Unhurried: A Slow Flow For The Morning

A slow flow practice for the morning, running just under 44 minutes. All levels, and you can take it at whatever pace your body wants today.
This is a long, unhurried practice. Nothing rushed, plenty of room to breathe between shapes.
Props are optional but welcome if you have them: a bolster or pillow, a couple of blocks, and a blanket.
Move slowly and don't push into sharp pain.
Music: Happy Peace by BreakzStudios.

Transcript

So finding a tall seat on your mat. With your hips grounded, Spine tall, Chin parallel to the mat. Soften your shoulders down your back. Soften your jaw. So open your gaze or close your eyes if that feels good. And just start to arrive here. Starting by noticing the breath. Notice how your breath feels, If it's fast or slow, Deep or shallow, Quiet or loud. And then taking a few cleansing breaths here together, Take a deep breath in through your nose. Open your mouth and slowly and quietly sigh it out. Let it go. Two more. God deep inhale through the nose. And exhale, Slide out, Let it go. One more deep inhale. Exhale all the air out through the mouth. And then breathing deeply in and out of your nose if that feels comfortable for you. See if you can deepen your inhales. And lengthen your exhale. Good, As you breathe here, Bring your awareness to your body, Just noticing how your body feels. If there are any parts of your body that are maybe a little tight or sore that may need a little bit more love during practice. And just be mindful of that. So if anything I say doesn't feel right in your body, Please don't do it. Just come out of the pose and take a resting posture that works for you. And then join me when you're ready. Take a deep breath in. Let all the air out. And then keeping your hands on your knees, We're going to start to make circles with the upper body. So just moving. Whichever direction comes to you first, Naturally, And starting to make circles. See if you can keep your hips grounded and just move forward. Your spine. So you can really exaggerate the movement in your shoulders, Noticing how that feels, Maybe bringing one shoulder forward, The other one back. You can open your heart as you come forward, Round your back as you move back. And that when you're ready. Doing the opposite direction so switching sides just moving the opposite direction and this side may feel a little weird in your body. And string it out. A few movements on the side. And then coming back to center. Sitting tall, Slowly start to bring your chin towards the chest, Just feeling the stretch in the back of your neck. And then as if you're carving a line with your nose, Slowly start to raise your head up, Lifting your nose up towards the ceiling. Slowly bring your head down. Moving really slowly, Being mindful of how this feels in the back of your neck. And then lifting. Slowly come back to center. And then we're going to move to our hands and knees. So coming to a tabletop position. Moving to your hands and knees, Bringing your wrists under your shoulders. Knees right underneath your hips, Spread your fingers wide. And you can keep your toes tucked or. . . Welcome to the tops of the feet, Good. So moving through some Cat-Cows with our breath. As you inhale, Drop your belly, Open up your heart. Welcome. Exhale to round your back, Tuck your tail, Look down. Inhale, Drop your belly, Open up your heart, Cow pose. Exhale to round your back, Tuck your tail, Look down, Cat pose. One more inhale. And exhale. Good, Bring your knees as wide as the mat, Big toes together, And then inhale, Drop your belly, Open up your heart, Look up, Exhale to round your back and move to Child's Pose. Inhale, Come forward, Drop your belly, Open up your heart, Look up. Exhale, Round your back, Tuck your tail, Move to child's pose. Good, Starting to warm up the spine. Do one more like that. Inhale, Come forward, Drop your belly, Open up your heart. Exhale, Round your back, Touch your tail. Child's pose. Good. Staying in child's pose. Really spread your fingers wide keeping your arms active so your elbows are lifted You're actively pressing your hips back towards your heels. They're not necessarily touching, But that's okay. Where they're headed. And you're spreading your fingers wide, Pressing the palms of the hands. And your fingertips down good and then see if you can soften your shoulders away from the ears down your back maybe you bring your forehead down on the mat or on a block Take a deep breath and feel your body expand as you breathe in. And exhale, Soften and melt a little bit closer towards your mat as you breathe out. Slowly start to walk your hands towards the right side of the mat. So coming to the side stretch, Maybe bring your left hand on top of the right and press your hips back. Towards your heels, Soften your shoulders, Soften your head. Okay, Feeling this stretch on the left side of your body. Noticing the stretch deepen as you breathe in. And then soften and let go as you breathe out. Slowly come back to center, Moving to the second side. So walking your hands towards the left side, Bring your left hand on top of the right, Pressing your hips back. Towards your heels. Deep long breaths in and out of your nose. Then slowly come back to center, Come to tabletop, Walk your hands forward, Tuck your toes under, Push your hips up and back, Downward facing dog. So first down dog of our practice, Maybe start by Bending one knee and then the other walking your dog here. You can walk your feet wider apart on the mat or closer together Any movement that feels good, Maybe rocking your hips from side to side. And then coming to stillness, Bend your knees a lot, Pushing your hips up towards the ceiling. See if you can lengthen your spine as you breathe in. And then push your heart center towards your knees as you breathe out. Good. Downward facing dog, Allow your head to hang heavy, Nod your head yes, Shake your head no. Good. Next, Inhale, Lift your heels, Bend your knees, Look forward, And then slowly start to make your way to the top of the mat, Coming to a forward fold. Good so bending your knees a lot bringing your belly on top of your thighs good allow your head to be heavy Your hands can stay on the mat, You can bring your fingertips down, You can bring your hands on blocks if that feels better. Is hanging here. From here, You're going to start to bend the left knee and then start to walk your hands towards the outside of your right foot. So coming into a twist. Just being really mindful of how this feels in your lower back and in the back of your right leg. So your right leg is straight and you have a generous bend in your left knee. Slowly walk your hands back to center and switch sides. So bend the right knee this time and walk your hands towards the outside. Of your left foot. Again, Letting your head hang heavy, Shoulders soft. And then come back to center. Good. Keeping your right fingertips on the mat, Just in front of your feet, Or you can bring your hands on a block. You're gonna bring your left hand to your left hip, Bend your right knee a lot. Press your left foot down and then lengthen your spine and twist towards the left side. So twisting from the belly, Lengthen your spine as you inhale. And then twist. From the belly as you exhale. You can reach your left arm up. Stacking your shoulders if that feels good. Right knee is bent, Left foot is pressing down, Your leg is straight. You can look up towards your thumb if that feels good in your neck. Take a deep breath in. Exhale fold forward over your thighs good switch inside so left hand just in front of your feet bring your right hand to your right hip bend your left knee a lot press the right foot down and then lengthen your spine and twist to the right Stay here, Or you can reach your right arm up, Stacking your shoulders. You can look up towards your thumb. Deep breath in. Long breath out, Slowly come back down to your forward fold. Bring your hands to your shins, Inhale, Lengthen your spine, Halfway lift. As you exhale, Fold forward over your thighs. Good, Two more like that. Inhale, Halfway lift. Exhale, Fold. One more inhale. And exhale good on your next inhale slowly start to come all the way up to standing reach your arms up palms touch overhead and exhale to bring your hands to your heart center and then coming to a mountain pose You're standing at the top of your mat so your feet can be hip distance apart or wider. And wherever you are, See if you can feel the four corners of the feet on the mat. You can pick your toes up. Just notice that feeling in the bottom of your feet. And then holding on to that feeling, Slowly bring your toes down. Activate the muscles of your legs, Slight tuck of the tail and pull your belly towards the spine. Good. As you inhale, Roll your shoulders up towards your ears. And then exhale to soften them down your back. So opening up the heart, Standing tall in mountain pose. Slight tuck of the chin. Think about lengthening your spine and reaching the crown of the head towards the ceiling. Soften your gaze or close your eyes. And just pause here in Mountain. Noticing your breath. Nourishing your body. And releasing your mind. As you inhale, Reach your arms all the way up, Palms touch overhead. And exhale to bring your hands to your heart and bow your head to your hands. And think of one thing that you are grateful for today. Inhale to reach out, Palms touch. Exhale, Bring your hands to your heart center. One more inhale. And exhale. Good. Next inhale, Reach your arms up, Palms touch. As you exhale, Bend your knees, Fold forward over your thighs. Good, Bring your hands to your shins, Halfway lift, Inhale, Fold forward as you exhale. Good, Plant your palms, Gonna step back to plank pose. Good, So in plank, Your shoulders are right over your wrists, Your knees can be lifted, Or you can drop your knees down, Your toes are still tucked, And if your knees are down, They're just behind your hips. So wherever you are, Pull your belly towards your spine, Take a deep breath in. Exhale all the air out. Good, One more inhale. And then as you exhale, Drop your knees, Your chest and your chin. Come all the way down to your belly. Good. Bring your hands off the mat. Tent your fingers, Elbows up. Press the tops of the feet down so much so that your knees start to lift up. And then as you inhale, Come to your back bend. So just come up as far as it feels good. Exhale to lower down. Inhale to backbend. Exhale to lower. One more inhale. And exhale, Lower it down. Good. Plant your palms, Tuck your toes, Push up to table or plank. And as you exhale, Move to downward facing dog. Good, So you're a down dog, You decide if you want to stay in stillness or walk your dog here. Good. Bend your knees a lot if you're in stillness. Push your hips up towards the ceiling. Deep breath in. Exhale all the air out. Good. Next, Inhale, Lift your heels, Bend your knees, Look forward. Exhale, Slowly make your way to the top of the mat, Coming to a forward fold. Good. Inhale, Slowly start to walk your hands towards the outer edge of the right foot, Bending the left knee. It. Exhale, Come back to center. Inhale, Switch sides. Walk your hands towards the outside of the left foot. Bend the right knee. And come back to center as you exhale. Good. Right hand in front of you, Left hand to your left hip. Bend the right knee a lot, Lengthen your spine to twist. Maybe reach your arm up. Take a deep breath in. Exhale, Fold forward, Switch sides, Left hand in front of you, Right hand to your right hip, Bend the left knee a lot, Lengthen your spine, Twist to the right. Deep breath in. Exhale, Fold forward. Hands to your shins, Halfway lift, Inhale. Fold forward as you exhale. Good, Inhale, Come all the way up, Reach up, Palms touch. Overhead. As you exhale, Bring your hands to your heart center. And how to reach. Exhale to fold. Can see your shins halfway lift, Inhale. Fold forward exhale plant your palms snap it back to plank knees up or down take a deep breath in Exhale, Lower your knees, Your chest, Your chin, Come all the way down to your belly. Tops of the feet to the mat, Tense your fingers off the mat, Elbows up, Inhale to back bend. Exhale to lower. Two more, Inhale. Last one, Lift up as you inhale. Slowly lower as you exhale good plant your palms under your shoulders elbows right next to your body tuck your toes push up table or plank and exhale to downward facing dog. Deep breath in through your nose. Open your mouth, Sigh it out. Next inhale lift your heels bend your knees look forward exhale slowly make your way to the top of the mat coming to a forward fold good inhale walk your hands towards the outside of your right foot bend the left knee Exhale, Come back to center. Switch sides, Bend the right knee, Walk your hands to the outside of the left foot. And then come back to centre. Coming to our twist, Right hand in front of you, Left hand to your left hip, Bend the right knee a lot, Lengthen your spine, Twist to the left, Pause here for a deep breath in. And a long breath out. One more inhale. Exhale, Fold forward. Switch sides, Left hand in front of you, Right hand to your right hip. Bend the left knee a lot, Lengthen your spine and twist from the belly. You can reach your right arm up, Take a deep breath in. Exhale, All the way around. One more inhale and exhale to fold forward over your thighs. Bring your hands to your chin, Halfway lift, Inhale. Fold forward as you exhale plant your palms step your feet back coming to plank pose good so knees up or down you decide take a deep breath in And then as you exhale, Make your way all the way down to your belly. Good. Press the tops of the feet to the mat. Bring your hands off the mat. Tense your fingers, Elbows up. Inhale to backbend. Exhale to lower. Two more, Inhale. And exhale. Last one. And exhale. Good. Plank your palms, Tuck your toes, Push up table or plank. And then make your way to downward facing dog. Take a deep breath in, Long breath out Next inhale lift your right heel all the way up And then as you exhale step it to the top of the mat coming to a lunge So you can decide if you want to keep the back knee up or you can drop it down. Wherever you are, Make sure the front knee is right over your ankle. You can keep your fingertips on the mat. You can bring your hands on two blocks on either side of the front foot. Or if you like, You can start to come all the way up to your lunge. So back knee up or down. Wherever you are, Shoulders. If your arms are raised, Shoulders right over your hips. Pull your belly towards your spine. Take a deep breath in. And along. Soften your shoulders, Soften your jaw. Soften your gaze. Deep breath in. And exhale, Hands down either side of the front foot. Good. Coming to a twist, Plant your left palm on the mat or on a block and you can bring your right hand on top of your right thigh or you can reach your arm all the way up, Stacking your shoulders. Check your right knee, Make sure it's still over your ankle so your knee wants to move away from you. See if you can pull it closer to your body. You can look up towards your thumb. If that feels good in your neck, Take a deep breath in. And exhale slowly bring your hand down and you can step your right leg back coming to a tabletop position Good, From tabletop, Just walk your left hand to the middle of the mat. As you inhale, Reach your right arm all the way up, Stack your shoulders. And then as you exhale, Cross it under the left. Bring your shoulder side of the head down. Good, Inhale to reach your arm up, Come to a twist. Maybe look up. And then exhale, Cross it under the left. Bring your shoulder and side of the head down. One more inhale. And exhale. Inhale, Reach your arm all the way up. And then come back to tabletop position. Good, Walk your hands forward, Tuck your toes under, Push your hips up and back, Downward facing dog. Good, Take a deep breath in. Long breath out. As you inhale, Lift the left heel all the way up and then step it forward to the top of the mat. Good. So coming to your lunge, Again, You can choose if you want to keep the back knee up or drop it down. You can stay here with your fingertips on the mat, You can bring your hands to blocks, Or if you like, Reach your arms all the way up, Coming to your lunge. Alright. So back knee upward down, Front knee right over your ankle. Good, Make sure it's not going past your ankle. If it is, It just means you can walk your feet further apart on the mat. Soften your shoulders, Soften your jaw. Open your gaze and come to your breath. Take a deep breath in. And then exhale, Bring your hands down either side of the front foot. Good. Plant your right palm and we're coming into a twist. So you can bring your hand, Left hand on top of your thigh, Or you can stack your shoulders and reach your arm all the way up. Check the front knee, Make sure it's not moving away from you, Pull it close to you and it's still over your ankle. Take a deep breath in. Exhale all the way around. One more inhale, Exhale hands down. And step it back to tabletop position. Walk your right hand towards the middle of the mat. As you inhale, Reach your left arm all the way up. And then exhale, Cross it under the right hand. Tapping your shoulder and the side of the head on the mat. Good, Inhale to lift up, Twist, Maybe stack your shoulders. As you exhale, Cross it under the right. One more inhale. And exhale. Good. Inhale, Reach your arm all the way up. And exhale bring your hand down coming back to tabletop position good start to walk your feet forward cross your ankles and come to a seat. So finding a seat. On your mat, You can bring a pillow, Folded up blanket under your hips, Just to tilt your hips forward a little bit so you can lengthen your spine. And then we're going to come into Janu Sarasvana. So bringing your left leg long, Bring the bottom of your right foot to the inside of the left knee. So bending the right knee. And then we're going to turn our torso towards the extended leg. So one way to do that is use your fingers by your side and just start to pull the left hip back a little bit. So this turns your shoulders and your upper body towards your extended leg. And then you can start to walk your hands forward. So flex your left foot a lot and just walk your hands forward, Coming to a forward fold. And this may not be a huge forward fold here, As long as you're hinging from the hips and then grab whatever feels accessible. So your thigh, Your shin, Your ankle, Maybe your feet and your toes. Maybe you have a strap around your feet. Or your left foot and you can grab the strap. You can have a generous bend in the left knee. Just being really mindful of how this feels in the back of your left leg and in your lower back, Especially on the right side. Okay. It may feel good to bring the right hand to the outer edge of the left foot. And grab your toes with your left hand. With every inhale, Lengthen your spine. With every exhale, Maybe fold a little bit closer to your legs. Deep breath in. Long breath out. Slowly start to walk your hands back coming to a seat and then bring your right hand behind you, Your fingertips pointing away and then point the front toes As you inhale, You're going to start to lift your hips up, Reaching your left arm up and back. Good. Exhale slowly bring your hips down good we're going to do that two more times inhale to lift your hips up maybe reach back and move back And then exhale, Slowly come down. One more like that, Inhale. And exhale. Now from here, We're going to come into a seated twist. So bending or keeping the right knee bent, Bring the sole of the foot to the mat, And then you can bring it to the outside of your left leg. You can keep the left leg extended or you can bend your knee and just come to a seat. So you're seated with both knees bent and you're right foot to the outside of the left leg. And then you can hug your knee um your your right knee into your chest. And just sit tall. So. Using your left elbow, Hook your knee inside your left elbow and you're gonna hug your knee in to come to a twist. So with every inhale, Spine gets long. With every exhale, You twist towards the right side, So hugging your right knee up in a little bit. You can bring your right hand behind you if that helps you lengthen your spine. Tense your fingers. Good. Inhale to sit tall. Exhale to twist. Maybe look over your right shoulder if that feels good. Deep breath in. Exhale to twist. And slowly come back to center and then extend both legs long. And shake that out, Let it go. And switching sides. So keeping your right leg long, Bring the sole of the left foot to the inside of your right leg, And then turning your torso towards your extended leg. So maybe lift your hips up and just pull your right hip back. And then when you're ready, Start to walk your hands towards your right foot, Flexing your foot a lot. And then deciding where this side feels accessible, Grabbing your shin, Your ankle. Maybe your foot. Good, And then lengthening your spine as you inhale. And hinging from the hips and folding forward as you exhale. Being mindful of how this feels in the back of your right leg you can have Generous bend in your knee. Noticing where you feel the pose. Making sure there's no sharp pain or discomfort. Deep breath in. Long breath out. Okay, Slowly start to walk your hands back towards you coming to a seat. Bringing your left hand behind you, Plant your palm, And then point the front toes. As you inhale, Start to lift your hips up, Reach your right arm up and back. And exhale to lower everything back down. Two more like that, Inhale to lift your hips up. Exhale to lower. Good, One more inhale. And exhale. Now we're going to come into our twist. So you can keep your right leg long, Bring the left foot on the mat, And then you can bring it to the outside of your leg. And you can keep your right leg long or Bang your knee. It so using your right arm hook your knee with your right elbow and you're just going to inhale to sit tall exhale pull your knee toward towards you to help you twist to the left You can use your left arm behind you, Tense your fingers. Use your arm like a kickstand to help you get taller. And then as you exhale, Twist from the belly. Maybe look over your left shoulder if that feels good for you. Deep breath in. Exhale to twist. One more inhale. And exhale. Good, Slowly come back to center. And then extend your legs long. And shake that out, Let that go. Bring the soles of the feet together, Coming to seated butterfly. Walk your feet as close to you as it feels good, Allowing your knees to fall towards the mat. Your knees will probably be lifted like mine, Or maybe they're closer to the mat. Wherever you are, See if you can just allow gravity to pull them. Make sure there's no sharp pulling or pain inside your thighs. And then grabbing your. . . Your ankles or your toes or the outer edges of your feet. Inhale to sit tall. And then as you exhale, Start to bend your elbows and lean forward. And you can use your elbows on your thighs just to hold your knees down a little bit, Being really mindful of how this feels. And. . . Your inner thighs and your groin. So this may not be a huge fold for you. As long as you're feeling this pose, You're doing it. So don't worry about what it looks like. Don't worry about the image in your head that you should be getting to. Just think about how it feels, Where you feel it, And see if you can breathe into that sensation in your body. Take a deep breath in. Long breath out. And slowly start to come all the way up. Bring your hands outside your knees, Close your knees up like a book, And then walk your feet close to you, Give yourself a hug, Maybe bring your forehead to your knees, And thank your body for everything it does for you. For all the poses on and off the mat. And slowly start to make your way to your back. A reclined position with your knees bent and your feet flat on the mat. Walk your feet as close to you as it feels good. And your feet are hip distance apart. Your knees are the same distance. Bring your arms by your side, Palms facing down. And we're gonna move into bridge pose. So for bridge, When you're in the pose, Don't turn your head from side to side, Looking straight up. As you inhale, Start to lift your hips all the way up. Pressing your knees away from you but there's still your thighs are parallel and you can have your arms by your side or maybe slowly you roll your shoulders under and interlace your fingers under your body. Make sure your neck is comfortable. Maybe inhale to lift your hips up a little bit more. Maybe start to come to the top here. Or lift your heels up. It. Breathing deeply. Feeling the inhales fill your belly up and see if you can soften anything you're holding on to that is not necessary right now. As you exhale. One more inhale. And then as you exhale, Slowly start to make your way out of the pose. So moving really slowly and mindfully and just pause with your lower back and your hips grounded. Resist the urge to hug your knees in, Just pause here feeling the earth under your spine. And maybe start to gently windshield wiper your knees from side to side. Releasing any tension in your lower back. And then if you like, You can hug your knees in. You can come to happy baby pose, If that's in your practice, Grabbing. Your thighs or the outer edges of your feet. You can stay in stillness or you can rock from side to side, Extending one leg and the other. Any movement you need here. And we're getting ready for our final posture shavasana so if there's anything else your body needs before moving into Shavasana. You can take that now. And then grabbing any layers or props, Anything you need to get really comfortable in your final posture. You can have your legs extended long, Maybe have a bolster or pillow under your knees. You can have your knees bent, Your feet flat on the mat, Allowing your knees to fall inward. Whatever posture you find, Make sure your hips are grounded. Your spine is long. Shoulders heavy on the mat. Arms by your side, Palms face up, Fingers gently curled in. Slightly tuck up the chin so the back of your neck is long. Soften your jaw. Part your teeth and 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. Scan from the crown of your head all the way down to your fingers and your toes and see if there's any part of your body that you can soften and let go just a little bit more to feel comfortable here. Allow your body to rest and breathe naturally and take in the effects of your breath. Take a deep breath in. And a long breath out. One more, Just like that, Deep inhale. Whole and complete. Exhale, Let it go. Slowly start to bring some movement back to your body. Moving your fingers, Your toes, Your wrists, And your ankles. Maybe gently rocking your head from side to side. And then 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. The fetal pose after corpse pose reminds us that after every ending, There's a new beginning. And slowly start to make your way to a seat. Finding a comfortable seat with your spine tall, Your neck straight, Chin parallel to the mat. Soften your shoulders, Down your back. Soften your jaw, Soften your gaze, Or close your eyes. Bring your hands by your side. Inhale to reach your arms all the way up. Palms touch overhead. As you exhale, Bring your hands to your heart and bow your head to your hands. Thank yourself for coming to your mat today, For 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. To your heart center. May your heart be filled with love and gratitude. Thank you so much for practicing with me today. Namaste.