Sunrise for Low Back

Welcome to Sunrise for low back. For our practice today, we will need one block. We're gonna get started on our back. So come to lie on your back, plant your feet on the earth about hip bone distance apart. And we're gonna windshield wiper the knees just very gently from side to side.

And then let the knees come through center. Bring your hands onto your low belly. Close your eyes, take a nice big full breath in through the nose, exhale out the mouth. Again, inhale fully, exhale completely. And just take a moment to bring your awareness into your low back.

Just noticing any sensation, noticing any piece of your low back that may feel disconnected from the earth. And then moving your awareness down into your feet and into your toes. Noticeing if you're squeezing or scrunching the toes in any way and see if you can pick up all 10 toes pushing the balls of the feet down into the earth, and then put your toes down so just let the toes relax, soften your shoulders down and away from your ears. Relax every muscle of your face. Relax through the low belly.

And for a moment, just begin to gently deepen your breath. Feeling the whole back, making contact with the earth. See if as we breathe a little bit deeper, we can start to expand the belly. And as we exhale feeling the navel drawing in. And as we continue to breathe deeply, move your awareness into the back and see if you can invite the breath.

To also begin to move into the back body. So that perhaps as we continue to breathe, deeply, we can actually feel the tissue of the back pushing down and into the earth. Let's take about five or six more of the deepest fullest inhales and long exhales. Breathing into the back body as best you can. Two more.

And then if your eyes are closed, just very gently blink your eyes open. Let's windshield wiper the knees gently from side to side. You're gonna reach for your block. We'll push down into our feet, lift your hips. So you're gonna take your block right under your sacrum. Have the block at the lowest setting.

As the sacrum lowers onto the block, Bring your feet nice and wide. Let your knees come together to touch. Arms by your sides. Flip your palms down so your palms are making contact with the earth. And just notice.

Get curious here what's going on in the low back, feeling and sensing any sort of gripping or squeezing through the glutes, see if you can relax through the glutes. So that as the knees and the thighs roll slightly in towards one another, we start to find some broadness and some expansion through the lower back and through the outer part of our sacrum. Take a few more breaths here with the knees turning in towards one another and the feet wide. And then as you're ready, just open your knees up and bring your feet in a little more hip bone distance apart and just notice Checking him with the toes. Again, the toes tend to wanna squeeze and grip, see if we can keep those toes spread and relaxed. And can you surrender the low back the sacrum into the block just a little bit more?

Can you come back to those full deep long inhales and exhales and let the inhale move the breath into the low back, which is gonna move into the block. And as we exhale surrendering, releasing any of that deeply held tension, just a little bit more. Let's take about seven more breaths here. Inhale fully, exhale completely. One more time. Inhale.

Exhale. Pushing down into your heels, you're gonna lift your hips. We'll slide the block out. Lower down slowly piece by piece. Bring your feet wide.

Let your knees come together to touch and just pause. Just notice. Again, noticing any piece of the low back that is not making contact. Just let your awareness go there and see if we can invite that awareness. To open up that space so that it begins to soften down into the earth just a little bit more.

A few more breaths. And then let your knees open back up, your feet again, hip bone distance apart. You can take your hands right around your belly button. So I like to take the thumbs right into the belly button let my pointer fingers point down and in towards the pelvis. So, again, with this awareness completely at the low back, really in the pelvis, I want you to start to tip the pelvis forward so we create a nice lift through the low back.

So the low back will actually lift up and away from the earth. And then do the opposite, tuck the tail so we're intentionally pushing the low back down. Closing the low ribs as much as we can down towards our pelvis. And let's just go forward and back and let it be nice and slow. So as we tip forward, we feel that arch through the low back.

And then as we tuck the tail, feel the whole low back, making contact with the earth. And just keep moving. Sometimes I like to imagine this is a little marble here. As I find that arch, the marble rolls down, and as I tuck the tail, the marble rolls back. Try to keep your knees and your thighs as still as you can.

If the toes are lifting, the invitation is there to try to plug the toes down a especially your big toes. Let's take a few more of these. And the next time you find that arch and the marble rolling forward paws, we're gonna start to imagine we're rolling the marble now in a big circle as if we're rolling it around a clock face. So that as best we can, the marble is hitting every single number of the clock. So that as we get to 06:00, we're finding the low back, making contact with the earth.

And as we get to the 12:00 position, there is that nice arch to the low back. Now the knees and the thighs are going to want to move here. It's fine if you're moving a little bit, but try to keep them as still as possible so that this movement is really happening from the pelvis. And if you feel like you're barely doing anything, you're doing it correctly. If it's frustrating, you're doing it correctly as well. And if it feels great and wonderful and joyful, you're also doing it correctly.

Now next time you're at 06:00, let's reverse, and let's go counterclockwise. So now our circles will go to the left. And just notice, alright, which numbers do I wanna skip on this clock? Can I bring some consciousness there to create that space? Couple more.

Then you're gonna come back to center. Let's tip the pelvis forward one more time. Nice big arch, low back is lifted. Tuck the tail, push the low back down into the ear. I want you to release your arms by your sides and relax.

Let the low back just do what it naturally wants to do. So for most of us, there's gonna be an in between the arch and the tuck. Just let that be and pause. Moving a few breaths down into the low back. Take a nice big inhale. Exale.

Keep your arms down by your sides. Maybe bring your feet back ever so slightly. So, again, feet are about hip bone distance apart. If you're able to reach your arms forward, see if your middle fingers can connect to the backs of your heels. The fingertips are connecting to the backs of the heels. We're in a pretty good position.

From here, I want you to push down into your heels, start to squeeze the glutes, tuck the tail, lift your hips up, and then exhale slowly articulate down from the top to the middle to the low spine. Let's do a couple more of those. So tuck the tail, squeeze the glutes, lift your hips, doesn't need to be super high. Actale slowly articulate down. One more time, tuck the tail, squeeze the glutes, lift your hips.

Slowly lower down. And now we'll put the arms with it. So as we lift up, start to float the arms up overhead with your inhale. And then with your exhale, lower the spine, lower the hips, lower the arms, connect the breath with the movement as best you can. So inhaling, lift, float the arms up overhead, squeeze the glutes, exhale lower down.

One more time pushing down into the center of the heels, squeeze the glutes, lower ribs down to the pelvis, lift up. Handactel lower, lower, lower, slowly down. Windshield wiper your knees side to side. I'm gonna send your right leg long. We'll bring our left knee into the chest, give it a nice little squeeze.

Bring your hands to the back of the thigh, interlace your fingers so you get a really nice fit with the hands strength. On an inhale lengthen and extend your right leg up to the sky, exhale re bend the right knee. Inhale lengthen Exhale bends. Last time, inhale lengthen extend just pausing here. Keep as much of a bend to the left knee as you need to.

Flex your right foot, push forward through the right heel. It's almost as if we're elongating that right leg. And then if that left tip is kind of listing and tipping you over to the right try to push the left side of your low back down, and then get you rolling that left thigh out and forward just a bit. Few deep breaths here right into the back of the left leg. Relax your shoulders.

And then as you're ready, go ahead and rebend your right knee. Let's your right hand come onto the left thigh. We'll take a nice twist here over to the right. Right arm can be open up nice and wide or it can be cactus. Would the gaze be up towards the sky, breathing into the back of the left hip, heavy the left rib cage down towards the earth, heavy the left shoulder.

And take five or six big full inhales and long exhales here. On your next inhale, go ahead and bring that left knee back into the chest. Come back into the back. Give it a nice big squeeze. And bring your left foot down.

Bring your right foot down. Again, hip bone distance apart. Inhale lift the hips, float the arms up overhead, and exhale slowly lower down. One more time just like that. Inhale lift and rise. Now, bring your left leg long, bring your right knee into your chest, give it a nice big squeeze.

And then let your hands come to the back of the right thigh, interlace your fingers. So, again, we're finding that nice fit in the hands into the hamstrings. Inhale lengthen the right leg up, exhale re bend the right knee. Inhale lengthen, exhale bend. Last time lengthen and extend, we'll pause here to keeping that right leg gently extended. Again, it doesn't need to be completely straight. Keep as much of a bend to the right knee as you need. Our left foot is flexed and pushing for It's the right foot flexes. The heel pushes up.

Let your shoulders relax. Let your breath just pour into the back of that right leg. Few more rounds here. Go ahead and rebend your right knee. Give it a nice little squeeze.

And then our left hand will find the right thigh. We'll move into our twist to the left. So take your right thigh over to the left. Let the right shoulder relax down. Heavy the right ribs.

Breathe into the back of the right hip. Few more breaths. And then slowly make your way back into your back. Hug the right knee into the chest, give it a squeeze. Right foot comes down.

Left foot comes down, arms by your sides again, inhale lift your hips, flow the arms up. Exale lower down slowly. Last time, push into the heels, lift up. XL lower down slowly. Windshield wiper your knees side to side.

Generally, you'll begin to roll over onto your right side, taking a few breaths in a fetal position. Take your time, press yourself up into a tabletop on your hands and your knees. The hands under the shoulders, the knees stacked under the hip, few rounds of cat and cow, inhaling arching the back, lifting the gaze, exhaling, tucking the tail curling and rounding. Again, inhale arch and open. Exale round.

Coming back to that neutral spine, let's bring our knees and our thighs together. Swing the left leg around the front of the right leg. Open your feet up nice and wide, inhale arch, exhale round. Three more times just like that. Inhale arch as much as you can.

Shoulders back, exhale round, open up, and round. Last time. Big opening. Big rounding. And wrap that left leg, again, knees and thighs together.

Right leg over the left. Feet open up. Inhale arch. Just notice the difference. Acts, he'll tuck the tail and round. Inhale.

Act him. Twice more. Last one. Big opening. Exhale round. Unwrap your legs.

Bring your knees nice and wide. Your big toes together to touch. Sit your hips back towards your heels, extend your arms forward, balasana child's pose, forehead comes down. Just come to find the breath. Let's press ourselves up into our hands and our knees, tuck your toes, lift your knees.

Send your hips up and back downward facing dog. Just take any movement here that you need. Definitely keeping a nice bend to the knees. Shaking your head. Yes and no.

And as your hands push it down into the mat, see if the hands can push it down and forward, which will direct your hips way up and back and move your chest back towards your thighs a little bit more. Bend your knees a little more and stick the booty up just a tiny bit more. Keep that space that you found in the low back. Take a nice big inhale. Big exhale.

One more, right into the low back inhale. Exhale. Slow slowly walk your hands. Back to your feet, finding a fold at the back of the mat. Have your feet nice and wide and just grab your elbows and move side to side.

Keep the bend to your knees. And then bring your hands onto your shins. Just imagine the shins pushing right back into your hands, lengthen the heart forward, move your shoulders back, push your butt back. And exhale fold. Again, hands to shins.

Heart forward, push your butt back. Exhale fold. One more time, hands to shins, shoulders back. This time, I want you to push down into your heels. With your heels, I want you to imagine you could pull them out apart. So it'll begin to create a little more space through the outer sacrum.

Big breath in, and exhale fold. Taking nice, slow rise up. Bend your knees. One piece at a time. Head last. Roll the shoulders at the top.

Just take a moment and pause. Notice any gripping through the low back, through the outer hips. Try to let that gripping go. Inhale reach up. XL, fold back down.

Walk yourself back out into your downward facing dog. Same thing, bend the knees, lift the tail, move the chest back. There's a nice wave to the low back. Inhale fully. Acts how completely.

Slowly this time, walk the feet forward to meet the hands. Take your time. There's no rush. Once again, grab the elbows, keep the knees bent, relax the head. Hands to the shins. Imagine the shins pushing into the hands.

This time, tip the weight forward to the balls of the feet just a tiny bit more length in the heart forward. Exhale fold. Again, hands to shins, heart forward. Can you push your butt back? Exhale fold.

Last time, hands to shins. Move the heart forward shoulders back, butt reaches back. Heels push down. Imagine you could pull them out apart with the heels. You reach the sternum out a little bit more.

XL fold. Really slow rise up again. Bet knees. Squeeze the glutes. As you roll up, roll the shoulders. Find a pause.

Unsqueeze anything that's squeezing through the low back and through the hips. Inhale reach the arms up, expand, and exhale. Come on down. Step it back into your downward facing dog. Come forward into your plank, and then lower your knees, hips to heels for three breaths, child's pose, big full inhales.

And come up onto your hands and your knees. Bringing your knees at least hip bone distance apart, you're gonna come to stand on your shins, bringing your hands onto your low back. So is your hands or your fist come onto your low back? Need to push the tailbone down. So you'll start to feel your pubic bone reaching for it.

From there, lift up through the chest. So when you imagine your low ribs are just floating up, up, up, and away from the pelvis. Keep lifting up. Keep lifting up. And this might be where we are. As we lift up, we might start to lean back.

As we lift up, we might start to reach back for one heal. Maybe we reach back and we find both heels. And then perhaps we can move the thighs forward, keep lifting the chest up, drop the head back any amount. And then hands to your low back, come up, sit on your heels, tuck your chin into your chest. And just swallow a couple of times.

One more time. Come up onto your shins Hands or fist to your low back, tailbone slides down, pubic bone moves forward, lift up, lift up, up, up, up, up, up, up, up, maybe we'll keep you here, which is great, or come back for your heels. Move the thighs forward. Drop the head back any amount. Hands to low back. Come up, sit back on your heels, chin to chest swallow a couple of times.

Bring your knees wide. Just take a few breaths in a child's post to counter. Standing the arms forward. Four head comes down. And then walk your hands back.

Come to sit up on your shins. And I have your asana nice and tall, feeling your sits bones plugging down into your heels, the chest lifting up and away from the heels. Take your left hand onto your right knee. Very gentle twist to your right. And just think that that right knee is moving forward into the left hand, and that's giving us the turn from the left shoulder blade over to the right.

Then we'll inhale back to center. Switch side. So right hand finds the left knee. Left hand comes behind. Think that the left knee is moving forward into the right hand, and that is helping us to find the turn from the right shoulder blade over to the left. I'm gonna go ahead and come back to center.

Hands on your thighs or on your knees. Take a moment. Close your eyes. Turn your gaze towards your chest and just feel the space that you've opened up today, through the low back, through the whole body. And take a moment to acknowledge your effort today. Your practice with gratitude.

And I thank you for practicing with me today. Namaste.