, definitely breaking a sweat here, let's add on finding a high crescent lunge in our surya namaskar b, as you're ready inhale reach the arms up, exhale chair, utkatasana, shift the weight back, breathe wide into your back ribs, inhale, exhale forward fold, release, inhale to lengthen lift up half arch, exhale step back, plank pose, pause on your plank, you might lower the knees or lower chaturanga, and inhale to your cobra or maybe it's an upward dog lifting the heart, exhale down dog, as you're ready reach the right leg up to the sky, exhale step through in preparation for high crescent, strong and low in the legs, lift the heart, reach the arms back and maybe you begin to reach the arms up high crescent, feel how you can soften the back knee a little bit, draw the tailbone under and lift up through the heart, reaching, inhale here and exhale, release, step back and lower knees or chaturanga, inhale cobra or up dog and exhale down dog, as you're ready inhale left leg reaches, exhale step through, preparation for high crescent, strong in the legs, stay here or begin to open the chest, reach the arms back and reach the arms up towards the sky, again you might soften the back knee, draw the tailbone under and feel that beautiful energy up through your spine, back of the heart, inhale exhale release, plank pose pause, lower the knees or chaturanga, inhale cobra or up dog and exhale back down dog, taking a few breaths in your downward dog, as you're ready bend, walk or hop the feet towards the hands, inhale half arch to lengthen, exhale bend the knees to fold, ground through the feet bend the knees inhale chair pose, sweep the arms forward, sink back into your heels, inhale, exhale press, arms reach and lift, exhale hands together at the heart, again taking a moment to pause here and notice, check in, feeling that warmth, that light within, from here let's step our feet wide, we'll find some standing shapes, warrior two, turn the left foot and right foot out, bend your right knee and sink down into your warrior two, let the arms stretch palms open, inhale press through the ball of your right foot, straighten the leg, exhale bend warrior two, get inhale arms reach, exhale warrior two, last one inhale arms lift, right leg straightens, exhale warrior two, pause and reverse, slide the left hand down inhale right arm reaches, exhale side angle, right forearm on to the right leg, left arm reaches, you might stay here with the right forearm on to the right leg, you might bring that right hand down to a block or on the inside of the foot as you open the chest, feeling that rotation, beautiful, as you're ready inhale back into your warrior two, straighten the right leg and then toe heel the back foot in a little bit, inhale reach that right arm up straightening the right leg, we're gonna reach up, out and over towards triangle pose, feel how you can lengthen, right hand might find the shin, a block and then roll that left arm forward, so find that internal rotation, bend the elbow and wrap the hand, maybe around the thigh or the back, find a place where the neck feels good, breathing, beautiful, left arm reaches up, ground through your feet, inhale reach the arms up, let's bring the hands on to the hips and find the other side, spin that right foot in, left foot out, setting up for your warrior two, finding your alignment, left heel in line with the right inner ankle and settle in, feeling that tadasana up through the spine, the shoulders softening down, let's open the palms for warrior dance, inhale press through the ball of your left foot, arms reach, exhale warrior two, two more, inhale reach, exhale bend, warrior two, last one inhale, arms reach, legs straightens, exhale warrior two, we'll pause here and then reverse, right hand slides down, inhale left arm reaches, take a big breath and then exhale side angle, left forearm on to the left leg, opening the chest, you might sweep that right arm up, full side angle, you might stay here, bring that left hand to a block or on the inside of the foot, feeling that rotation through your spine, rooting through the outer edge of the back foot, ease in the neck, breathing, again stay low and strong in your legs as you inhale back into your warrior two, press through the ball of the left foot, straighten the leg, arm reaches and let's toe heel that back foot in for triangle, inhale exhale reach and begin to lengthen, reaching across the room, eventually left hand might find the shin or a block as you reach the right arm up, stay here or find that internal rotation through your top right shoulder, bend the elbow and maybe you find a wrap, the fingers around that front thigh and turn, revolve the chest, find a place where your neck feels good, breathing, take your time reaching that right arm up, ground through the feet and inhale come all the way up, let's turn the toes in or parallel, reach the arms out, roll both shoulders forward, find that interlace again, inhale lift the heart and exhale forward fold, releasing the head, stretching your arms up out and over, you might stay right here for a breath or two, you might slowly release the hands down by the sacrum and maybe begin to walk the hands forward, coming into a nice hammock pose here, letting the heart soften towards the earth, feeling the back of your neck releasing, you breathing into the back of your legs, take your time with this, slow walk the hands underneath the shoulders and then just toe heel your feet into a squat, heels in toes out malasana, bend the knees and find your version of a squat, from your squat, uttanasana, feet parallel, soft bend in the knees forward fold, take your time to roll up through your spine, chin into the chest and slowly begin to round and roll up, feeling the heart, feeling the shoulders, the face, feeling that inner warmth, ah, from here let's play towards tree pose, grounding through your left foot, feel the sole of the foot really opening towards the earth, from here opening up through your right hip and finding a spot that feels right for you, maybe it's the thigh, the calf, the ankle, you might bring the hands together at the heart, opening the chest, you might stretch your arms up towards the sky, feeling that wobble, that movement, nice, few more moments here, notice the quality of the breath and the gaze, leave firm through the standing hip, beautiful work, inhale and then exhale, release, relax the legs and take a moment, maybe find a bounce, shaking it out, nice full exhale, let's play towards the other side, grounding through your right foot, firming that hip, moving into tree pose, opening up through your left hip and you might bring the hands together at the heart, you might bring the arms up towards the sky, feeling that wobbling, the movement, steady the gaze, notice the quality of your breathing and really the quality of your inner experience here, nice, notice what you choose to do with your arms, last few moments here, inhale, exhale, release, take another moment to bounce, shake it off, let it go and join me at the top of your mat, hands together at the heart, as you're ready, now reach your arms up and as you exhale, fold forward and in, as you inhale, half arch length in your spine and as you exhale, bend your knees and just find your way into your downward facing dog, pause here, releasing the back of the neck, now as we play towards Vasisthasana side plank, you might ground that right knee, spin onto the outer edge and reach that left arm up towards the sky, you might join me from your down dog to inhale into your plank and from your plank, shift your weight into your right hand and wrist and then begin to let your left arm float up towards the sky, feel that reach from your heart into your hands, now you might have your feet stacked on top of each other, you might scissor your legs, reaching inhale, exhale slow, find your way back into your plank and let's lower the knees, tuck the toes and round back, need a little cat cow here to release the spine, the wrist, inhale to lengthen and exhale to curl and round, inhale to lengthen and exhale to round, easing our way into the second side, you might ground that left knee, extend out through the right leg and reach the right arm up, you might join me from down dog and as you're ready, inhale into your plank, strong plank, shift the weight into the left hand and shoulder, press the floor away and reach the right arm up towards the sky, feel that reach from the heart into the hands, find that ease in the neck, drawing a deep low belly in, inhale and exhale to lower, lower the knees and cat cow here, inhale to lengthen and exhale to round, inhale to extend and exhale round, nice, let's explore and play with a dolphin dog, right, so as you come onto your forearms, measure off hands around the elbows and then ground the hands here, arms about shoulder width apart, you can also use a block between your hands, releasing the neck, tuck your toes under and begin to lift up into your downward dog with the forearms on the floor, bend the knees and lift your sitting bones towards the sky, again soft neck, keep that lift in the sitting bones you might play with walking your feet closer towards the face, keep that lift, keep the shoulders active and engaged, when you feel ready, walk the feet back, lower the knees and round your way back towards a child's pose, forehead might come down, arms might sweep down alongside the body, new moments here, feeling this inner settling, and take your time, we'll use our way into pigeon to release the hips, so from your down dog, spread your fingers, lift on up into down dog, we might inhale, reach the right leg up, bend the knee, open the hip and then reaching that right leg up and then drawing it through for pigeon, you might bring a blanket underneath that right hip, kind of snuggle in, feel that internal rotation through your back thigh, that nice extension up through the spine, and you might stay right where you are, really feeling into and listening to your body, your hip, as it would feel good and interesting, you might begin to walk your hands forward, notice what you choose to do with your neck, it might be releasing or supported, and usually when I'm meeting quite a bit of sensation, I like a little bit of oscillation, a little bit of movement, softening the eyes and the jaw, notice the quality of your breath, you might experiment with breathing into where you feel the sensation, and then a generous exhale, softening, releasing and letting go, and eventually you might offer yourself towards a moment or two of stillness, you're welcome to stay with this as long as you'd like or slowly begin to walk your way up and out, tuck the back toes, and lift up into your down dog, one leg, reach that right leg up, bend the knee, open the hip, and then release it down, let's find that left side, inhale, left leg stretches, bend the knee, open the hip, stretch it back up to the sky, and as we're ready, draw it through for pigeon, and wiggle back through that right leg, you might toe heel that front left knee forward, and settle in, you might bring support underneath your left hip, finding that internal rotation through your back right thigh, and you might stay right where you are, kind of up and extension, lengthening, if and as you want to feel more, you might begin to, or something different, you might begin to ease your way forward and in, most likely this side feels different, for me it does, soften something, notice what you choose to do with your arms, your neck, your head, this is the quality of your breathing, allowing the inhale to create a bit of space through the hip, and the exhale to soften and release, any stickiness, any tension, you might prefer a little bit of movement, or stillness, honoring your timing, your rhythm, you might stay a bit longer, when you feel ready, slowly walk your way up, tuck your back toes, and begin to lift up into your down dog, one leg, opening up, stretch that left leg up, and then open the hip, and then left leg reaches, and lower, good, let's lower the knees, and transition back, sitting on the heels, take a moment to pause, and let's find our way onto our back, moving towards bridge pose, balancing the hips here, so find your way onto your back, bend your knees, bring your heels in line with your sitting bones, and take a few moments to feel kind of the essence of your cat cow here, your ability to arch and curl, and let's bring that into our bridge, inhale, exhale, curl the tailbone under, press through your feet, lift your pelvis up, as you ground through your feet, feel the front of your body lengthen, inner thighs lengthening, you might roll and tuck your shoulders under the back, maybe finding that interlace, buoyancy out through the lungs, spacious in your throat, taking your time here in the bridge, really feel this, this balance of strength and ease, yeah, hmm, when you feel ready, slow release the arms, stretch them up to the sky, lift your heels, begin to round your upper back, lowering mid back, low back, arms, pelvis, and pause, and notice how you feel, you might take a second round of bridge, if you're inspired to move in the direction of wheel, you might join me, flipping the hands, drawing the elbows towards each other, inhale, and exhale, you might press up onto your head, lift the shoulders, press through the hands, and begin to lift up through the heart, the spine, relaxing the buttocks, ease in the neck, breathing, inhale, take your time, when you're ready, chin into the chest, and slow lower down, release the arms, palms up, beautiful, it might feel good to stretch the legs out, or stretch the legs up to the sky for a moment, stretching the back and the knees, the legs, from here, let's ease our way into windshield wipers, bending the knees, feet nice and wide, your arms might stretch up, releasing the spine, and your head might rock away from your knees, side to side, and feeling into, if there's any last movements your body would like to explore, as we wind down and close our practice, you might bring the soles of the feet together, knees wide into Supta Baddha Konasana, you might draw your knees into your chest, might find your way towards a happy baby, eventually take your time stretching out into your Shavasana, stretching the legs out, and letting yourself release, if you're in Shavasana feel the weight of the body settle, the weight of the bones drop, you allow for a sigh, an exhale, and you're welcome to stay there as long as you'd like, and as you feel ready to close your practice, use your way towards the seat, we'll take a few moments to close together, and as you find your seat, you now feel the spine lengthen, and as you exhale, soften the front of the body, and think of someone that makes you smile, feel that warmth, that energy, sunlight around the heart space, and joining the hands together, allow for an inhale, and a soft bow forward and in with your exit, namaste, thank you so much for joining and have a beautiful day.