Welcome to this relaxing and restorative Yin Yoga practice.
Today we'll focus on releasing stress,
Calming the mind and gently stretching the body to let go of tension.
This session combines gentle movement,
Breath work,
And longer halts to help you deeply relax and unwind.
Begin by finding a comfortable seat.
If you're sitting on a cushion that's perfect for extra support,
Just like I do.
Let's start with some mindful breathing to anchor ourselves.
In the present moment.
Close your eyes,
Rest your hands on your knees.
And start by simply observing your breath.
Notice each natural inhale.
And exhale without trying to change it.
This is.
.
.
Anapanasadi technique.
The awareness of breath.
Which helps calm inner chatter.
And ease into relaxation.
Observe the sensations around your nostrils.
Cool air on each inhale.
Warmer air on every exhale.
If thoughts arise,
Just let them pass and gently bring your attention back to the breath.
You Now let's add in a gentle or jaya breath,
Also called ocean breath.
Lightly constrict the back of your throat as you inhale and exhale,
Creating a soft Ah,
Sound like ocean waves.
Let's practice it together for the next minute.
This breath not only quiets the mind but also helps you deepen into each pose,
Releasing tension.
Keep breathing slowly and smoothly,
Feeling the steady rhythm of this breath.
It connects us to our body in our breath's natural flow.
Now we can proceed.
To the practice and warm up.
Let's start with gentle head rolls in any direction.
Make nice.
Slow circles with your head But keep breathing your dry breath.
Now change the direction.
Notice all the sensations in your body.
And come back to the center.
Take a deep breath in.
And out and then Will do some.
Neck stretches Let your head fall to the right.
Bringing your right ear towards your right shoulder.
Feel a soft stretch along the left side of your neck.
Keep your ocean breath flowing as you hold here.
Relax your jaw.
And let any tension dissolve.
Let the ocean breath ease your muscles.
Stay a bit more here.
Gently bring your head back to center.
And then repeat on the left side,
Letting your left ear reach towards your left shoulder.
Gently place your left hand on top of your head.
Don't push,
Just let it be on top.
Relax your shoulders and keep that soft,
Calming breath flowing.
Anchor your attention.
In the present moment.
Notice the sensations in your body.
Keep breathing your ocean breath.
Observe how this breath is happening.
Be here and now.
As you breathe,
Feel the gentle release down the side of your neck.
Keep your shoulders soft.
Now.
Bring your head back to center and then bring your chin down to your chest.
Stretching the back of the neck.
Place your hands on top of your head.
But don't push your head down.
Just to lower the weight of the hands.
Intensify the stretch.
Keep breathing.
This is time to connect with yourself,
With your body.
Take a good care of it.
Don't rush it.
Don't try to finish the practice as soon as possible,
Just allow your body.
To sink into relaxation.
And now let's come into tabletop with your hands under your shoulders and knees under your hips.
As you inhale,
Arch your back,
Lifting your chest and tailbone in cow pose.
Exhale,
Rounding the spine,
Pressing through the hands and tucking your chin in cat pose.
Move slowly and enjoy the sensation.
Of each vertebrae moving one at a time.
You Inhale,
Cow Pose.
Exhale,
Cat pose around your spine.
Take it slow and sensual,
Letting each movement feel fluid and gentle.
This is a chance to unwind the spine and release tension with every breath.
From the tabletop.
Rise your left arm up to the sky and then slide it under your right arm,
Lowering your shoulder and ear to the mat for thread the needle.
Keep your hips aligned with your knees and allow your chest to melt towards the floor.
Feel the gentle stretch in your upper back,
Breathing deeply.
We'll stay here for around one minute.
Let your attention stay with the breath.
Noticing how each exhale brings a softening.
A gentle release in your body.
When you're ready come back to tabletop slowly Take a few breaths.
As a compensation maker.
Cat pose,
Rounding your spine.
And then cow pose.
And then repeat on the other side raising your right arm and threading it under the left.
And resting here Keep breathing the ocean breath.
It's a very powerful tool to promote relaxation to launch the restorative processes in your body.
And on top of that,
It's a great anchor for being here and now.
Noticing all the sensations of your body and disconnecting from the outer world.
As you breathe,
Feel how this pose unwinds tension from the back.
Of the shoulders.
And spine Be gentle with yourself here.
Gently come back up to tabletop and tuck in your chin and cat pose.
And then come down onto your belly for open wing pose Extend your arms to the side and then gently roll onto your left shoulder letting your right hand support you.
Feel a stretch across the chest and shoulder.
Place your right foot to the mat behind the left leg.
This should feel like a gentle opening.
No pain,
Just a soft release.
In case you have any sharp sensations just ease back into the comfortable position where you don't feel the pain.
Keep the ocean breath steady and let yourself melt into the stretch.
Each exhale helps soften the tension across your chest.
And now slowly.
Release and come back to center.
And then switch to the right side extending the right arm and rolling gently onto that shoulder.
Rotate your hips up.
Placing your left foot to the floor behind your right leg.
Breathe deeply,
Letting your breath create space and ease any tightness there.
In our day-to-day life we are always busy.
We are always worried about the past,
About the future.
And it's very important to take these moments when you.
.
.
Have this time to be here and now.
Where you allow yourself not to rush onto things.
So enjoy this time.
And now come back into your belly.
And here.
Cross your arms beneath you for Broken Wing Pose.
You can use a pillow to place your hat on for support.
A low relaxation in your neck.
Feel a deep release in your upper back.
This stretch works into areas where stress often accumulates.
So keep the breath steady and soft.
Feel the sensations.
It may feel.
.
.
Unpleasant but as long as you stay in the pose and keeping your ocean red.
You may notice how this tension slowly dissolves.
And now gently raise back up.
Stretch a bit.
Stretch your arms forward.
And then change the cross of your hands.
And come back to the same pose.
Allow any lingering stress to soften with each exhale.
Let the breath carry you through the gentle release in your back.
Thoughts may come to your head.
Distract you from being right here in this moment.
And that's natural.
Don't try to stop thinking.
Just allow yourself to gently Switch back to observing your breath every time you notice this happening.
Now.
Gently raise back up And stay on your belly and prop yourself onto your elbows for sphinx bows.
Your elbows under your shoulders and let your shoulders either relax down or allow them to come to the ears Whichever is best.
This gentle back bend opens the chest and relaxes the lower back.
We'll hold here for one minute,
Allowing the breath to bring calm and ease.
To the spine.
Feel your heart center opening with each inhale.
Allow your chest to melt onto your mat.
And now come back to the tabletop.
And bring your left chin forward and settle into sleeping swan pose.
Again you can use a cushion and fall forward letting your torso relax over your front leg and you can place your head on the cushion or on your hands.
Or on your arms.
Use the ocean breath to ease any tightness.
You may notice that it's not that easy to just Lay down and relax.
That's because our brain got used to actively work.
And we often want to.
.
.
Manage and complete so many things during the day and brain may feel like something is not right,
We are not working,
Why are we relaxing?
We should take this time to Let the body relax and calm down this inner chatter.
Gently bring yourself back to present moment by breathing ocean breath and observing the sensations in your body.
And slowly.
Raise your torso up.
Come to the child's pose and then switch sides,
Bringing your right shin forward.
And folding forward I'll rest here for around 10 minutes.
Keep breathing into the gentle sensations that arise.
Let your body be heavy here.
As you inhale,
Feel the breath.
Expile through your hips.
And as you exhale,
Allow your body to soften further into the floor.
In fact,
This is.
.
.
Kind of dynamic meditation.
Or you try to focus on being here and now.
And disconnecting from the outer world.
And reconnecting with your inner world,
With yourself.
And gently raise back up Sit on your mat and then gently.
.
.
Lower yourself onto your back.
And then Shift your hips slightly to the right,
Extending your arms and legs towards the left,
Coming into banana pose.
You should feel like a banana.
Feel the side body stretch and let your breath deepen and release.
Just relax here.
Keep breathing your ocean breath.
Stay here for a couple of minutes Let the ocean breath.
Soothe each each other stretch Deep breathing.
Don't let yourself fall into a trap of thinking that this pose is so easy and you don't stretch enough.
In fact,
Yin Yoga affects the tissues in the body that most of the training is not affecting.
In yoga allows fascia to deeply stretch and allow yourself to have a better flexibility but also better health.
And now return to center and repeat.
On the other side.
Shifting the hips to the left and reaching to the right.
Enjoy this gentle pool.
Relaxing the muscles along the side body Slowly,
Slowly we are coming to the end of the practice.
We have just a few more poses.
And now.
.
.
Let's move into a satisfying twist bringing your right knee across your body and grounding both shoulders You can use a pillow and block to support your knee if needed.
Place your left hand on top to allow gentle stretching your tie.
Stretch your right arm.
And you can choose to look at your right or look up.
Feel the twist releasing the spine as you breathe deeply.
Don't allow your mind to jump on thoughts.
Allow it to be here and now.
And now let's reach to the other side.
Bringing your left knee to the right side and stretching your left arm.
Keep breathing the ocean breath.
Allow it to bring a sense of lightness and relaxation.
Let each exhale bring softness into this twist.
Keep breathing.
Enjoy these last minutes of the practice.
And now lay flat and bring your knees to your chest gently rock side to side massaging the lower back This soft rocking helps release any tension that might still be lingering in your back.
And now lie flat with your knees bent and connected placing your feet to the mat Place one hand on your belly and the other on your chest.
Moving into full breath.
Begin by feeling your belly on the inhale.
And your chest.
And slowly exhale.
This breathing pattern helps shift the body into rest and rejuvenation.
Breath is one of the most powerful tools we have for transformation.
Both physically and emotionally.
If you would like to explore this potential more deeply,
I invite you to join my course The Breath of Life 7 Days to Energize and Heal.
In just one week we'll dive into the power of intentional breathing to boost energy,
Ease stress and bring clarity to the mind.
And for our final pose,
Supported recline butterfly.
Bring a bolster or pillow under your upper back.
Bring the soles of your feet together.
Allow your arms and legs to relax.
Gently opening the chest and hips.
Continue with full breathing.
Letting the breath guide you deeper into relaxation.
And now to deepen this sense of relaxation,
Make your exhale twice as long as you inhale.
Start counting your inhale for example It takes 4 counts.
Then your exhale will take 8 counts.
Just like this.
Inhale one two,
Three,
Four.
Exhale.
One.
Two,
Three,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Inhale.
1,
2,
3,
4.
Exhale.
1,
2,
3,
4,
5,
6,
7,
8.
Inhale and so on.
Count yourself.
This is our last pose.
And as you breathe here,
Let the breath bring in peace and calm.
Feel each exhale release tension and let yourself fully unwind in this restful healing pose.
And now slowly start to bring your awareness back.
Feeling the ground beneath you and the rhythm of your breath.
Take a moment to acknowledge yourself for this time you spend releasing stress,
Curing your body and nourishing your mind.
If you'd like to deepen your relaxation and reconnect with yourself even further.
I invite you to try my meditation for stress relief.
It's a perfect way to invite and ground yourself.
Whenever you need it.
Remember to always be gentle with yourself.
Listen to what your body needs and take good care of your health.
Thank you for joining me today.
I look forward to seeing you in the next practice.
Take care.
