Seated Yoga For Meditation

A little bit of movement prior to a meditation session can go a long way by helping you feel more comfortable in your body while you sit. Ahsa shares her favorite simple stretches that can be practiced right from your meditation cushion or chair in this 8-minute video.

If you have a few more minutes and a yoga mat, check out her Mat Yoga For Meditation Video, which warms up the body even further.

Transcript

Hi, I'm Asa. Let's do some yoga for meditation. This practice can be done right on your meditation cushion or even in a chair. So take your time getting nice and comfortable, However you'd like to sit. Lift up tall through the crown of your head. And on an inhale, Draw your arms out to the side and overhead. And then exhale, Arms back out and down. A couple more times just like that. Inhale nice and slow with your breath. And exhale, Arms out and down. Last one. Inhale, Arms out and up. This time on the exhale, Interlace your fingers and flip your palms, Reaching your palms up towards the sky. Hold it here, Relaxing your shoulders down, Lifting up through the palms, Grounding down through your sit bones. One more deep breath here. And on your exhale, You can release the clasp of your hands and grab a hold of your left wrist and tip over towards the right, Getting a nice stretch in the left side body. Inhale, Back to center. And exhale, Tip over towards the left. Inhale, Back up. And on your exhale, We're going to twist over to the right. So float your hands down, Bringing your left hand on top of your right knee, The other hand somewhere back behind you. Inhale to lift and lengthen. Exhale to twist just a little bit deeper. Inhale, Float both arms back up, Unwinding from your twist. And then exhale, Twist over towards the left. Inhale to lift. And exhale to twist. Inhale, Bring both arms back up as you unwind from your twist. And exhale, Float your arms out to the sides and down. Bring your hands back behind you, Interlace your fingers and flip the grip. So bring the other thumb on top. It'll feel a little funky here. Just find a little balance in the body. So hands are interlaced back behind you, Elbows bent. On an inhale, Draw your shoulder blades towards each other. Lift your heart, Lift your gaze as you straighten your arms and reach your hands down towards the cushion or towards the floor. Take one more deep breath here, Opening in the front of the chest. And then as you exhale, Slowly unwind. Release your hands, Release the bind. Bringing your hands to your lap. Inhale, Lift up through the crown of your head. And exhale, Tip your right ear towards your right shoulder, Getting a nice stretch in the left side of the neck. If you'd like, You can extend your left arm out to the side and stay here for another full cycle of breath. Deep inhale, Breathing into the side of your neck. A long, Slow exhale. You can bring your hand back to your lap and slowly draw your chin towards your chest, Kind of moving through a half circle. And eventually bringing your left ear towards your left shoulder. Option to extend your right arm out to the side. Nice, Deep breath into the right side of the neck. And a long, Slow exhale here. On your next inhale, I'm going to float your head back up to center, Bring your hand back to your lap. We'll move through some Cat-Cow in a seated position. So with the hands on top of your knees or on your lap, On an inhale, Draw your chest, Your heart forward, Gaze comes up as you arch in your back. And then exhale, Round in your back, Drawing your chin towards your chest. Inhale, Bring it back forward, Arching in your back. Squeeze your shoulder blades towards each other. And then exhale, Round in your back. Couple more times, Just like this. Move at your own pace. And after your next exhale, Slowly make your way back to a neutral spine. We'll do some Shoulder Circles. So draw your shoulder blades towards each other, Bring your shoulders back behind you, Then bringing them up towards your ears and forward. And moving in this circle, These circles are going in a forward direction. So back, Up, And forward. Breathe nice and slow. And the next time your shoulders come down, We're in a reverse direction. So from down, They're going to go forward, Up, And back. See if you can move through the full range of motion in your shoulders here. And one more circle. And then release. Shake it out. Rest your hands on your lap. Close your eyes if you'd like, Or leave your eyes open with a soft gaze on the floor a few feet in front of you. Take a deep breath in through your nose as you lift up through the crown of your head. Let it out through your mouth with a big sigh. Two more cleansing breaths just like that. Breathe in, Lift up. And let it out through the mouth. Last one. Biggest breath yet. And out through the mouth. Now release any control over your breath. Relax your neck. Relax your jaw. Relax your face. And if your eyes are closed, You can gently blink. Open your eyes. Thank you so much for practicing with me today. I wish you a wonderful meditation session, And I'll see you next time. Bye.