Held in Balance

(waves crashing) Hi, welcome. Today we're gonna take a look at our core. In particular, I wanted to focus on our transverse abdominis So, often when we think about our core muscles we think of the more vertical muscles fibers of our belly, that's where we get a lot of our crunches from. The transverse moves horizontally across our body, so there is a sense of, like, closing the door, which is particularly important if you've ever shared space with a baby learning how to close the door, come back to our center. And the more power we can find in our center, the more expression we can explore out through our limbs.

So, how do we move into space without being sent off balance? How do we connect with community without being taken off our feet? So, let's start on our backs. So please lie down. So, lie down for a moment, bend your knees, place your feet on the floor, and bring your hands to your hip points, your ASIS, the bony parts in the front of your pelvis.

Now, between these two points is your transverse abdominis. Start to feel like you could draw your hip points towards each other. Notice what that does to your low back. Do you feel how the space around your sacrum begins to broaden? So keep that information, we'll explore it more.

Hug your knees into your chest. Organize your legs so your knees are right over your hips and then bring your shins so they're parallel to the floor and reach your arms off to the sides, and you can turn your palms down towards the floor. So, allow for all the natural curves of your spine, but again, engage your transverse by moving your hip points towards each other. Find a nice strong inhale and exhale, send your legs on over to the left, but then draw your belly button to the right. So, legs are going left just a foot or so, and then belly button is spiraling right.

Come back to center and find the second side. So legs are spiraling right, or reaching right, and then our belly button spirals to the left, and come back to center. Let's do one breath per movement. So, inhaling to the side and exhale back to center. Inhaling to the side, and exhale back to center.

Continue like that on your own and if you like, you can straighten out your legs, but if you feel a ton of tension moving into your jaw and into your neck, then bend your knees again. So again, most importantly here, we feel the spiraling of our belly button, legs going one direction belly going the other. Once you're feeling balanced side to side, let's meet up back at center and hug your knees into your chest, bring your hands to your shins. Feel the weight of your arms, move your legs towards your torso. Bring your forehead up towards your knees, allow your shoulder blades to come off the ground, and reach your fingertips straight forward.

Use the strength of your belly to move your legs towards your torso. Exhale. On an inhale, reach your feet straight up towards the sky, reach your arms back overhead, let the back of your hand touch the ground, and exhale, knees into chest, hands reach forward, forehead towards knees. Inhale, feet reach up, arms reach back, head touches the ground, and then exhale knees into your chest. Arms reach forward.

So, continue like that and if you like, as you inhale you can begin to extend your legs more towards the diagonal, so you're increasing the angle between your legs and your torso. Follow your breath, enjoy the four parts of your breath, reaching all the way out to the top of your inhale, and moving in all the way to the base of your exhale. (inhaling and exhaling) Let's meet up with our knees hugging in towards our chest and you can simply release your head down to the floor. Bring your hands to the backs of your legs and roll up to your seat, and let's come into navasana. Grab hold of two blocks and bring your blocks right alongside your hips.

Bring your hands to the backs of your legs. Start to reach your feet off the ground, shins can become parallel to the floor, arms can reach forward. Then, if you like, start to straighten out your legs for navasana. Lengthen up through your heart center, lengthen up through your throat center. Cross your right ankle in front of your left, move your knees into your chest, get nice and little, bring your hands to your blocks, press into your hands, lift your hips, lift your legs, maybe take a little swing, lower your hips, and come back into navasana.

(inhaling and exhaling) Cross your left ankle over your right, bring your knees into your chest, hands to your blocks, press down, lift up, could even find a little swing, lower down, let's do it one more time. (inhaling and exhaling) Cross your ankles, plant your hands, lift up, and lower down. Move your blocks on over to the side, plant your hands and transition to downward-facing dog. Inhale breath, come forward to plank, and let's pause and plank. So, in plank pose, reach back through your inner heels and your outer heels, and again, feel your hip points moving towards each other so the belly's strong.

Often times in plank we're just relating to the floor, press into your hands, and relate also to the space above you, relate to the ceiling, relate to the sky, shift forward, lower all the way down to your belly, bring the tops of your feet onto the ground, inhale, come into cobra and exhale, lower. Now bring your hands to your hip points again, you can bring the backs of your hands onto the ground, just slide your hands under, and now for a moment, press your hips down, so press your pubic bone down, and notice how your hip points start to press into your hands, and now release from that. And now, move your hip points towards each other then begin to lift the skin of your belly, and notice how your hip points move away from your hands. That's accessing your transverse abdominis. Release your hands.

Bring your hands underneath your shoulders for cobra and again, move your hip points towards each other, then start to lift the skin of your belly, rise up through the center of your heart, rise up through the center of your throat, reach into your hands and reach them back to reach your sternum forward and up (inhaling and exhaling) and slowly lower. Inhale again, low cobra, tuck your toes, lift your thighs, feel the strength of your legs, reach into your hands, feel your belly engage, inhale plank, exhale down dog. Inhale, lift your heels, exhale, bend your knees, look forward, and step forward to the front of your mat. Inhale, lengthen halfway, exhale, fold, uttanasana. Press into the ground, inhale, come all the way up to stand, exhale, hands come down.

Inhale, reach your arms up, exhale, fold. Inhale, halfway lift, and exhale, step back to plank. Take an inhale on plank, and exhale, lower your right forearm down to the ground and then your left forearm down. Inhale, left hand, then right. Exhale, right forearm, then left forearm. Inhale, left hand, then right.

You can always do this with your knees down if you need. Exhale, right forearm, then left forearm. Inhale, left hand, then right. Exhale, right forearm, then left forearm, then pause. Organize your elbows right underneath your shoulders, press down through your forearms, reach back through your legs, and then lower your knees, lower your thighs, come into sphinx pose.

Again, remember hip points moving towards each other, low belly begins to lift. On an inhale, open up your chest even more, open up your throat, look up. Exhale, bring your chin to your chest, press down into your forearms, move your shoulder blades apart. Inhale breath, chest lifts, gaze lifts. Exhale, root down through your forearms to lower.

Inhale breath, open up your chest, look up, and exhale, press down into your forearms, bring your chin to your chest. Do that two more times on your own. Find your own breath sequence with this, find your own pace. (inhaling and exhaling) Then inhale breath, look forward, exhale, lower all the way to your belly, bring your hands underneath your shoulders, inhale, cobra, exhale, plant your hands, tuck your toes, lift your thighs, inhale, plank, and exhale, down dog. (inhaling and exhaling) Inhale, lift your heels.

Exhale, bend your knees, look forward, step forward to the front of your mat, inhale, halfway lift, exhale, fold down. Inhale, rise to stand, press into the ground, reach your arms up, and exhale, hands come down. One more time like this. Inhale, arms up, exhale, fold. Inhale, halfway lift, exhale, step to plank.

Inhale in plank, exhale lower your left forearm down and your right forearm down. Inhale, right hand, and left. Exhale, left forearm, and right forearm. Inhale, right hand, and left. Exhale, left forearm, and right forearm.

Inhale, right hand, and left. Exhale, left forearm, and right forearm, and pause. So, reach down into the biggest part of your forearm, feel your belly strong, reach back through your inner heels and outer heels. Relax your jaw, and your tongue, and your eyes. Lower your knees, lower the tops of your feet, and start to open up for sphinx pose.

Again, belly stays strong, hip points draw towards each other, open up your chest. Nice, strong inhale. Exhale move your chin to your chest, broaden across your upper back. Inhale, open up your chest, look up, and exhale, chin to chest. One more time, inhale, and exhale.

Inhale, look forward, exhale, lower all the way down. Bring your hands underneath your shoulders, inhale, low cobra, exhale, tuck your toes, lift your thighs. Press down into your hands, and inhale, plank. Exhale, down dog. Inhale, reach your right leg up to the sky.

Exhale, come forward to plank and bring your right knee to your right armpit. Inhale, glide your knee down to your elbow. Exhale, drop back up to your armpit. Inhale, glide it down, exhale, draw it up. Inhale, glide it down, exhale, draw it up.

Inhale, glide it down, exhale, draw it up. Inhale, reach your right leg up, and exhale, step your right foot forward between your hands. Prepare your legs for a high lunge, and then inhale, rise up for high crescent lunge. Bring your hands to your hip points, and move your hip points towards each other again. So, feeling this wrapping quality, reach your arms up, and bring your left hand to the back of your left leg.

Now, let your hand meet your leg, and then start to rise up through the skin of your belly, rise up through your chest. Exhale, lower your hands down, plant your left hand. Inhale, reach your right arm skyward. Feel your left side belly move right. Twist from the space behind your belly button all the way up through the top of your head.

One more inhale, exhale, lower your right hand down. Walk your hands forward and lift your back foot off the ground. This is a nice place to bring your hands onto blocks if you need. Make sure that your back leg is in a parallel rotation, and then bend your supporting knee, your right knee, and bring your hands to your right thigh. Now press into your hands and feel your belly strong.

Move your hip points towards each other. Press into the floor, straighten out your right leg, reach your arms back to frame your hips, Warrior III, collarbones spread apart. Can you find the core's strength here in this really expansive balancing shape? Slowly lower your hands, step back to a nice, big lunge, plant your hands and reach your right leg back up high to the sky. Inhale, exhale, right knee crosses the body to the left elbow.

Inhale, reach it back, exhale, right knee, left elbow. Feel the belly spiraling. Inhale, reach it back, exhale, right knee, left elbow, pause. Bring your back heel down, pause, reach your right leg to the side, bring the pinky toe edge down, pause, and press down through both hands. Allow your right side body to be slightly shorter, keep pressing down through both hands, and then free this up and reach your left arm up to the sky and reach your left fingertips to the front of your mat.

Upper arm reaches in line with your ear. Exhale, lower left hand down and step back to down dog. Options to stay here, you can move through a vinyasa, you could take a moment in child's pose. If you like, come forward to plank, chaturanga. Back bend of cobra or up dog, and then down dog.

(inhaling and exhaling) With enthusiasm, let's try the second side. Inhale, left leg up, and exhale, left knee to armpit on the left side. Inhale, glide it down to the elbow, exhale, draw it up through the armpit. Inhale, glide it down, exhale, draw it up. Inhale, glide it down, exhale, draw it up.

Inhale, reach your left leg up high, and exhale, step your left foot forward between your hands. Organize your legs for a lunge and inhale, rise up for high crescent lunge. So, once again, bringing our curiosity into the strength of our belly, let's bring our hands to our hip points and feel your hip points moving towards each other, and then begin to lift the skin of you belly. Lift up through your heart center, life up through your arms. Bring your right hand to the back of your right leg, and press your leg into your hand.

And now begin to open up your chest, explore backbend with the grounding center. (inhaling and exhaling) Exhale, lower your hands down. Plant your right hand, inhale, reach your left arm up. Feel right side belly spiraling left. And then spiral all the way out through the top of your head.

Exhale, lower your left hand down. Walk your hands forward, lift your back foot off the ground. Back leg in parallel rotation, rise up through your inner thigh and now bend your supporting knee. Bring your hands to your front thigh. Press down into your hands and just feel your belly engage but also notice how that makes your chest draw back.

Can you keep the belly strong, and then straighten out your left leg, reach your arms back to frame your hips, and now smile across your chest. Open you collarbones away from each other. (inhaling and exhaling) Slow motion, bend your front knee, step back to a lunge, plant your hands, reach your left leg up high to the sky, Inhale. Exhale, left knee, right elbow. Inhale, reach it back. Exhale, left knee, right elbow.

Inhale, reach it back. Exhale, left knee, right elbow, pause. Bring your back heel down, pause. Reach your left leg to the side, come to the pinky toe edge of your foot, pause there and really press down through both hands. Allow the left side body to be shorter than the right side body.

And then free this up, reach your right arm up to the sky. Reach your right fingertips forward. Enjoy all this length right side body, and lower your right hand down, and lift your left leg back up high to the sky. Find downward-facing dog. Options, you can stay here, you can move through plank and chaturanga dandasana, you could pause in child's pose.

Inhale, lift your heels. Exhale, bend your knees, look forward, and then step forward to the front of your mat. Inhale, halfway lift, exhale, fold. Inhale, rise, reach into the ground, reach your arms up and exhale, hands come down. So pause here for a moment.

Feel yourself standing. Let your feet really meet the floor. Bring the weight of your hips right over your feet, and the weight of your shoulders right over your hips, and then bring the weight of your head right over your shoulders. Pause to notice the residue of your practice. Move your mind into your breath, move your mind into your body.

And let's look at Parivrtta Ardha Chandrasana, revolved half moon, so you may wanna block for this shape, you can just place it right out in front of you. And inhale, reach your arms out, and exhale, fold forward. Inhale, lengthen halfway, and reach your right leg back behind you. So start to find a parallel rotation to the lifted leg, and bring your right hand either to a block onto any level, or you can have it to the floor. Bring your left hand to your sacrum, and feel the power of your left leg really step down to meet the ground, and then start to spiral from your right side belly over to the left, and then maybe the left arm wants to reach up as well.

So can you find the strength of your core to reach out into your edges. Look down, release your left hand down, step back into a lunge, inhale, reach your arms up, and exhale, bring your right elbow across your left knee so moving into an even deeper twist now. If available, lower your back knee down and open your arms up nice and wide to the side. Look down to the floor, start to reach both hands to the side, my fingers will face the same direction as my front toe, and then I'll begin to reach out through my sternum to lift my left leg off the floor. Shift even farther forward to reach my right leg off the floor for Eka Pada Koundinyasana.

Slowly bend your knees, transition back to your twisted lunge, release both hands, and travel back to down dog. If you like a little movement here, a little vinyasa, a little child's pose let's see what you need. And let's lift our heels, bend our knees, step to the front of your mat, lengthen halfway, exhale, fold. Inhale, rise, arms sweep up, and exhale, hands come down. So let's head on in to the second side.

Press down into the earth on an inhale, reach your arms skyward. Exhale breath, fold forward. Inhale, lengthen halfway. So let's pause, shift your weight into your right foot, and with curiosity, reach your left leg back behind you. Parallel your left leg, stand down through the inner line of your supporting leg, and power down through your outer hip to the pinky toe side of your foot.

Bring your left hand to the floor to a block. Reach out through your heart center, tone your belly and spiral left side belly to the right, left lung to the right. Maybe then challenge your balance and look to the side. (inhaling and exhaling) Can you spiral to the left side waist to the right and then reach from your heart out to your hands. We'll slowly lower right hand down, bend your right knee, step back to a lunge, press down into the ground, inhale, arms reach up, and exhale, hands to your heart, left elbow across your right knee.

(inhaling and exhaling) Lower your back knee down to the ground, and if okay for you we'll open up our arms. (inhaling and exhaling) So this transition into Eka Pada Koundinyasana can be a bit challenging, so please feel free to take your time, see what's working out in your body today, and really let your breath lead. So the hands will start to find the ground and already, I'm starting to lean towards my hands. I take this very brave shift onto my hands. I bend my elbows just like chaturanga dandasana and then I reach out through my heart center to lift my front leg off.

I have to shift even farther forward to lift my back leg off, and then slowly bend knees, transition back to your lunge, and down dog is where we'll meet. (inhaling and exhaling deeply) So last option here for plank and chaturanga and up dog if you'd like it, (inhaling and exhaling deeply) and let's come into child's pose for a moment. So let's begin to transition to all fours and then make your way down onto your back. So once on your back, bend your knees, place your feet on the floor, so we started here. So take a moment to notice how you feel.

Notice how this shape is different. So now all of this core strength can apply into our backbends. So, same idea, we'll let our hip points move towards each other to find the strength of our belly. Maintain that. Organize yourself for bridge and then press into your feet, lift your hips.

So can you, once again, feel your hip points moving towards each other so the outer hips get to ascend. Roll your shoulders underneath your back, clasp your hands if you haven't yet already, and release the clasp of your hands and come on down. Take a resting breath. Bring your hands right alongside your ears, for Urdhva Dhanurasana. Press down into your hands, press down into your feet, and come up to the top of your head, and just pause for a moment.

Have your toes turned off to the side, are you gripping in your glutes, and can you feel, once again, hip points moving towards each other? And then reach into your hands to come on up. So feel the outer hips moving towards each other and then lengthen your spine right up into your heart so creating more length through the low back. (inhaling and exhaling) Bend your elbows, bring your chin to your chest, find the back of your head, and then lower your hips back down. (inhaling and exhaling) Bring the soles of your feet together, let your knees open nice and wide, Supta Baddha Konasana.

(inhaling and exhaling) Bring your hands to the sides of your legs, bring your knees back together, extend your right leg out long, hug your left knee into your chest. Send your left leg over to your right for a crocodile twist with your left arm over to the side. (inhaling and exhaling deeply) Again, study your breath. When does your spine unravel? And transition back to center, and very simply switch sides.

Left leg straightens, right leg draws in. Send your right leg on over to the left, and find your twist. (inhaling and exhaling) Gently come back to center, hug your legs into your chest, bring your hands to the backs of your legs, and rise up to your seat. Extend your legs out in front of you, bring your hands right alongside your hips, reach down into the earth, start to lift up through the top of your sternum, and bring your chin towards your chest, dandasana. You can always have your knees bent here.

So, more importantly, feel a length in your spine, broadness in your low back. Inhale, reach your arms up. Exhale, fold forward, hold onto your shins or the sides of your feet or you can hold onto your big toes. Enjoy about five long breaths here. (breathing deeply) Bring your attention to your hip creases, and allow your groin to deepen.

So rather than just using the strength of your arms, invite a softening and a broadening to move in through your pelvis. (breathing deeply) Inhale, lengthen up, just partway for a moment. Take a big round of breath here. Inhale, come all the way back up, and then roll onto your back and prepare your body for shavasana. (inhaling and exhaling deeply) In shavasana, let your body meet the floor.

Experience your body relating to the earth. As you exhale, truly let go. (breathing deeply) For a brief moment, there is nothing that we have to do, there is nowhere that we have to go, there's nothing that we even have to be. So simply allow yourself to rest in whatever is left. (inhaling and exhaling deeply) Bring your awareness back to your breath.

Gently invite some movement to come back into your body. Begin to reach your arms back behind you, and reach your feet forward out in front of you, and reach into a nice, long stretch, waking up your whole body once again. (exhales deeply) Now please transition to your side. (inhaling and exhaling deeply) Press down into your hands, come all the way up to your seat and bring your hands to your belly, your low belly, the space beneath your belly button. And just take a moment to feel the heat and the power in the center place.

And let's bring our hands to our heart, bring your chin down to your chest, our brain drawing down to connect to our heart, moving us into our felt sense. Take a big round of breath and seal your practice in. Thank you. Namaste.