Here's a sequence to help relieve lower back pain.
We're going to get started by laying down on the back.
So bring the spine flat against the yoga mat.
Bring the feet a little wider than hip width apart.
And then drop the knees inwards so that they touch.
This is called constructive rest pose.
Close your eyes and place the hands on top of the low belly.
Start to bring awareness to your breath.
Breathe in and out through the nose.
Feel the belly expand with every inhale.
And contract with every exhale.
Allow yourself to settle in.
Notice if you feel any bit of tension or discomfort.
And see if you can soften here.
There are many reasons why we can experience pain or discomfort in the lower back.
Some of the most common reasons tend to be from overuse.
Such as working out or lifting too much.
Prolonged sitting,
Poor posture habits or tight hamstrings.
So today we're going to focus on stretching the hamstrings.
So hopefully by the end of this class you'll feel a release in the lower back area.
And remember,
We are all different,
So listen to your body today.
And use your breath as a guide.
Take a few more breaths here.
Begin to deepen the breath,
Allowing the inhales to match the exhales.
And when you're ready,
Lift your feet up and hug the knees into the chest.
Bring the hands to the back of the knees.
Take a few breaths here,
Maybe rock from side to side.
Straighten out the arms.
Keep the palms on top of the knees.
Arms are straight here,
Knees are still together.
And we'll just start to find small circles.
So bring the knees apart towards the outside.
And then draw the knees in.
Bring the knees together.
Straighten out the arms as you bring the knees away.
And bring the knees out,
Apart.
Then back in towards the chest,
Together.
And straightening out the arms once more.
So create the circular-like movement,
Drawing the knees away from the body.
Straightening out the arms,
Out to the side.
Bending the elbows and then back in towards the chest.
Continue to breathe here.
A few more times.
And then come back to centre.
We're going to go the opposite way this time.
With arms straight,
Knees together.
You're going to hug the knees into the chest.
And then extend the knees out wide.
Bringing them away from the body.
And then together again.
Just reverse the same motion that you were doing before.
Still finding the circular-like movements.
And just start to release a bit of tension in the sacrum.
One more time.
And then come back to centre.
Release your feet back down to the mat.
Keep the left knee bent.
And extend the right leg straight up.
You can have a slight bend in the right knee.
And then interlace the fingers behind the back of the right thigh.
So getting a very gentle hamstring stretch.
Try to keep the right foot flexed.
Continue to breathe.
You can deepen the stretch.
By bringing the hands behind the back of the calf.
You can also extend the left leg.
So that it's flat on the ground.
Whatever variation you choose.
Remember to breathe.
And then we're going to move into a supine pigeon.
So if the left leg is extended.
Go ahead and bend it.
And then cross the right ankle on top of the left knee.
Take a moment to breathe here.
Feeling a gentle stretch in that right hip.
Option to stay here.
If this is a deep enough stretch for you.
You can place your right hand on top of the right thigh.
Gently encouraging that hip to open a little bit more.
Or you could choose to lift the left foot off of the mat.
And interlace your fingers.
Either behind the left thigh.
Or in front of the left shin.
So hug both legs closer in towards your body.
Getting a bit of a deeper stretch.
You can close your eyes if that's comfortable for you.
Continue to breathe here.
Maybe rock from side to side.
Take one more breath here.
If your left foot is lifted.
Place it back down and cross the right leg.
Place the hands on the mat.
Press the palms into the ground.
To lift the hips over towards the right side of the mat.
Lift the feet up.
And then drop the knees over towards the left side of the mat.
Come into a gentle supine twist.
Gaze over the right shoulder.
As you extend the right arm out.
Place the left hand on top of the right leg.
One more breath here.
And slowly bring your gaze back to centre.
Hug the knees back into the chest.
Bring the knees back to centre.
And then place the right leg down.
Extend the left leg up.
So coming back into our hamstring stretch.
Right knee is either bent.
With the right sole of the foot on the ground.
Or you can extend that right leg.
Hug the left leg close in towards the body.
And try to keep that left foot flexed.
Then from here if your right leg is extended.
Bend the right knee.
So that the right sole of the foot is on the ground.
We're going to come into our pigeon pose.
Place the left ankle on top of the right thigh.
And you can choose to stay here.
And place your left hand on top of that left thigh.
Gently encouraging that hip to open.
Or you can lift the right foot off of the mat.
Interlacing the fingers and wrapping them around the thigh.
Or the shin.
Hugging both legs closer in towards the body.
Take one last deep breath.
And then gently release the right foot back down.
If you took that option.
Uncross that left leg and place the palms down.
Lift the feet,
Lift the hips.
And place them over to the left side of the mat.
And then drop the knees over towards the right side.
Finding a gentle twist.
As you gaze over the left shoulder.
Try to keep both shoulder blades pressed into the mat.
Take one more breath and bring your gaze back to centre.
As you hug the knees in.
Plant the hands down to readjust your hips back to neutral.
Hug your knees into the chest one last time.
And then release your legs onto the mat.
And we're going to end this practice in Shavasana.
Thank you for joining me on the mat.
I will see you soon.
