Sunny Morning Flow

Welcome, and thank you for joining me for this sunny morning flow, where we will move through a series of sun salutations to warm the body and free the mind before moving into a couple grounding stretches to begin your day. So please join me at the front of the mat, we'll start standing, and just take a moment to ground, so feel your feet on the earth, maybe draw your hands together in front of your heart and Anjali Mudra. And if it would feel safe for you to let your eyes close for a moment just to arrive, take a moment to soften and close the eyes, allowing the gaze to shift to the internal space. And right away, just begin to notice that you're breathing, feeling the rise of your inhale and that letting go quality of your exhale. You'll breathe together, allowing a big full breath in through the nose, filling up.

Maybe open up your mouth and let out a sigh or a sound. Let something go as you arrive here. Two more like that, inhale through the nose, exhale to release. One more cleansing breath. Big full breath in.

Exhale to release, let the arms fall by your side. We'll start with half sun salutation, so as you're ready, inhale, sweep the arms all the way up, lengthen up through the fingertips, maybe gaze up. As you exhale, soften the knees a little bit, long spine, come into a forward fold, Uttanasana. Feel free to put as much of a bend in the knees as you'd like here. And then on your next breath in, walk your hands up onto your shins, lengthen through the spine, gaze forward, good.

And then exhale to release that, soften the knees, fold in. Root down through the feet, come all the way back up to stand, arms sweep out and up. Exhale, draw your hands to your heart and we'll do that two more times, allowing the breath to guide our movement, inhale, arms sweep up, gaze up, heart lifts. Exhale, long spine, soft knees, forward fold, good, inhale, lift halfway, lengthen through the spine, either fingertips on the earth or maybe you're walking them up onto the shins. Exhale, release back into your fold, Uttanasana, good, root down to rise, arms sweep out and up, maybe lean back a little bit as you gaze up, exhale, hands to heart.

One more time, inhale, arms sweep up, entire length of the exhale, forward fold, inhale, lengthen, come halfway up, offer the heart, exhale, right back into your fold, root down to rise, arms sweep out and up, exhale, hands to heart and we'll add on moving into sun salutation A, inhale, arms sweep up, exhale, forward fold, inhale, lift halfway and lengthen, this time plant your palms on the ground and step back to plank pose, top of a push up. We'll meet there and just taking a moment to find your plank, let your shoulders come over the wrists, hips in line with shoulder blades really activating through the legs and your core, start to shift your weight forward and back a few times, always welcome to lower your knees and the next time you shift the weight forward, hug your elbows in, let's take a slow lower all the way to the belly, good and as you come down untuck your toes, press into the top of your feet, hug the elbows in and start to lift up into cobra pose, so lifting and lengthening back of the neck long, big breath in beautiful as you exhale, either pressing up through hands and knees or plank pose will come into our first downward facing dog, as you lift your hips up and back into down dog, start to pedal it out through the feet, maybe move around a little bit, you could sway your hips side to side, feeling into the back of your legs letting your sitting bones reach up toward the ceiling, maybe finding that point to focus your gaze as you start to find stillness, find your breath, breathing in, stay for your exhale on your next breath and rise high up onto the toes, bend your knees and look forward, step or lightly float your feet to your hands, come back to the front of the mat, good on an inhale lift halfway Arda, as you exhale soften and fold Uttanasana, go root down to rise, arms sweep out and up, exhale draw hands to heart, good let's keep moving with that, inhale arms sweep up, exhale soften and fold Uttanasana, inhale lift halfway lengthen, plant your palms step back plank pose top of a push up, this time as you shift your weight forward welcome to come halfway through Chaturanga or all the way down, you could stay with cobra or if you feel ready coming to upward facing dog, firming the thighs up off the earth, straightening out through the arms, heart lifts, beautiful and then meet me back in downward facing dog roll over the toes, lift the hips up and back allowing three to full five, three to five full deep breaths here, breathing in, breathing out, allowing that exhale to be the quality of releasing, of letting go of anything that you might be holding here creating a little more space, a little more ease in your day, beautiful on your next breath in rise up onto toes bend knees look forward step or lightly float your feet to your hands front of the mat, inhale lengthen come halfway up, exhale release and fold, good, root down to rise arms sweep out and up, exhale draw hands to heart, let's take one more round Surya Namaskara A, inhale arms lift, gaze lifts, exhale fold, inhale lift halfway lengthen plant your palms step if you feel ready you might lightly float back through Chaturanga, inhale heart lifts cobra or upward facing dog, exhale meeting back in downward facing dog, let's allow a big full breath in here, maybe open up the mouth and let out a sound or a sigh, good and then from here let's sweep the left leg up and back, put a bend in the left knee to open up through the left side body, the left hip, any movement that would feel good you could roll out your foot a few times, good and then straighten through your left leg we'll step the left foot all the way through between the hands, one step bunch of steps doesn't matter and then spinning the back heel down let's sit up for warrior two so letting the right arm guide us up and open we'll face the side of the mat, take a moment in this first round just to land find your alignment letting the shoulders soften take your gaze over the left hand and then finding just as much awareness in the front leg as the back leg as we find this rooted and grounded quality through the lower body but this lightness and ease in the upper body, good and then keeping shape with the legs flip the left palm tilt back for reverse warrior keep the shape with the legs and feel that nice length in the left side body big breath in good exhale circle hands to the earth step back plank pose and then moving through your vinyasa halfway or all the way down chaturanga inhale cobra or upward facing dog exhale meeting back in down dog taking it to the right side as you're ready inhale right leg lifts bend through the right knee to open up through the right side maybe roll out your foot a few times in either direction beautiful and then start to straighten out through the right leg gaze between the hands take a big step through and we'll set up for warrior two on the second side so spinning the back heel down this time let the left arm guide you up and open to face the side of the mat and again just take a moment on this first round to wiggle in find your alignment letting the shoulders soften as you sink in and root down find that ease in the upper body gazing over the right hand beautiful and then keeping that shape flip the right palm tilt back for reverse warrior light on the left fingertips as you reach up and out of the right side body big full breath in to lengthen and then as you exhale circle hands to the earth step back your vinyasa shift forward come halfway or all the way down chaturanga inhale cobra or upward facing dog exhale meeting in downward facing dog allowing a big full breath in as you exhale release let something go good on your next breath in rise high up onto toes bend your knees look forward step or lightly hop your feet to your hands front of the mat on an inhale lifting halfway to lengthen exhale fold this time let's bend our knees deeply coming into chair pose utkatasana sweep the arms up let the hips sink down toward the height of your knees find length in your spine beautiful and then pressing through the soles of the feet straighten the legs any amount feel the heart lift as you exhale drawing hands back in front of the heart so we'll move with the breath and move through that two more times hello and when you're ready come back to chair utkatasana inhale arms sweep up exhale forward fold straighten the legs bow forward inhale lift halfway and lengthen plant palms step or lightly float back vinyasa inhale cobra or upward facing dog exhale down dog this time right away sweep the left leg up and back big breath in exhale as you step through as we come through warrior two let's flip the front palm and come all the way into reverse warrior so flowing with the breath inhale exhale circle down right through chaturanga inhale cobra or upward facing dog exhale downward facing dog right side inhale right leg lifts exhales to step through inhale all the way up and through warrior two to reverse warrior reach up and back exhale circle down to the earth step back chaturanga inhale cobra or up dog exhale downward facing dog breathe in breathe out inhale rise up onto toes bend knees look forward step or lightly float to hands front of the mat inhale lift halfway and lengthen exhale fold right back to chair utkatasana inhale arms sweep up exhale press through the heels feel the lift in the heart as you straighten out through the legs hands to heart one more round with the breath inhale chair utkatasana exhale fold in inhale lift halfway exhale your vinyasa step or lightly float back chaturanga inhale cobra or up dog exhale auto muka down dog left side inhale left leg lifts exhale step through inhale as you come up and back reverse warrior exhale circle down vinyasa as always feel free to skip or move through chaturanga inhale cobra or up dog exhale down dog right side inhale right leg lifts exhale step through inhale up and back reverse with your breath circle down and through step back chaturanga inhale cobra or up dog nice work exhale ha let it go down dog and then from here come high up onto your toes lift your heels let your knees come down to the earth and let's find child's pose let your hips sink back to your heels reaching arms forward hips back and take a moment to land take a moment to notice where does that movement land in your body from your child's pose start to tent your fingertips let the elbows lift up and then crawl both hands over to the right as you lift up and out of the left side body stretch through the left side maybe let a little weight shift towards your left hip breathing into the rib cage walk your hands back through center and over to the left breathing into the right side letting a little weight shift toward the right hip coming back through center slowly start to roll up to sit back on your heels and then meet me on your back so we'll roll onto the back bring the knees with you hug your knees into your chest and just start to rock a little side to side massaging through the lower back maybe taking your knees in circles in either direction good and then let the soles of the feet come down to the earth knees bent feet about hips distance will press up into bridge pose lift the hips you can press through the palms of the hands or maybe wiggle the shoulders underneath you find an interlace letting the chest come up toward the chin just feeling that opening in the front of your body pressing into the soles of the feet finding your breath expanding through the inhale slowly releasing on the exhale vertebra by vertebra moving into thread the eye of the needle cross your right ankle on top of your left knee find that figure for shape with your legs and then start to draw the shape in towards you you could interlace behind the left thigh or on top of that left shin allow the shoulders to soften and breathe into the right hip finding that opening here it might feel good to rock a little side to side or just find some stillness as you find your breath beautiful and then releasing the soles of the feet back to the earth cross your left ankle on top of your right knee find that figure for shape maybe matching what you did on the first side or maybe this side feels a little bit different but wherever you're at where might you soften just a little bit more your eyes your shoulders your breath breathing into this second side and then releasing that as you let the soles of the feet come down to the earth hug both knees into your chest setting up for happy baby you could hold on to your feet or your ankles or your shins letting the knees go wide shoulders soften maybe rock a little side to side if there's anything else that you need here to feel complete in your practice honoring that otherwise we'll hug the knees back in hugging everything in nose to knees big full breath in and exhale release side out let everything release into shavasana legs long palms face up on either side of the body feeling that complete surrender to the support of the earth beneath you allowing yourself to let go to let be just rest please stay here as long as you'd like otherwise allowing your breath to deepen bringing attention back to the body lighting any gentle movement back in and slowly just taking your time to make your way to a comfortable seat either rolling up you might roll to one side and then gathering hands together in front of the heart in anjali mudra and gratitude just acknowledging yourself for showing up for you and thank you for sharing this practice I hope you have a beautiful day namaste