Mindful Movement Meditation

A gentle, mindful movement meditation involving light yoga stretches. Connecting with the breath throughout the practice and ending in savasana (a lying down pose) feeling more connected with your body.

Please ensure you are wearing comfortable clothing.

Transcript

Welcome to the Mindful Movement practice.

This involves gentle yoga movements.

Try to approach this exercise with openness towards your body.

Don't try to change anything or strain the body into uncomfortable positions.

Go at your own pace letting the experience unfold in your own way.

If you have any medical conditions please consult with your medical practitioner before undertaking the practice.

Before you start please ensure that you're in loose comfortable clothing with no tightness around the waist.

You may also want a pillow for your head or a bolster for your knees if you often have discomfort in your back.

We will start the practice lying on a mat on the floor.

Lying on your back have a nice big stretch.

Stretch your arms above your head and straighten your legs as you breathe in and out.

Then position yourself in the corpse pose lying on your back with your legs hip-width apart.

Your toes facing outwards.

Feet nice and relaxed.

Arms by your sides a few inches from your body.

Palms facing upwards.

Allowing your body to relax into whatever is supporting you.

Taking a few breaths as you sink into this position.

Taking your attention to your tummy and noticing how it feels as your tummy rises and falls as you breathe in and breathe out.

We will start with a pelvic tilt exercise.

Lift both knees so that your feet are on the ground close to your bum.

Slowly and gently tilt the pelvis towards the ceiling.

Lifting the tailbone off the floor as your tummy contracts and the base of your spine and lower back pushes down.

Then tilt your pelvis the other way to create a curve between your lower back and whatever you're resting on.

Then once again tilt the pelvis lifting the tailbone off the floor as your breath flows naturally.

Then back down onto the floor at your own pace.

Repeat this at your own pace a few times to the rhythm of your own breathing.

Lifting on your in-breath and dropping on your out-breath.

Now hug the knees into the chest and gently rock the body from side to side.

Notice how it feels in your sides,

Your lower back,

Upper back and anywhere else in the body.

Swaying from side to side to the rhythm of your own breathing.

Now bring your knees back to the center while still holding on to them.

Start to slowly circle them in a clockwise direction.

Tuning into your breathing so that you're breathing in on one circle and breathing out on the next.

Paying attention to how it feels in your lower back,

Your bum and your legs.

Noticing any other sensations in the body moment by moment,

Breath by breath.

Now repeat this move turning the knees anticlockwise.

Once again tune into your breathing as you circle on each in-breath and each out- breath.

Now bring the knees back to center,

Feet on the floor,

Hip-width apart.

Spending a little time here with your breathing.

Noticing how your body feels after the movement.

Now let's move to Eye of the Needle pose.

Rest your lower right leg on your left thigh.

Draw your left knee towards the chest.

Reach in between your legs with your right arm.

Reach around the outside of your left leg with your left arm.

Then link your fingers together behind your left thigh.

Rest here for a few breaths.

You may feel a pull in your right hip and outer thigh.

This is natural.

Welcome all sensations that arise here.

Not judging or straining.

Just be with the experience as it unfolds moment by moment.

Now repeat the posture on the other side.

Place both feet on the floor close to your bum and hip-width apart.

Rest your lower left leg on your right thigh.

Draw your right knee towards the chest.

Reach between your legs with your left arm.

Reach around the outside of your right leg with your right arm and link your fingers together.

Spend a few breaths here in this position.

You may feel a pull in your left hip and outer thigh.

Perhaps one side feels tighter than the other.

Just accept whatever comes up for you.

From here move into Cat-Cow pose.

Position yourself on your hands and knees.

Ensure your hands are directly below your shoulders and your knees are directly below your hips.

As you breathe out gently round your back to create an arch and scoop your tailbone under.

Tilting your head downwards to look through your legs only as far as your body allows.

As you breathe in tilt your pelvis backwards,

Tailbone towards the ceiling,

Tummy towards the floor.

Tilt the crown of your head as far as your body allows.

Continue this exercise at your own pace to the rhythm of your own breathing.

Everyone will have a different rhythm depending on the flow of your own breath.

And if you notice your mind wandering take your awareness back to the practice.

Remembering to be kind to yourself as we can all have a wandering puppy mind.

Now let's move into Downward Facing Dog pose.

From Cat-Cow pose place your feet on the floor and lift your hips.

Straighten your legs so that the palms of your hands and your toes are touching the floor.

Take each heel to the floor one at a time as you breathe in and breathe out.

You may feel tension in your calves.

Try to approach this tension with kindness and openness.

And repetition can cause the mind to drift so keep an eye on this using the breath to anchor you back into the present moment.

Notice if you feel any tension elsewhere such as your jaw.

Move it around a little to release any tension there.

Only hold the pose for as long as your body allows.

Take a deep breath in and a deep breath out to let go of any worries or stress that you're holding on to.

Take one more breath in and a deep breath out to let go of any worries or stress.

And when you're ready bend your knees and fold back into Child's Pose.

Ensure that your knees are wide apart but with your big toes touching.

Rest your bum on your heels and your chest on your thighs.

Allowing your tummy to rise and fall freely.

Rest your forehead on the floor with your arms long and extended on either side of your ears.

Palms facing downwards.

If this is uncomfortable you can rest your arms on either side of your body with your palms facing upwards.

Press your buttocks back on your heels to gently ground yourself in this pose and enjoy the feeling of openness allowing your breath to flow naturally.

Noticing any sensations that arise in your lower back,

Shoulders,

Head and anywhere else.

Just resting in this position for a few breaths.

Now move to a standing position known as the Mountain Pose.

Gently standing up with your arms hanging by your side.

Feet hip-width apart.

Shoulders nice and relaxed.

Feel all four corners of your feet firmly rooted to the ground.

Ensure your body weight is distributed evenly between both feet.

Centering it in front of your heels.

Notice how your body may sway a little.

Feeling the sensations in your feet,

Calves,

Thighs and arms.

Notice how it feels to hang your arms down by your sides freely.

Your fingers loosely hanging.

Now gently bend your knees and swing your arms and whole body around from your left side to your right side.

Keeping your feet firmly on the ground.

This is a great mood enhancer.

Swinging your arms around freely as you continue to connect with your breath.

And moving into the star breath.

Placing your feet a little more than hip-width apart.

Bringing your arms up as you breathe in and down as you breathe out.

Creating a nice star shape.

Up as you breathe in and as you breathe out.

Repeating this four times to release tension.

Now finish the practice lying on the mat once again.

Lying on your back.

Your legs hip-width apart.

Feet nice and relaxed.

Arms by your sides a few inches from your body and palms facing upwards.

Notice again how it feels to lie here in contact with the floor.

Taking a few breaths as you sink into this position.

Just taking your awareness to your feet.

Then coming up over your ankles.

Shining a torchlight over the calves,

The thighs,

The hips,

The bum,

The back,

The abdomen,

The chest,

Shoulders,

Arms,

Neck and right up to the head.

Resting here for as long as you want.

Enjoying the openness in your body.

And when you're ready to finish the practice you can end it with a nice big stretch.

Stretching your arms above your head and straightening your legs as you breathe in and breathe out.

Signaling to the body that you're coming out of this practice.