Inner Hips: Grounded Expansion

Welcome. Thank you for joining me for this practice, which is all about a grounded expansion through the inner hips. So we'll slowly start to release into the inner hips building toward the yin shapes of a prone half frog and butterfly pose. So for this practice, you might wanna have a blanket and a couple of blocks. And we'll start by coming onto our backs, bringing our blocks with us finding supta baddha konasana. So as you come onto your back, maybe take your blocks underneath your knees as you bring the soles of the feet together and let your knees open up wide.

And then as you come on to your back, let your arms rest wherever they naturally rest. Maybe bringing one hand to your heart. And one hand to your lower belly. Perhaps closing your eyes, shifting the gaze to the internal space. And start to feel the breath beneath your hands, the expansion on your inhale, And that soft release that letting go quality of your exhale settling in a little deeper as you allow yourself.

To land here, feeling into the experience of your breath. And at the same time, doing a scan through your body, noticing Any areas where you might be holding any tension, and bringing your awareness to the inner hips, or noticing what has your attention in this moment. Meeting yourself where you are starting from that place. Perhaps setting an intention for your practice. Anything you'd like to call in and just tuning into that grounded quality of noticing the support beneath you.

What's holding you? Yielding into the support of the earth. And with intention and attention to the breath, you can start to bring your hands to your outer knees. And start to gather your knees into your chest. So give them a squeeze and maybe rock a little side to side massage through your lower back, maybe take your knees in circles, in either direction.

Just let that be a nice massage for your lower back. Beautiful. And then start to take that rock up and down along the length of the spine, maybe bring your hands behind your knees and rock up to seated. If you had blocks under your knees, you can take them out to the side, and we'll meet in tabletop position. So crossing at the ankles, coming to all fours, hands and knees. Letting the shoulders come right over the wrist, hips over knees. And then from here, it's gonna rock back into child's pose. So with the knees wide, let your hip sink back to your heels, reach your arms forward actively, and then maybe let your head, your forehead rest on the earth, maybe rock your head side to side.

Allow a big full expansive breath in. Sending the breath all the way through your lower back, and stay for your exhale to ground just a little bit more. Beautiful. And then on your inhale, start to come back up to tabletop. Coming into cow pose, drop the belly, lift the heart, lift the gaze, arch your spine. And then as you exhale, moving toward cat pose, round your spine, tuck your tailbone, and let your hips shift back into that wide knee child's pose.

And then we'll do that with the breath a couple times. So as you inhale come up through table, lift the heart, lift the gaze, cow pose, exhale round your spine and sink back into child's pose. One more inhale brings you forward. Feel that opening in the front line of your body. And then exhale rounding back into child's pose.

Take a moment. Feel that support that grounded energy. Beautiful. Next time you come up through tabletop, we'll tuck the toes and lift the hips up and back downward facing dog. And as you come into this first downward facing dog, just gonna feel into the back of your legs. Maybe pedal it out through your feet. Feel free to step your feet a little wider than the hips.

Feel free to soften your knees. See if you can let your torso. Start to drape back to the top of your thighs, letting the head hang heavy, maybe shake up a head. Yes. And no. Maybe sway your hips side to side and tweak a moment to find stillness.

So letting the hands be about shoulder width, hips, distance with your feet. Go to finding spaciousness in your spine. Allow a very big full expansive breath in here. Stay for your exhale, maybe open up the mouth, let out a sound or a sigh. God, and slowly start to walk your feet to the front of the mat, walking your feet to your hands.

And as you get up to the front of the mat, soften your knees a little bit, let everything just melt down over your legs. Let your spine be nice and long, head heavy. Good. And then super slow roll out one vertebra at a time, letting the head be the last thing to arrive. And as you get up to the top, just take a moment, find any movement. And eventually inviting in that quality of stillness in mountain pose, tadasana, letting the shoulders soften a bit down the back, feel the lift through the heart space.

Bring your hands together in front of your heart, and then step your feet together. We'll move into uttanasana chair pose, so bend your knees deeply sweep the arms up, find length in your spine, sink in a little bit deeper. Allow a very big full breath in, and then as you exhale forward fold, uttanasana, let everything melt back down. On an inhale lift halfway, maybe walk your hands onto your shins, lengthen your spine, offer the heart forward. And then exhale plant your palms and step back to plank pose top of a push up.

Take a moment to find your plank, maybe shift your weight forward and back a few times. Welcome to lower knees. Otherwise, let your shoulders come over the wrists, hug your elbows, and lower all the way down to the ground, setting up for cobra, untuck your toes, peel the chest up bhujangasana back of the neck long, big, full breath in. And then exhale, press it back either through plank or hands and knees downward facing dog. Good. Float your right leg all the way up and back and bend your right knee open up through that right side.

Keep pressing through both hands. Let your shoulders stay level. Beautiful. On your next breath in, start to straighten your right leg and then draw your right knee towards your right elbow and hover top of a push up. Pausing there for a moment, shoulders over wrists, and then inhale sweep that right leg all the way up and back. You can bend the knee and open up the hip again. Beautiful. And then draw your right knee toward that right elbow one more time.

We'll take a big step to the outside of the right wrist setting up for liz or lunge. Plant your left hand down on the earth. You're welcome to take a block under that left hand. And then start to sweep your right arm up coming into a twist, open the chest to the right side of the mat. Beautiful. And then lower your right hand back down to the inside of your front foot.

Step your right foot back. To downward facing dog. Allow a very big full breath in and a long full breath outflow. The left leg this time up and back, bend your knee open up through the left side, pressing through both hands at your shoulders. Stay level toward the front of your mat.

Good. And then start to straighten through your left leg, big breath in. Left knee, left elbow, or tricep hover, top of a pushup, shoulders right over the wrists, inhale up and back, bend the left knee open up through that left side. Nice. And then start to straighten out through the left, left knee, left elbow. This time, big step to the outside of your left wrist. We'll plant the right hand and start to sweep the left arm up.

Find that opening a cross the chest, the heart space, and keep hugging the left hip in as you twist from the naval up. Good big, expansive breath in, lower your left hand down, step your left foot back, downward facing dog. Gotta breathe in and breathe out, rise up onto toes, bend your knees, look forward, step or lightly float your hands to the top, or float your feet to the top of the mat. Forward fold. Good inhale to lift halfway, arda uttanasana, exhale fold back in, bend your knees deeply coming back into chair pose, utkatasana.

Good. And then stretch your legs long feel the lift in your upper back and draw your hands together in front of your heart. Take a moment to just land and notice. Where that movement lands in your body. Good. And then we'll add on a bit with each round. So coming back into chair as you're ready, bend your knees deeply, utkatasana arms sweep up.

Allow a big breath in, and exhale fold uttanasana, inhale lift halfway, lengthen your spine off for the heart forward. Plant your palms step to plank. This time, halfway or all the way down, Chaturanga, and you're welcome to stay with cobra or upward facing dog from the thighs up off the earth straighten out the arms, lift the heart in the gaze. And then meeting back in downward facing dog roll over the toes, lift the hips up and back. Same beginning as you inhale sweep the right leg up and back, bend the knee open the hip.

And then straighten the right leg, draw your right knee towards your right elbow and hover top of a push up. Good in. How sweep it up and back bend the knee open up through the right hip? Right knee, right elbow, big step to the outside of the right wrist. Same beginning, plant your left hand, moving into your twist, sweep the right arm up, opening the chest to the right. This time as you lower the right hand to the inside of the front foot, walk to face the side of the mat will stay low coming into skandasana.

So go ahead and bend your left knee sink down. Straighten through the right leg. And you can keep hands on the earth or feel free to draw your hands to heart center, or you could reach your arms on either side of your shoulders. Just really feeling into that left hip as you sink in, feel that strengthening. Good. And then stay low to the ground.

Come all the way back to runner's lunge. You could step right back to down dog or maybe plank pose moving through a vinyasa chaturanga exhale. Inhale cobra or upward facing dog, and meeting back. In down dog, let's clear that side with a big full breath in. And a long breath out.

Beautiful moving to the second side, sweep the left leg up and back, bend the knee open up through the left side as you straighten the left. Bring your left knee to your left elbow, tricep, and hover. Lynn, how up and back, bend the knee, open the hip. Good. And then then that big step to the outside of the left wrist, plant your right hand. Sweep your left arm up.

Allow a big breath in as you twist open. And then lower hand to the inside of your front foot, walk to face the side of the mat, Skandasana. This time, the right knee will bend. Keep the right knee right over your right ankle. Keep the left leg nice and straight.

And you're welcome to keep the sole of the left foot down, or you could come up onto that left heel as you sink in, feel that strengthening through the hips. Beautiful. That grounded quality stay low to the earth. Come all the way back to runners lunge facing the front of your mat. You could step right back to down dog or plank, Chaturanga, inhale cobra or upward facing, exhale meeting back. Downward facing dog, just taking a moment to let that all land, neutralize.

Big expansive breath in and a long breath out, rise high up onto toes, bend knees, look forward, step or float front of the mat, inhale to lift halfway and lengthen. Exhale release and fold, knees bend deeply, uttanasana, chair pose sink in for strength, and then straighten the legs feel the lift. In the upper back of the heart space, maybe even lean back a little, and then draw your hands together in front of your heart. Take a moment. To land, to let that land, and to observe serve, the movement, that prana, that life force energy circulating.

I will take one more round with this adding on. Just a bit. As you're ready, we'll come back to chair, bend the knees deeply, utkatasana, arms sweep up, exhale release forward fold. Inhale to lift halfway and lengthen, and then step where you could lightly float back Chaturanga, inhale cobra or upward facing dog. And exhale landing in downward facing dog, inhale right leg lifts, bend the knee open up through that side.

And then stretch the leg long, right knee, right elbow, or tricep hover, top of a push up, inhale sweep the leg all the way up and back. Good. And then stepping to the outside of the right hand, same beginning, left hand plants, right arm sweeps up, find your twist. Skandasana, keeping it fluid walk to face the side of the mat. We'll bend the left knee and straighten through the right. And then come back through center.

So parallel your feet. Walk your hands underneath your shoulders to lengthen your spine for a wide leg forward fold. Big breath in. XL, walk your hands in any amount towards you. Let the crown of your head melt down, seal the outer edges of your feet down.

Feel free to bend your knees. And just find this inversion. Feel into the back of your legs. Getting upside down for a moment. Beautiful.

And then walking your hands back under your shoulders, lengthen your spine. Bring your hands to your hips with the long spine. Come all the way up. To stand. Good. And then turn your toes out and your heels in. Bend your knees deeply.

Draw your hands together in front of your heart coming into goddess stance and maybe wobble. A little bit side to side, and then maybe sink in and find stillness. So letting the tailbone melt down, feel that lift in the heart space. And then feeling into that grounded quality strong in your hips and your legs, maybe close your eyes, feel into your breath and your heartbeat. Notice what's holding you.

Big full breath in. And as you're ready, we'll exhale to open it up for warrior two, turn your right toes to face the front of your mat, sink and take a moment to land. Good. And then we'll find reverse warrior, flip your front palm, tilt back, keep bending deeply into that front knee, big breath in. Good circle hands down to the earth. Step to plank.

Your choice vinyasa, maybe Chaturanga, exhale, inhale cobra or up dog, exhale meeting back, in downward facing dog, clearing that side, big, full breath in the long, full release. Good sweep your left leg up and back, bend your knee open the hip. Left knee left elbow or tricep hover. Inhale up and back. Xhale big step to the outside of the left wrist, plant your right hand, and sweep your left arm up, find your twist, and then keeping it fluid, scandasana, side of the mat, this time the right knee will bend, and the left leg will straighten.

Good. And then just walking back to the center of your mat, parallel your feet allow a big breath in to lengthen through your spine. And then walking your hands in any amount, letting the head hang heavy. You're welcome to take a block underneath your head or your hands. Maybe your hands find your ankles this time. They keep lifting up on your kneecaps engaging through your quadriceps.

And then what might soften and release here as your upside down, your shifting perspective, beautiful. And then coming out of there, just walk your hands underneath your shoulders. You might shorten your stands a little bit, lengthen your spine, bring your hands to your hips. And with a long spine come all the way up to stand, turn your toes out, and your heels in, and then bending your knees, let your tailbone melt down. This time, let your hands fall on top of your thighs or knees, and then allow a big breath in through center. Feel that strength in your legs. Bring your right shoulder toward the center of your mat. Let it kinda dip in towards center and take a gaze over your left shoulder.

Good as you inhale. Come back through center, sink in, left shoulder, toward the center of your mat, dip the shoulder in, and then maybe take your gaze to your right. Beautiful as you inhale back through center, start to straighten through your legs, sweep your arms up, allowing a big full breath in here. And then open up warrior two side of the mat, turn your left toes forward, open the arms wide, and sink in, centering your weight, feel that strength through the lower body. Softening through the shoulders, softening your gaze, and just feel that deep grounding energy that support beneath you as we slowly open up here.

Flip your front palm to tilt back, reverse warrior, maybe even sink a little deeper into that left knee, feel the length through the left side body. Beautiful. And then circle your hands down to the earth. We'll step back, plank, shift forward, chaturanga, inhale cobra or upward facing dog. Meeting back in downward facing dog allowing a big full breath in and a long full breath out. Good. Take a moment to lower your knees to the earth finding tabletop.

And then from your tabletop, let your forearms come down to the earth. Let your shoulders come right over your elbows. You can press the palms of the hands into the earth. Feel free to interlace your hands. Stretch both legs back for forearm planks.

So keep hugging your elbows in as you stretch your legs back. Reach the crown of your head forward gently tuck your chin. You can gaze between your thumbs. Really active through your legs holding for five. Four, embrace the movement. The shaking.

Three, two, and then lower your hips all the way down for sphinx pose. Take a moment to untuck your toes. Walk your hands forward just a bit so that your elbows are right in front of your shoulders. And then let this be active. So there's some work happening here as you press into the top of your feet, engage your legs.

And then draw the mat back towards you as you reach your arms or your heart between the window of your arms. And then let's drop the chin toward the chest core engaged to protect your spine. Take your right ear to your right shoulder for a moment and breathe into the left side of your neck. Good. And then chin to chest, roll your left ear. Toward your left shoulder, you might feel slight compression in your lower back.

Let this be your heart opening shape. It's actually a really good posture for low back tension. Draw the chin back to your chest gaze. Straight forward. Maybe press through your hands.

Lift your elbows up if that's too deep. Just keep the elbows down. Otherwise, big, expansive breath in. And then soften all the way down, stack your hands, building a little pillow for your forehead, let your elbows, splay out to the side, and then just take a moment to release, let your bones get heavy and feel held. Let the earth hold you here, and you might reverse windshield wiper.

Your knees from side to side or sway your hips from side to side feeling that release of the compression or any tension in your lower back, but give yourself to the support of the earth for a moment here. And notice where does that land? The echo of the fluidity of the movement to this deep supported shape. As we begin to transition into our yin shapes, from been to yin. We'll stay right here on our bellies.

And we'll find this prone half frog. So you're welcome to keep your hands stacked, you might take a blanket underneath your forehead. We'll simply start to bend the right knee and draw that right knee in and up towards your right shoulder flicks your right foot But without tensions, you can soften the right foot a little bit and notice where you feel this perhaps in the inner hips. On our bellies, we're letting the head relax and feel supported. And then we feel into wherever we feel this as the right knee bends and the knee draws in towards you. The pelvis relax, relaxing the effort and the muscles.

So these shapes are passive. Yet there's still this quality of some engagement as we allow ourselves to sink into stillness. So it's not this, you know, fully passive experience. It's actually quite involved as we begin to confront whatever arises for us. Notice how the shape transforms over time. So you get into the deeper layers of the connective tissue, lubricating the joints.

Beyond the physical. Notice what arises. Allowing yourself to yield a little bit more into the support beneath you. We're holding this shape for about three minutes on each side. Finding your expression of the shape, allowing you more full deep breaths here to notice.

Big full breath in. Maybe open up the mouth and let out a sound or a sigh to soften into the support. Looking us very slowly. You can start to straighten your right leg behind you. Both legs are long on your mat.

Just taking a moment to neutralize, observe the right side, the left side. If there's any movement that needs to occur here, you can honor that, or maybe you're just finding a moment to pause, to observe, to integrate. Might change what hand is on top creating that pillow, that shelf for your third eye, this seat of her intuition, letting everything melt down. And then whenever you're ready, you can start to bend your left knee, draw the knee in towards you, softening the effort, relaxing through your left foot. Lax your pelvis, your hips, and start to notice your breath.

Where you feel this the most. Sending your breath there. Notice if you're gripping anywhere where you might feel the engagement, can you soften and release just a little bit more? This deep grounded quality, the inner hips. Softening your experience.

You might notice a quality of energy that arises for you, these lines of energy. Anything that might feel stuck? Perhaps there's an opening to unblocking. So that energy, that prana, that life force, that chi can flow a little more freely. Just a couple more breaths to balance out this side.

And then very slowly, very gently. It searches stretch. Left leg long behind you, maybe sway your hips, finding any movement. And then when you're ready, just pressing back into child's pose. You can let your hips sink towards your heels.

Take a moment to neutralize. Let the forehead rest. Maybe sway your hips side to side. Maybe sway your head side to side, massage your third eye. And then do find a moment to settle into stillness and child's pose. We won't be here very long, but let that land.

And observe. Notice what you notice. It's the grounded quality, the parts of the body that are connected that are supported. And then slowly, you can walk your hands in. We'll roll up, sinking the weight off to one side, bring the legs out in front of you setting up for butterfly pose. So just like we did when we started on our backs, bringing the soles of the feet together, letting the knees go wide.

So a couple options here, you might take a blanket. And sit on your blanket, bringing that under your sitting bones. I think I will do that. So you could sit up on your blanket first and then come into the shape. You might bring blocks under your knees just like we did when we were on our back.

I think I will keep my blocks out from underneath my knees, but you might be taking them there, finding that support. And then take a moment to wiggle in, rock in. Heels can draw in towards you holding on to your ankles or your feet. And again, letting the knees open up wide. Sit up nice and tall. And then start to bend forward any amount.

You could kind of use your elbows to press into the inner thighs or maybe start to walk your hands in front of you and then tucking your chin and rounding again. Not the fullest expression of the shape. You might come into the fullest expression and then allow yourself to back out of it a little bit. That might be a nice way to find that 60 or 70 scent of your effort. This place where you can find stillness where you can pause, where you can be and breathe. And then once you find that place, commit to stillness, softening and letting the shape find you, anchoring into your breath and becoming the observer and the inner hips and the energy lines.

Letting the breath and the energy flow freely. That quality of spaciousness of ease. Of grounded expansion. I'm softening any resistance. What comes up for you here?

Noticing that so much occurs in these held shapes and it's not always comfortable. Most times it's not. That if that's your experience, maybe noticing the desire to want to escape. Letting yourself stay. Breathing through it knowing that everything shifts.

Everything changes, transforms eventually. Coming back to your breath, taking your time to slowly with ease, make your way out of that shape. And, again, just taking a moment to let that integrate. So finding a neutral shape may be a comfortable seated position. If it feels safe, you could close your eyes and observe. Quality of introspection, of observation, of presence.

Beautiful. Let's stretch the legs long on the mat. I'm just gonna spin around here. And you're welcome to stretch your legs out long in front of you. Sit up on your blanket if that feels good for you, soften the knees a little bit. And we won't be in caterpillar very long, but you're gonna soften your knees, relax the tension in your feet. You don't have to flex, but, like, a passive foot would feel good and then walking your hands forward, letting your hands fall wherever they fall.

Feel free to round your spine, tuck your chin. And breathe into the back of your legs, feel the opening in the back body, noticing where you feel this the most. Me allowing a few more full deep breaths here. Good. And then gently walk your hands back in, and we'll make our transition onto our back. So if you have any props, you can take them out to the side. As you come onto your back and hug your knees into your chest, give them a squeeze.

Maybe rock a little side to side massage through your low back. It might feel good to take a happy baby holding on to the outsides of the feet, let the knees go wide. And then the tailbone melt down, tuck your chin. If it feels good to move here, go for it. Otherwise, whenever you're ready, we'll hug the knees back in, wrap your forearms around your shins, draw your nose up to your knees. Hug everything into a tight little ball.

Allow a big breath in holding your breath up at the top, sip in a little bit more air, and then open up the mouth. Side out and take your time to transition into your final resting pose, letting your legs go long on your mat, bring your palms to face up on either side of the body, let your shoulders, soften and relax, maybe close your eyes. I'm just allowing the integration of your practice, the body, the mind, your spirit. Again, just grounding into the support beneath you, just letting yourself feel held. Let your bones get heavy. Just rest.

Start to scan through your body. Allowing the breath to begin to deepen, inviting in any gentle movement, fingers, toes, ankles, wrists, reach your arms up over your ears to stretch through the entire length of your body. Allow a big breath in. In a long breath out and just take your time making your way to a comfortable seated position. And as you find your seat hands together in front of the heart, and gratitude, thanking yourself for showing up for you for this practice. And thank you for sharing this practice with me. Hope you have a beautiful rest of your day.

The light and love in me, greets and honors, the light and love in you, namaste.