Settle In And Stay: Yin For Cramps And Backache

A 47-minute Yin practice for when you have your period. Floor based and slow, with holds of a few minutes so you can settle in and stay. The shapes are good for backaches and cramps.

Suitable for all levels. Props are up to you. If you usually use them in your practice, have them close by.

Move slowly, listen to your body, and don't push into sharp pain.

Music: Zen Walk by Light_Music.

Transcript

Sitting with your spine tall, Your neck straight. Return parallel to the mat. Allow your shoulders to soften down your back. Soften your gaze or close your eyes if that feels comfortable for you. And just begin to arrive here. Feeling the areas of your body that are touching the mat. Just feeling grounded, Supported. Starting to bring your awareness to your breath. Just notice how your breath feels today without trying to change it. Just notice the quality of your breath. Is it fast or slow, Deep or shallow? Quiet or loud. Just notice it. And then starting with three cleansing breaths. So take a deep breath in through your nose. Then open your mouth and slowly and quietly sigh it out through the mouth. Two more like that, Deep inhale through the nose. And sigh it out, Exhale. Take one more deep breath in. And exhale sigh it out let it go and continue breathing deeply in and out of your nose if that feels comfortable for you. And throughout our practice, Just make sure that your breath is comfortable. So whenever you feel that your breath is starting to get shallow or fast, Maybe it just means that you've gone a little too deep into the pose or you're holding discomfort. And see if we can back out so you have a comfortable, Natural rhythm in your breath. And as you breathe here, Bring your awareness to. . . Your body. Scanning from your toes all the way up to the crown of your head. Notice if there's any part of your body that's maybe a little tight or sore that may need a little bit more love during practice. Just being mindful of that. If anything I say during practice doesn't feel right for you, Please don't do it. Come out of the pose. And take your resting posture. That works for you. And during our practice. Make sure that you're not holding any discomfort in your body. Okay, Bring your hands by your side. As you inhale, Reach your arms all the way up. Palms touch overhead. Exhale to bring your hands to your heart and bow your head to your hands. And think of one thing you're grateful for today. Good, Inhale, Reach your arms all the way up, Palms touch overhead. Exhale, Bring your hands to your heart. One more like that. Inhale. And exhale. It. Now we're going to bring the left hand on the mat by your side or you can bring your hand on the block if that feels better. And just as you inhale reach your right arm all the way up and over towards the left side. So we're not going to be here for too long. Just feeling the stretch on the right side of your body. Soften your shoulders. Press your hips down. Take a deep breath in. Long breath out reach a little bit more Next inhale, Come all the way up to center and switch sides. So right hand on the floor on a block by your side. As you inhale, Reach your left arm up and over towards the right side. Soften your shoulders. Good, Come back to center. When you come into a twist, Just bringing your right hand to the outside of your left leg, Left hand behind you. Use your left arm to sit tall. And then as you exhale, Twist towards the left side. So just waking up our spine a little bit, Noticing how our back body feels. Take a deep breath and sit tall. As you exhale, Maybe twist a little bit more Back to center, Switch sides. Right hand behind you, Left hand to the outside of the right leg. Inhale, Lengthen your spine. And as you exhale twist from the belly. Good slowly come back to center and for our first yin practice we're going to move into a seated butterfly. As you're seated bring the soles of the feet together and you can walk your feet as far away as it feels comfortable. And for this you can use blocks or a bolster to allow your head to rest on something. So there are different different variations and you can choose where you stop. So you can be here with your hands on your shins or your ankles. And just sit tall. If you sit on a pillow or a folded up blanket. It helps you tilt your hips forward a little bit so you can feel a little bit more comfortable in your spine. And you can just be here and soften your shoulders down your back and just allow gravity to pull your knees down. So you don't need to press it down or anything. You can always bring blocks under your thighs. If you want a little bit more, You can maybe walk your feet away from you and start to fold forward. And you can round your back as much as you need. And let your head be heavy or maybe you can bring props under your forehead so you can bring blocks or. Pillows or bolsters under your forehead. So we're going to be here for about three minutes, So take a few moments. First to get really comfortable so finding seated. For thought. Or just a seated butterfly with your hips tilted forward. To relax. Um. . . Be able to settle in. Make sure that Wherever you land, You can feel. Something in your body. But it's not pain or discomfort. When you find your pose, Just come to stillness. Allow your body to breathe naturally. And just allow your mind to follow your breath. In and out. And as you breathe in stillness, You'll notice that your mind will start to wander. Thoughts, Emotions, Feelings will start to come up. And when they do, Just know that that's completely normal. Just kindly bring your awareness back, Back to your breath. Back to this pose. Notice if there's any part of your body that you're holding on to. That you can soften and let go of. Just a little bit more. Maybe it's your jaw, Maybe it's your forehead. Maybe you're actively holding up your knees and maybe you can let go of those muscles a little bit and let gravity pull your knees down towards the ground. Take a deep breath in. And a long breath out. One more like that, Deep inhale. And full exhale, Let it go. And slowly really slowly start to come out of the pose so if you fold it forward start to sit up and as you set up you may notice a rush of energy moving into your head so just move really slowly. Um You can. Cross your legs and sit in stillness for a few moments, For a few breaths. And then when you're ready. Make your way to a tabletop position. So finding tabletop Spread your fingers wide, Your wrists under your shoulders. Knees right underneath your hips. And looking straight down so the back of your neck is long. Pull your belly towards your spine. Good. You can have your toes tucked if that feels better in your knees or you can pad your knees, Fold up your mat. Good, And moving through some Cat-Cows with our breath. So as you inhale, Drop your belly, Open up your heart, Look up. Exhale to round your back, Tuck your tail and look down. Get two more like that. Inhale, Drop your belly, Open up your heart, Look up, Cow pose. Exhale to round your back, Tuck your tail, Look down, Cat pose. One more like that, Inhale. And exhale. Can slowly come back to tabletop. And our next pose is going to be Child's Pose. So find a variation of Child's Pose that you can hold for a longer period of time. So you may want to bring your knees wide, So as wide as the mat, Big toes together. And then just walk your hands forward, Bringing your upper body down, Allowing your forehead to rest maybe on a block or on a pillow. If you don't have props, You can always stack your hands and bring your forehead onto your hands. If you have a bolster or a rolled up blanket, You can always bring your upper body on top of your prop. Maybe turn your head to whichever side feels comfortable. So taking whatever time you need, However long you need, To get comfortable here. So finding a posture where You feel this pose maybe. In your thighs, In your lower back. But there's no pain or discomfort, Especially in your shoulders, In your knees, In your ankles. If it feels if this feels like too much in your knees you can always bring a folded up blanket or a pillow just under your thighs, Just lift your hips up a little bit and this will feel better in your knees. Taking your time here, There's no rush. We're going to be here for a few minutes, So you have time to get settled. And making the final adjustments to get comfortable, Rounded. And then do a scan from the crown of your head. All the way down your body. Notice if there's any part of your body that you're holding on to that you can soften and let go of. Maybe it's your forehead, Maybe it's your jaw. Maybe it's your shoulders. Your fingers or your toes. And then see if with the next exhale you can just soften everything. Allow gravity to pull your body towards the earth. And just breathe here. Taking deep, Long breaths in and out of your nose if that feels good. Noticing thoughts. Emotions, Feelings. And just allowing them to. . . Move away as you bring your awareness back to your breath. Notice if you're clenching your jaw. Notice if your shoulders are starting to roll up towards your ears. If you can soften. Stay with your breath. Notice the areas in your body that you're feeling the pose. See if you can send your breath to those areas. And as you exhale, Soften the leg over. Take a deep breath in. And slowly exhale all the way around. Again, When you're ready, Slowly start to make your way out of the pose. So moving really slowly. Mindfully Come back to tabletop. And you can Maybe walk your hips from side to side, Any movement that you need in your spine. And then coming to stillness, Bring your wrists under your shoulders, Knees under your hips, And moving through three more cat-cows with our breath. Inhale, Drop your belly, Open up your heart, Look up. Exhale, Round your back, Tuck your tail, Look down. Inhale to cow pose. Exhale to cat. One more inhale. And exhale. Good. From here, Slowly start to walk your hands forward, Your knees forward, Cross your ankles, Come back to a seat, And you're going to extend your legs long. We're going to come to another forward fold here, So you can decide if you want to have your legs close or wider apart. So your choice if you want to. Whatever feels good in your legs today. So it may feel easier to sit on a pillow or folded up blanket. And then decide if you want to have your legs wide, As wide as it feels good for you, Or together. And as we fold, We're going to bring a generous bend in our knees. So if you need something to bring under your thighs, You can always do that. Helps you let go of the muscles and Just settle into the pose and stillness. So wherever you are finding any props anything you need and if your legs are Together you can also bring your pillow or folded up Blanket rolled up blanket bolster under your knees To have to help you keep your knees bent And then when you're ready, Just slowly start to walk your hands forward and come into a forward fold. Round your back as much as you need and just bring your forehead down on to either your hands on blocks If you have a couple of blocks, You can stack them. So taking your time here. Again to find a place where you feel comfortable in your forward fold. So we're not going to be here as long, But take as long as you need to get comfortable. Let your feet be soft so you don't need to keep your feet flat. Um. . . Making sure that there's no pain or discomfort, Especially in your hamstrings, In your lower back, In your shoulders. And then find stillness, Find your breath. Soften your gaze or close your eyes and just go inward. The four folds are a symbol of unity. Going inward and reflection. And so as you hold this pose for a few minutes, You may notice that things start to come up. Feelings, Emotions. Thoughts, Conversations that you had. Or you wish you had. And as you notice them. Know that It's completely normal and natural. And see if we can allow them to pass. With your next exhale. Also allowing yourself to be here in this moment. Without getting attached to Any thoughts? Or feelings. Take a deep breath in. Exhale all the air out. One more like that, Deep breath in. Long breath out, Let it go. Good, Now slowly start to Bring yourself back up to a seat. And move your props aside bring your legs together if they're not up there already bring your feet flat on the mat just walk them close to you give yourself a hug maybe bring your forehead to your knees and just thank your body for everything it does for you. For holding you and healing you. And moving you through all the poses on and off the mat. When you're ready, Slowly make your way to the other side. Your back. So coming to your back. You can keep your feet flat on the mat, Knees bent, And just get comfortable with your lower back grounded. So maybe you pick your hips up and tilt your hips forward, Just so you can ground your lower back here. Good. And this should feel really good after the four fold that we had. You can bring your hands to rest gently somewhere on your body. And then feel your breath. Notice your body expand as you breathe in. And soften and settle as you breathe out. Good, Soften your gaze or close your eyes. So our next posture is going to be supported bridge. So for this one, You may use a block under your hips. So you can bring a block, Lift your hips up, And just allow your hips to land on the block, Either on the lowest height or the medium height. If you don't have a block, You can use a pillow or a bolster under your hips, Or you can just bring your hands on your mat under your hips, Your palms down. This is a heart opener so you want to make sure that your shoulders are still grounded. Wherever you are and just as long as your hips are lifted just a little bit so it doesn't have to be too much you can even fold up your mat a little bit So lifting up your hips a little bit, And then rolling your shoulders under so you can have an open heart. And use whatever height of the block feels good, And try to avoid the highest one, Just to make sure your neck and head are resting comfortably. So finding whatever variation of the supported bridge feels good. In your body. Then you can walk your feet wider or maybe farther apart. So making any adjustments you need to get really settled and comfortable here. And then soften your gaze or close your eyes if that feels good. So again this heart opener after all the forward folds that we did may feel a little more vulnerable or you may feel that it's too open or exposed. And if it doesn't feel comfortable for you, You can always come back to just lying down on the floor with your knees bent. You can bring a blanket on top of your chest if that feels a little better so again making sure wherever you land you are completely comfortable When you find your pose. Be still and just breathe. Notice if there's any part of your body that you're holding on to. That you can soften and let go of. Take a deep breath in. Exhale all the air out. Again slowly start to lift your hips up and remove your prop and just again tilt your hips forward lower down all the way to the mat grounding your lower back feeling the earth under you. Supporting you. Clothing yet. From here, Coming to a twist. So if you want to cross your legs, Cross the left leg over the right. Lift your hips up towards the left side and let your knees fall towards the right. So if you're like me, You may have your knees lifted off the ground. So you can bring a pillow or a bolster under your legs if that feels good. Just allowing your legs to rest on something. If crossing your legs doesn't feel good, You can just let your knees stack. And let them fall towards the right side and it may feel good to bring a pillow between your knees. So again, Finding a supine twist that feels really good here after all of the movements in our spine, All of the forward folds. And just finding an arm variation that allows you to ground your shoulders. So either come to a tea, You can. . . Bend your elbows, Find cactus arms. Or you can extend your legs, Sorry, Extend your arms overhead. Don't extend your legs overhead. And then maybe turn your head towards the left side if that feels good. And then just breathe here. Soften your gaze, Soften your jaw. Soften anything that you don't need to hold on to here. And just breathe. Noticing how this twist feels in your body. Slowly start to come out of the pose. Uncross your legs if they're cramped. And we're going to make our way to the other side. So if you want to cross your legs, Right leg over the left, Lift your hips up to the right and let your knees fall towards the left side. And again if crossing your legs on this side doesn't feel good you can stack your knees and let them fall to the left Find your arm variation, Allow your shoulders to relax. Or you can round and soften, Soften again to close your eyes. And just breathe here. Take a deep breath in. Exhale let it go And then slowly make your way back to center and cross your legs if they're crossed. And you can just pause here with your lower back grounded. You can hug your knees into your chest if that feels good. You can come to happy baby pose. Find any posture to that feels. Right in your body before our final posture. So maybe you come to an easy inversion. Anything that your body needs. And then when you're ready, Make your way to Shavasana. So finding your Final resting posture, You can have your knees bent or legs extended long. You can have a pillow or bolster under your knees. You can grab a blanket. And cover up. Wherever you are. Allow your legs and hips to feel heavy, Grounded. Allow your spine to be long and supported by your mat. Shoulders comfortable. Arms by your side, Palms face up, Fingers gently curled in. Soften your jaw, Allow your tongue to fall away from the roof of the mouth. Soften the muscles of the face and your eyelids, Allowing your eyes to gently close. And then scan from the crown of your head all the way down to your fingers, To your toes. Notice if there's any part of your body that you can soften just a little bit more to get comfortable here Allow your body to rest and breathe naturally and take in the effects of your practice. You Take a deep breath in. Exhale all the air out. One more, Just like that, Deep inhale. Full and complete exhale, Let it go. And slowly start to bring some movement back to your body, Moving your fingers, Your toes, Your wrists, Your ankles, Maybe gently rocking your head from side to side. When you're ready, Bend one knee and then the other. Rolling onto your right side in the fetal position, Using your bottom arm as a pillow. Keto pose after corpse pose reminds us that after every ending, There's a new beginning. Slowly start to make your way up to comfortable seat. Sitting with your spine tall, Your neck straight. In parallel to the mat. Soften your shoulders, Down your back, Soften your gaze, Close your eyes. Bring your hands by your sides, Inhale, Reach your arms all the way up, Palms touch overhead. Exhale, Bring your hands to your heart center, Bow your head to your hands, And thank yourself for coming to your mat today and spending this time for yourself, For your practice. Thumbs to your third eye, The space between your eyebrows. May your thoughts be kind. Thumbs to your lips, May your words be caring. Thumbs to your heart center, May your heart be filled with love and gratitude. Thank you for practicing with me today. Namaste.