Movement in Stillness

Thank you for joining me for Movement and Stillness. For today's practice, we will need Two Blocks. We're gonna get started in a supported fish. So take one of your blocks near the back of your mat at the high setting. Take the other block below that at the medium setting.

We're gonna come onto our backs so that this first block comes right under the shoulder blades, and then this top block is gonna be under our head supporting the head. Couple of options here. The legs can be long or the feet can be together. The knees can fall open, which might feel quite nice through the inner thighs. Let the arms rest out by the sides.

If it feels comfortable, close your eyes. Draw a big breath in through the nose. And a big sigh out through the mouth. One more time. Big full inhale.

Great big exhale. And then with the close, just allow yourself to begin to drop into the shape and to really feel the support of the block beneath the head, the block beneath the shoulder blades, and to find this wonderful opening across the chest. If you have been sitting most of your day, then you might be feeling quite a bit of sensation, And so just know after another moment of holding this, the body will soften into the shape. But begin to notice and scan the body, sensing where we are feeling tension, where we may be feeling tightness or constriction. And with our awareness, just simply allowing a release, Feeling first, the inner thighs releasing.

Notice if you're squeezing the hands. See if you can just let your hands relax. Let your fingertips naturally curl. Soften the skin of the forehead. Relax the belly of the tongue away from the roof of the mouth. So there's lots of space in the back of the throat.

And notice if you are holding in your low belly, see if we can the belly to be soft. And then turn your attention to your breath. Noticing where the breath is landing, are we feeling the breath more in the chest, or are we feeling the breath more in the belly? And both are fine, but can you start to direct the breath down a little bit more all the way up to the sternum. And as we exhale, we're able to relax and release the shoulder head to a little bit more as the navel draws in towards the spine.

And so stay with this deep, full conscious breath. Letting the breath for a moment really be the movement. Moving that currency throughout the body, throughout the mind. And certainly through the heart in this shape. Move your awareness to your fingertips, to the palms, Just consciously becoming aware of the very subtle vibration or movement beneath the skin.

I move your awareness into the space between the shoulder blades that's now resting on the block. And feel that very subtle vibration of movement beneath the skin there. And if your feet are together, your knees are apart, feel that same vibration in the bottoms of the feet. Just allowing the thighs to open, allowing the knees to softly fall. On your next inhale, reach the arms up and reach the arms over your head.

Grab for opposite elbows with your hands. See if we can start to throw the elbows just very gently into the hand. So you might actually feel the muscles of the upper back actually engaged there, which is great. And as you throw the elbows into the hands, reach the forms back. Feel that length from the pubis all the way up the navel up the sternum.

Big breath in. Big exhale. One more time inhale. And exhale. Switch, grab the opposite opposite elbow.

And this time, rather than throwing the elbows certainly into the hands and reaching back. See if we can just allow the forms to drop down. Maybe 1 or 2 more inches. Just deepening this backbend. Embrace stillness for a few breaths.

Notice and feel and sense that internal movement, that vibration from fingertips, to upper back, to the breath, and let that currency move through the body. Big inhale. Big exhale. One last time inhale. Exhale, release the arms down by the sides.

Carefully and gently, if the feet are together, use your hands and just guide the knees back in towards one another. If your legs are long, bring your feet back to the earth, walk your feet out wide, bring your knees together to touch, and just pause. Again, noticing and becoming aware of that internal movement from the feet up to the crown of the head. And then very tenderly, rolling off to one side coming off of your support, Curl yourself up into a little fetal position. And when you feel ready, push your blocks off to the side.

And slowly make your way up onto your hands and your knees. On our hands and our knees, take a moment to pause. Take a moment and find stillness in the body and notice where we are feeling that vibration, notice where we are feeling that deep internal movement or currency. Just become aware of that. And then inhaling, we arch the back, drop the belly, move the shoulders back.

The heart moves forward. Acts, he'll tuck the tail, curl, and round. Pause in here for an extra couple of breaths just to counter the Really yummy backbend that we began with. So fill the space between the shoulder blades, inhaling arching, opening up across the chest and exhale rounding. Let's do a couple more at your own pace.

So just be tender, be delicate with yourself. Round and tuck the tail. Last one. Arch Open, broaden across the chest, and exhale around. Good. Come back to that nice neutral spine.

Tuck your toes. Lift your knees. Send your hips up and back downward facing dog. And just take a moment to move the feet, bend one leg straighten the other, press down through that opposite heel, and just go back and forth. Nice and easy. And then embracing stillness of the body, feet about hip bone distance or wider, Nice bend to the knees.

Lift the tail up to the sky. Draw the chest back towards the knees, towards thighs, relax your head. Spread your fingers nice and wide, really finding your thumbs, index fingers, finding the pads at the pinky fingers and thinking that you're creating an arch with your hands. So there's just a soft lift to the center of the palm. Draw your awareness in to that deep internal movement or vibration and just notice where that is for you.

Connect to that inner currency just flowing. Take a nice big inhale. Excel. One more time. Anyhow? And exhale.

Look forward between your ham guide your right foot forward. Spin your back heel down at 45 degrees. Make sure your right foot is a little more over to the right side of the maps, and your left foot is a little more over to the left side of the mat. Rising up warrior 1. Reach the arms high to the sky.

Take your time here to really find the foundation so we're grounding through our feet. The right knee is moving forward. The right hip is hugging back. And the left frontal hip point is moving forward. Turn the palms in towards one another, roll the armpits in.

And as we reach up soften through the shoulders, press into the back foot. So if that back knee is buckling in, see if you can really find the outer edge of the back foot just a little bit more. And maybe if we feel stable closing the eyes, what is moving? What is moving beneath the surface? Can you feel that currency? Just notice with that sense of curiosity allowing that movement within what feels still for us to inspire us.

To fill the pose with currency. Two more breaths here. And then release the hands down. Walk your back foot forward about 2 footprints. Straighten your front leg any amount, finding pyramid pose, or your variation of pyramid pose.

Keep at least a soft bend to the knee, so we're not locking out that right leg. Think about pressing into the right foot. Tenting your fingertips or palms are flat. Look out in front of you. Think that you're pushing your bat butt back and your heart forward.

And then think that you're folding from that place of extension and breathe. Let the currency here that you are aware of. Be the breath moving through the back of the right leg all the way up to the low back. To the sacral plate. 2 more big full inhale.

Exhale. Last time, inhale. And exhale. Go ahead and rebend your right knee. Slide your back foot back.

Spin up under the ball of the back foot. Step back downward facing dog. Pause. Notice. Especially that right leg, right hip. What is moving beneath the surface? And then take a big breath into that.

Exhale release. Come forward into plank. From your plank. Just start to roll gently forward and back through the balls of the feet. Pause for a moment.

Squeezing the inner thighs, finding the arch through the hands, and then a puffing up through the upper back. Feel the navel drawing in towards the spine. Chins softly and towards the chest so the crown of the head reaches forward. Where do we feel that deep inner movement beneath the surface? Notice it. And then lower all the way down.

Swish your hips side to side. Draw yourself up into your forearms, finding sphinx. So the elbows are right under the shoulders. Lakes can be spread nice and wide if it feels good on your low back, or you could bring your feet together, your thighs, and your legs together. Softly press the forms down into the mat and move the heart forward.

Think chin to chest rather than looking too far up or looking too far down, see if we can invite middle here for a few breaths and stillness. Feel and connect to that currency, to that vibration, wherever you might be experiencing that. And then stack your palms. Lower your forehead on your palms with your hips. Side to side.

Tensor your fingertips really wide outside of your mat. Press into the tops of the feet. Use the feet to lift the chest, finding a baby cobra. Inhale. Exhale forehead comes down.

One more time, press the feet. Lift through the chest. Forehead comes down. Send your hips back to your heels, finding ballast in a child's pose. Knees nice and wide.

A moment of stillness at the forehead down. Connect to that vibration. Feel the stirring. And then let's come back up into downward facing dog. Lift your hips up nice and high.

So look forward between your hands. Guide your left foot forward. Bring your back foot down 45 degrees. Rising up warrior 1, left hip back, right, hip for it, anchor into the outer edge of the back foot, spin the left hip back, the right hip for it. Press into the left big toe.

Palms turned in towards one another arm pits roll in a little bit more towards the ears. If it feels comfortable, close the eyes. Feel that currency moving through the body? Where is their movement? Where is their stirring? One more breath in him? Exhale release the hands down.

Step your back foot forward about 2 feet. Extend your left leg. Maybe on your fingertips here. Keep a soft little bend at least to the left knees. We're not hyper extending.

Draw all the heart forward as that left hit point moves back and then exhale fold. One more time, draw the heart for it, index how fold. Finding stillness. Notice the movement beneath the surface. Be aware.

The movement is the breath. Where do we wanna send that movement? Where do we need currency right now? Where do we feel stuck? Last in here. End exhale. Start to rebend your left knee.

Slide your right leg back. Plant your hands. Step your left foot back down hard facing dog. Draw yourself forward into your plank this time coming all the way down right away. Come up into the forms, finding sphinx, pausing and stillness is to recognize that movement.

Stack the palms for head comes down. Swish your hips. Tensor fingertips wide. Press into the feet. Lift the chest.

Exhale down. One more time, press feet. Lift up. Forehead comes down, hips to heels, child's pose, nice and wide with the knees and the thighs. I'm downward facing doc.

From down dog, walk your hands back to meet your feet, and then slowly begin to roll up one piece at a time. Just roll the shoulders once you get up to the top. Come to stand in the middle of your mat. We're gonna take a really wide stance Turn your right toes out. Turn your left toes slightly in.

Bend into your right knee warrior 2. So I like to bring here, exploring this movement within stillness, all ten fingers together. Alright? So I can just feel a little activation of the biceps and the triceps as I hold the stillness and just notice. Maybe closing your eyes. Again, if balance feels good, feel free to close the eyes to move that awareness inside. 2 more breaths.

And then straighten your front leg. Press into the ball of the right foot. Reach, reach, reach, out in front of you. Let your right hand find the shin. Maybe a block.

Let the left arm scoop up to the sky. Trico Nasana triangle. Rolling the right shoulder back, turn the right ribs up to the sky. Keep pressing into the ball, the right foot. Notice and observe.

Where is that vibration? Where is that currency moving? Can it inspire us to reach up just a little bit more through those left fingertips. Stay with it. 2 more breaths. And then reverse triangle. Right arm reaches up and back.

Warrior 2 from here, half moon, start to tip into your right leg, maybe the right fingertips to the earth or to a block. Left hand to your hip perhaps to begin. And then left arm reaches up to the sky. Press back through that left heel, spread through the toes. Maybe the right hand to the heart.

Find stillness just a few breaths here to encounter All of that currency moving through the body. One more. Softly wide legged forward fold. So from your wide legged forward fold, feed it really, really wide. Think heels out toes in slightly, bend your knees and sway it outside to side.

So just finding some movement here. And then invite stillness. Maybe your hands are planted. Maybe your hands find blocks. Maybe the hands crawl out or a little bit of a wide legged downward facing dog variation.

I like to bend the knees quite a bit here. So that I can use the fingertips to push forward and to move the buttock bones back and to reach the heart forward. Two more breaths. Last one inhale. Exale.

Crawl the hands back, spin your left toes out, 45 degrees in that back leg. Back foot, warrior 2. So all ten fingers together, shoulders relax. Find that nice ninety degree bend, the left knee, lower ribs draw in, maybe closing the eyes for a moment of stillness. Feel the vibration, feel the currency moving through the body.

And then from here, straighten your left leg, press into the ball, all the left foot, reach and lengthen forward. Lengthen lengthen lengthen. Left hand shin or block, right arm up to the sky, hug the left shoulder back, turn the left ribs up, reach up through the right fingertips. Find that stillness. Connect to the back foot. Lean back.

And breathe. Feel the currency. And then come on up. Reverse your triangle. Left arm reaches up and back.

Start to bend through your left knee. Tip forward into the left leg lifting the right leg up, arch and dress in a half moon, pressing back through that right heel, Maybe the left fingertips to the earth to a block. Maybe that half prayer at the heart finds stillness. As best you can. Maybe that right reaches up to the sky.

2 more breaths. And from here, step it back, low lunge, right, foot lands in the back, Left foot steps back downward facing dog. Take a moment, pedal through your feet. Come forward into your plank. All the way down.

Good friends. Finks here. Come on to your forearms. Stack your palms. Lower your forehead down to the palms. Tens your fingertips, lift the chest, forehead comes down, hips to heels, child's pose.

And he's nice and wide. Pauseing here. Take a couple more big, full in house and Excels here. And then slowly, slowly start to crawl up into your hands and your knees. We're gonna scooch over Sit down. Bring your legs out in front of you and just shake out your legs.

We're gonna bring our left shin parallel to the top of our mounts. Take your right ankle on top of your left thigh. So that our shins begin to stack almost like fire logs. Most of us, this top fire log is gonna be lifted. Don't worry about it.

Bring your hands by your sides for a moment and lift through your chest. So press down to lift up through the chest, to lift the heart, close your eyes. You're probably feeling quite a bit of movement beneath the surface right now. So just notice. Can we add the breath to that movement?

And then you could open your eyes. You're gonna twist here to the right. So your left hand can come on to the right thigh or the right knee. Right arm is gonna come back. Keep lifting through the chest.

And then come back through center. Release the legs out. Bring your hands by your sides. Just pause. Feel that.

And then let's switch sides. So right chin parallel to the top of the map. Left ankle on the right thigh. So we're stacking our fire logs here. This top one is high again.

Don't worry about bring your hands by your sides. Lift your chest as you press down into the earth. Close your eyes. Lots and lots of currency. Lots of movement beneath that surface.

Don't judge it. Just be with it. Layer in breath, and then we'll twist to the left So right hand left thigh or left knee, left hand behind you, lift your chest, turn to the left. One more inhale. And exhale. Come back to center.

Free your legs up out in front of you. This time, shake out your legs. And then look down at your legs and your feet. Feeder about hip bone distance apart. Flex your feet, draw your outer pinky toes in.

So we find a little more internal rotation. If possible, plant your hands right by your hips. Press down into your hands to lift your chest. And depending on the length of your arms, your arms may be completely straight or your elbows may be bent. But lift the chest Press your left heel forward, your right butt back, your right heel forward, your left butt back.

And just breathe here. This is quite active. Close your eyes. Feel the currency. Feel the movement.

Notice how even though we may feel that this is completely still or we are still that there is always something moving. Two more breaths. Last one, anyhow? And exhale. Relax.

Cross your favorite shin in front, finding Sukhasana, easy seats. And from here, place your palms together in a prayer, Anjali Mudra. Bow your head in towards that prayer towards the heart. Lift the heart into the thumbs. And take a moment.

Feel all that has been moving. Notice and observe. And honor your practice today, your efforts, and your commitment to yourself, with gratitude. Namaste.