Let the Sun Shine Flow

Greetings, friends. Welcome to this practice. We'll be using the wall a bit, as well as a blanket. Come into child's pose to start. I particularly like starting this way because my knees have some history.

So Pat the knees, take the big toes to touch, walk your hands forward, and drop down into child's pose. And take a few slow deep breaths into your low back. As you exhale sink down into gravity. And if there's any spots, any particular places in your body that need a little extra healing or love, send your energy, send your attention to those places. And embrace them.

This particular practice has a few postures in it that I personally find kinda challenging and So things that are challenging, we approach with love and with enthusiasm whenever possible. So let's come on up to hands and knees as we inhale. And as you exhale round the spine, don't the upper back drop the head and neck, space at the back of the throat there, and then drop the naval, open the chest, just return into your arch spine looking upward, exhale round looking inward, and we'll just start to move back and forth like a spring, experiencing your spine, experiencing your shoulders, even the head and the neck as you curve in and out of this shape and just maybe close your eyes as you breathe forward and back and start to feel the posture move from the inside out inhaling to cow. And exhaling to cat. We start to circle the head and tail. Really bringing some warmth and fluidity to the spine. And don't think about this one too much.

Just circle and barrel roll the shoulders and hips. Let it be organic as you start to let your spine move like a jungle cat in any particular direction. Finding that opening. And then from here, we'll stagger the right knee back a little bit. As you inhale, take the left arm to the sky, open up, and then exhale thread it underneath and behind the right wrist.

Come all the way down to the outer shoulder and ear. So we're in this kind of emptying out version of a twist. You're welcome to take your right leg out to the side and place the sole of the foot on the floor. This gives us the opportunity to twist open just a little bit more. Maybe even take that top arm behind the back or over your head, wherever it feels like, oh, yeah, that's a good spot.

Just kind of exploring, opening up through the chest on an inhale. As you exhale, bring your right hand down for, push up position or plank position, climb into where your hands might be for plank, and then sweep your right leg straight back behind you. Balance and cat, we reach the left arm forward. And then elbow to knee. Let's bring it in and out a few times.

So it's that cat cow action, but we're just adding a limb, adding a little bit of leverage here as we move back and forth. So the spine gets the opportunity to get even more activated. Let's hold this last one and then take your left hand back. Right foot's gonna cross the midline. We'll grab the big toe side and then lift up through the quadrice up through the chest. Going right into some quadrice up opening out of the gate which is again, it's challenging for me when I come into this shape. I'm I'm met with a little resistance right away that I'm gonna breathe some love into it and then exhale, let it go hands and knees.

We'll stagger the left knee back a touch, right arm up, big inhale, and then exhale, thread it all the way down behind the left wrist, outer shoulder and head, and you can take that left leg out to the side if you like. Turning your chest open. Left arm can stay where it is or move behind your back over your head. And just enjoy the view here looking upwards See these beautiful oranges on the trees outside and the symbolism of a new season, new beginnings, growth. Opening up through the chest, creating a little change here just by deciding to, and then bring that left hand down into a plank position.

Join it with the right, and then that left leg reaches back. Right on forward. Let's go ahead and pump this in and out a few times. Just letting it become a little more juicy in the spine. Exhale, inhale, exhale, inhale pause, right hand comes back to grab the big toe side of your foot. There's that wonderful quadricep, chest and shoulders.

We lift up into this opening here. Again, with enthusiasm. And then let that go. Come up into downward facing dog. We'll tuck the toes under, press it up and back.

I'm gonna set my blanket off to the side. We'll use it a little bit later in this practice, at the wall for to pat our knees again, but we don't need it right now. Reach on back through the hips and heels and just feel the alignment here, set up your hands, shoulder width apart. Feet hips width apart, soften the knees a bit as you roll onto the balls of the feet and then press the heels downward as you lift the hips upward. Just take that a few times exploring through the joints.

Once more, bend the knees, almost like you're going to go back to child's pose and then lift the hips. Start to walk the feet up towards a forward fold, getting ready to move into our namaskars for the morning, soften the knees, relax the head neck and shoulders. Give your head a shake. Yes. No. I don't know. Back to yes.

And then catch the knot on the upswing and come all the way up. To stand, exhale, hands to the heart. Surya Namaskar a, one of my favorite sun salutations, especially in the morning, circle the arms out and up the shape of the sun And then as you exhale, open the heart, retrace that pass pathway all the way down to your forward fold. Inhale, lift the heart, arda uttanasana. You can come up onto the shins.

Exhale step back to plank. You can lower all the way down to through chaturanga to the floor or halfway. I'm gonna go halfway. Inhale to either cobra or upward facing dog. And then exhale downward facing dog.

And we're gonna keep this flowing. So we'll just stay here for a single full deep breath. Try to match the length of your inhale to the length of your exhale. And then inhale up on your toes, bend the knees, look forward, walk step, hop, top of the mat, lift the heart halfway, exhale empty out forward fold. Inhale, catch the up swing, circle the arms out and up.

Exhale hands to the heart. That was one round. Inhale circle out and up. Exhale forward fold, releasing, inhale halfway. Exhale step back to plank.

Same exhale lowers you halfway down. Inhale upward dog. Exhale downward facing dog. Inhale big breath in. Equalize the exhale.

Inhale to the toes, bend the knees, look forward, step, walk, or float, top of the mat, lift the heart halfway. Exhale, release. Catch the upswing. Draw that circular shape just like an expanding beautiful sunshine or an orange starts as a flower and then expands out in that big inhale. Exhale, open the heart all the way down.

Forward fold. Lift the heart halfway. Exhale step or hop. Land in Chaturanga. Inhale, open the chest.

Exale fold, creating heat, take a single sum of ritti, balance breath. Inhale to the toes. Bend the knees, look forward, step, or hop. Top of the mat. Lift the heart halfway. XL fold.

Catch the energy rise. All the way up, exhale hands to the heart one more round. Inhale circle. Exhale fold. Inhale complete each shape.

Exhale step or hop back, lower all the way or halfway. Inhale, open the chest, exhale downward facing dog. We're gonna move right into our first standing sequence here. So we'll step the left foot close to the midline, right leg rises following the pathway of the wall behind you, step it all the way through into warrior two base. Inhale to come on up, virabhadrasana two, As you exhale, reverse your warrior. Side angle, we've kind of been working with this particular trio of postures.

Back and forth, reverse your warrior. Side angle. So there's a familiarity. One more reverse your way. Working with these circular patterns, exhale side angle. Take the top hand all the way down, spin on the ball of the back foot, lower the knee. Your blankets there if you need it.

You can heel toe the right foot wide and then circulate your right hand back. Grab the big toe side. There's that beautiful quad opener, smile at it, inhale. As you exhale, maybe sink down to your forearm. So we get a little deeper as we open the quads and the shoulders.

We get two or three breaths right here to enjoy the sensation. And just be with it. So often we get into these challenging shapes or challenging situations, and we wanna just get right out of it. Sometimes, part of the practice here is learning how to just hang with it, stay calm, relax, self regulate. Release your foot.

Step on back to plank. Take a big breath in. Exhale Chaturanga, hang there for an extra beat. Then come through to your upward facing dog. Exhale downward facing dog.

Right foot steps to the midline, inhale the left leg up and back. Exhale, step it all the way through warrior two base. Let's come on up. Set it up as best you can. That nice heel to arch alignment.

Let's reverse the warrior as we inhale. Fill the top of the arc. Exhale side angle pose. Inhale reverse. Exhale side angle. Just churning the energy through the middle of the body.

Upper body, lower body, exhale. Take that top hand all the way down, spin on the ball, the back foot, lower your knee. We heel toe the left foot wide, right arm paints that arc over the head. We catch the back foot. And open the chest. Maybe sink it down to your forearm and hang with it.

Here it is. Quadriceps right side again, if you're dominant there. Enjoy it. Drop into it. One more breath. And then let's take another bonus breath on top of that just to say we did.

Second side usually gets cut short, so we give it a little extra time. Release your foot. Step on back to your plank. Big inhale to prepare. Set up by pulling the core in and engaging the legs.

Tip forward, exhale, arrive at Chaturanga. Come through to your backbend. Exhale downward facing dog. Three good breaths. Let's take a moment to child's pose.

Lower the knees. Big toes touch. Drop it down. Notice how you feel. And then from here, start to slide forward onto your tummy, soften the knees, bring the heels towards your butt, and we're gonna feel a little Don yarasana, so you can reach back, hold on to the top of one foot, then the other. If it's hard to reach your feet, if you can't reach your feet, just reach it for them, but you can still lift up and enjoy the essence of this shape.

If you can, great. If not, great. No worries. Lift your chest, lift your thighs, lift your attitude. That's an important one, especially with postures that are challenging. This is a hard one for me. So opening up through the chest.

And I remember when I was a a new yogi, I asked one of my my main teacher what postures I should practice. And he said, make a list of the ones that you don't like and practice those. This was on the list, but they're the ones that you need is what he said. One more breath here. Good. And then release.

Let's take it back to child's pose. And this is our counter pose. Opposite direction, release, let it go. From here, slide your hands close to your knees, and then roll up the spine. We're gonna turn this shape around to face the wall.

We'll bring our blanket with us for a little extra padding. So you can fold it however thick you like. I did a kind of a double fold here and we wanna take our blanket right up to the baseboard. We're working with Ustrasana camel pose. Walk it on up to the wall because the writing is on the wall. We're we're doing it. We're going into this shape.

And, whether we like it or not, just kidding. You can you don't have to do any of this. These these are all just suggestions. Press your hips to the wall. Tuck your toes under. Now this can feel a little bit confining, but the good news is is that we lift up and out away from the wall.

And all of a sudden, it becomes a support system. So we try to keep our thighs and hips at the wall as we lift up and out of it. And it's that dhanurasana shape. You might even take one hand to the back of your head and reach the other hand up the wall or to the opposite heel and you'll feel that asymmetry, but can you keep both, hip points and thighs pressed against the wall here? So we feel this version of Ustrasana. And then we just come out of it for a moment.

Hips come back, hands to the wall will actually press through a little crouch and walk the hands up the wall to find elbows or push wall. So it's basically downward facing dog at the wall. And this is our counter pose. We let the chest stretch. We open up the back of the knees here and take a moment.

Rounding up through the spine. Walk the feet a little closer to the wall, closer to the blanket. Try to approximate feet and knees to the wall. We'll slowly come down through this little crouch just folding into the flexibility of your hips, knees, ankles, and then drop the knees down. However, you get there is fine. That's just a suggestion.

We come back to this contact with the wall. Hips, thighs, chest lifts up and back. And then we can take the left hand behind the head to support the neck and almost pull your head and neck back. So you create this length. Right fingertips can reach up the wall. Or reach back to your heel.

And we lift and you'll feel a little asymmetry there in the upper body, but can you press that opposing right hip forward? And again, it's a little moment of truth here. Like, okay. This is gonna point out where you're tight, where you're limited, where you're open, and just hang with it. Get curious as you exhale release. Hans to the wall.

We'll try this transition again. We fold into the hip knee ankle joint, lift up, walk the hands up the wall a bit, finding your push wall. Go ahead and extend the left leg back. Free the left leg and then bend your knee. We'll open the hip a little bit here and soften the standing leg. So, has that feeling of compass pose that we did in one of the other practices.

But instead of going inside, we'll go outside with our right hand catch the big toe side of the foot. Notice I dropped the knee so I could catch my foot and then lift through the thigh. Lift through the chest. Maybe come up onto the fingertips a little bit here. As you exhale, dip it back down.

It's that same quadricep opener we did in the beginning of our practice on our hands and knees. Inhale, rotating upward. Exhale. Dip it back down. One more time, inhale. Exhale, lift the thigh.

Drop the heart. And maybe look under your arm. Hello. And then release Hands to the wall. Let's come up for a moment and reset. Feeling that reflection of alignment in the body.

Hands are gonna come about level with the ribs. We walk back for the second side. So we use the alignment of the floor in the wall to align our postures here. Right leg reaches back. Inhale.

As you exhale, bend the knee, open the hip, feel that feeling of compass here. Drop the left hand. Drop the knee, and we'll catch the foot. We start to string the bow and arrow. It's an Arthodon yarasana.

Try to square the hips off. And I'm gonna just adjust my bottom foot forward a little bit. I think I set it a little too far. That feels better. So as you start to lift, you come up rotating on top of that left femur bone. And then, melting down.

And just be really conscious here of what's happening in your hip, your hamstring, your quads, your breath. Think of it as an opportunity To open it up, but we don't necessarily wanna go so deep that we're popping any popping hips or popping knees. One of the things that we look for in these postures is a balance of ease and effort. Ease and effort. Lift your thigh.

Drop the heart. And then let it go. Oh. Walk your feet a little closer to the wall. Come up onto the balls of the feet, start to sink down, knees to the wall. I set up a little too close.

I'm gonna walk the knees back. Coming into full Ustrasana now. So I've got my toes tucked under so that my heels are the same height relatively as my knees and also so they're a little higher up for me to grab. If the feet are flat, I've gotta go a little lower, which is totally fine. So keeping those toes tucked under so the heels lifted.

Notice if you reach back to plant your palms on your heels, your thighs just came away from the wall. Mind sure did. So the next movement is to start to press the hips and thighs back towards the wall and lift the chest. Allow the head and neck to release back, open up the throat and take three breaths. Try to keep pressing pelvis and thighs towards the wall. And then slowly release bringing the hands to the wall.

Coming out of it. Just that simple alignment, it brings a moment of truth for opening the front body. It's a very helpful tool and also very challenging. But congratulations. You did it and now we're coming out and we're gonna enjoy these next couple postures So from here, we'll take our legs up the wall.

You can use your blanket as a little bolster, scoot the hips right to the edge, long edge of the mat, and the baseboard, tuck and roll. And if you have a hairdo that you need to move, go for it. And this feels amazing after those challenging postures that we just moved through. Let's open up the legs to a wide upa Vista konasana. Wide angle, gravity gets to help us out here.

This is a fantastic shape for anyone. Right? Just to open up whether your legs are a little closer or all the way to the floor, It's a wonderful relaxing, restorative, and, really foundational posture to open up the inner thigh line. Great for the back. Right. If you have a tight low back, this helps to release that. So just hang out here, send it a little love to whatever might need, a little extra attention.

Maybe relax your arms over your head. It's nice to move through the ankles, circulating. And then go ahead and take your hands to your inner knees we'll start to bend the knees, bring the soles of the feet together, outer edges of the feet on the wall, gentle press through both hands so we find this supported baddha baddha baddha konasana. Notice if you press the tailbone down and arch the back versus tucking under, it changes the sensation. It changes kind of the flavor of the posture.

And then from here, draw the knees to neutral. Feet are gonna be slightly higher, not all the way straight, just a slight bend in the knees. And here's where we start to get to invert our bridge post. So I wanna encourage you to keep your gaze right at your feet rather than turning your head because we don't wanna tweak the neck. But tuck your tail under, dig the heels down into the wall and down towards the baseboard, let your hips, your waist, your ribs, rise. You'll roll up onto the shoulders, feel the stretch in the back of the neck, and then roll right back down nice and slow.

When your hips are down, totally fine to turn your head left and right, but as soon as your hips start to come up, we wanna keep the head neutral. So just looking at your feet. Notice if the knees go wide. Try to keep them parallel hips width apart and then roll it back down. And there's something really nice about this kinda slow ascent.

We're gonna do a few more and decent into this inversion. It's basically the training wheels for shoulder stand. And what's nice about it is that it also stretches our hamster strengthens our hamstrings as we come up. We can feel the whole back line working back down. As you come up, this time, we'll stay lifted. So we'll press through the heels, lift up through the hips, draw your hands to your low back, and bring the elbows in a little bit.

Now from here, you're welcome to stay right here enjoying this inverted bridge. You're welcome to take one leg over your head, followed by the other, moving into halasana plow pose. Fingers can lace and walk the shoulders underneath you. Right? You can point through the toes or flex the feet, but do keep the legs active.

Breathing into any hot spots, you feel in your belly, your spine. Bringing your hands to your hips. Release the left hand out to the side. Keep the right hand supporting the hip and just walk your feet slightly over to the right, so you're still in plow. We're just getting a little bit of an asymmetrical moment.

Great release for the neck. And then bring your feet back to the center. Left hand to hip, right hand releases. Walk your feet over to the loft a little bit. Basically going from 12:00 to 01:00 and then back to 12:00.

Bring one foot to the wall, followed by the other, release your hands, and then it's a slow descent down. Ah, that's a nice landing. If your blanket moved, you can adjust it. And then just cross one ankle on top of the other, hanging out, relaxed. Relax your arms over your head, holding one hand in the palm of the other.

Close your eyes, take a breath. Notice how your back feels coming out of that inverted forward fold. And if it's talking to you, just soften your knees and draw the knees into the chest. And then we'll change the crossing of the legs, change which hand is holding which. Same thing here.

You're welcome to stay with the legs extended long, or if it feels a little more supportive on your back, just soften the knees down. And we'll take our final resting pose for Shavasana with the legs up the wall, arms wide like wings, and then bring the left hand to the naval center, the right hand to the heart. And focus your breath into these two places of intention, inspiration, intuition. Feeling that reflection of working with what might be challenging, what might feel like it's not your favorite pose or your favorite situation or your favorite season, whatever it is that you might be interacting with, just really showing up with love with leaning in with enthusiasm and knowing that there is a teaching, there is a journey there is so much benefit. Let your arms relax open, roll the head from side to side, checking in with your neck.

Soften the knees start to drop them down into your heart. Take a little happy baby for a moment, grab onto your big toes, knees come down towards the outer ribs. And then releasing, knees come over to the left. Let's roll off to one side. Climb back up to your seated position.

Yeah. You did it. Bringing the hands together at the heart. Thank you so much for hanging in there with me sharing your energy, your practice, and your presence today. I'll see you in the next one.

Namaste.