Welcome to this activation practice.
Over the next few minutes we're going to move our bodies to breathe really really deeply and to boost our energy.
Breath work is such a powerful tool to awaken not just the body but also the mind and the spirit.
The prana,
The life force,
Is always with you from the moment you come into the world to the moment that you leave it.
So let's be a little bit more intentional about how you're using this life force.
Take a few moments here and get settled in.
Maybe sitting on the ground,
Perhaps on a yoga mat.
You can also sit on a chair or on this sofa with both feet firmly on the ground hip-width apart.
If you're on the ground,
Sitting cross-legged or maybe on your heels and then taking a moment bringing the hands on the knees or in your lap,
Closing down the eyes.
Next inhale,
Feel the crown of your head lift up towards the sky,
Almost like a thread of golden light is pulling you up towards the heavens.
Elongating your spine,
Opening the chest as you do so,
Softening the shoulders down.
On your next exhale,
Feeling the root,
The base of your spine connecting to the earth,
Firmly rooting you into the present moment.
Start by just taking a few deep deep breaths in and out through the nose,
Feeling the belly rise,
The abdomen expand,
The chest is lifting.
As you exhale,
Notice how the navel draws inward ever so gently,
Fully emptying yourself to create room for the next deep inhale.
Before we go deeper,
Before we start to really activate our energy,
Take these first few moments,
These first few minutes just for yourself,
Becoming a witness to your breath,
Becoming a witness to your thoughts,
Any emotions or feelings that may be present.
And right now not trying to really change anything about sensations or feelings,
Just becoming an observer to what is going on on the inside.
If you're noticing any discomfort,
Maybe there are feelings that are coming up that feel uncomfortable,
See if you can breathe a little bit deeper into that area of the body that needs some special attention.
Perhaps even placing one or both hands on that part of your body,
Just starting this practice and maybe this day by showing yourself some love and signaling to your body that it is worthy to be paid attention to.
You don't have to pretend that everything's fine,
You don't have to maybe lie to yourself or feel disconnected.
Right now is an invitation to be really present with everything that's going on.
Keep breathing,
Long,
Slow and deep.
Now with the hands on your knees or in your lap,
Just start to roll the head a couple of times,
Up and over on the inhale,
Down and around on the exhale,
Softening any tension in the shoulders and the neck.
Keeping your eyes closed,
Just continuing to breathe long,
Slow and deep.
And then maybe you're starting to circle the entire upper body,
Maybe rolling the shoulders.
Again with your eyes closed and those long deep breaths,
Just exploring your range of motion,
Moving the body in any way that you're feeling called to.
Again,
Signaling to your body that it's worthy to be paid attention to.
Inviting softness,
Spaciousness,
A gradual opening as you continue to deepen your breath.
If you're moving any particular direction,
Maybe switching it up,
Rolling,
Rocking the other way,
Just gifting yourself a few more deep breaths here before we switch to a little bit more of an active breathing practice.
And now slowly coming to find stillness again at the center,
Sitting nice and tall.
And we're going to drop into a really active breath now,
The breath of fire,
Or called Kabbalah Bhati in the yogic tradition.
It's a beautiful breathing practice that really invigorates the body and the mind,
Wakes you up,
Moves the energy.
And the breath of fire can take a little bit of practice,
So just do your best.
Bringing both hands on the belly now,
Feeling the palms on your body,
Feeling the breath long and deep,
Expanding the abdomen,
And just becoming aware of that part of your body,
Becoming aware of how that energetic center feels,
What's present underneath your palms.
And for the breath of fire,
We're going to inhale very deeply through the nose one time,
And the exhale is a short continuous burst of air as you're exhaling through the nose.
And as you're exhaling on each exhale,
The navel draws in in short bursts towards the spine,
So really contracting the abdomen.
Again,
Take it really easy.
This breath takes a little bit of practice,
And I'll do it for you one time so you can hear what it sounds like,
And then I'm going to give you some space to drop into this practice for a couple of minutes by yourself.
So I'm inhaling deeply through the nose,
And exhaling in short bursts like so.
And the inhale will come naturally between these little exhales,
And then when you're feeling like it's time for the next deep inhale,
Just in your own time,
Taking the next deep breath in through the nose,
Fully filling your vessel,
And then coming again into those short exhales,
Contracting the navel inward.
I'll hold the space for you,
Just giving you three minutes to do this practice on your own.
Now slowly coming back into a more settled breathing,
The next deep inhale is followed by a long slow exhale,
And then bringing the hands on your knees or again in your lap,
Just observing the breath now as it flows long,
Slow,
And deep,
Witnessing the energy that you've created in your body,
Noticing,
Observing,
Being a witness.
As we close this practice,
I invite you to bring your hands over your heart,
Feeling the energy expanding the chest on your next inhale,
Really breathing into the heart space,
Giving yourself permission to open yourself to create more space.
Exhale,
Open your mouth,
Sigh it out.
Let's do it two more times.
Deep inhale through the nose,
And exhale,
Release through the mouth.
One more time,
Deep long inhale through the nose,
And exhaling,
Releasing.
Now with your hands on your heart,
I invite you to set an intention for yourself,
For your heart.
Perhaps it's a word,
Maybe it's an image that you're calling in,
Maybe an affirmation.
I'm taking this intention,
Planting it into your heart as a seedling made of pure golden light,
Nourished by the energy that you've created through this practice of movement,
Of breath,
Of awareness.
And whenever you're ready,
Blinking the eyes open,
Returning back to the here and now,
And continuing with your day.
