Hello everyone and welcome to Day 10 of our 30 Day Yoga Challenge.
My name is Candice and for today's practice we are taking a break from movement altogether and practicing a pranayama called Nadi Shodhana or Alternate Nostril Breathing.
So you don't need your mat.
I'm sitting on my mat but I'm sitting on a meditation cushion.
If sitting on the floor isn't great for you,
You can grab a chair,
Sit on your couch,
Whatever works.
Grab a cushion,
Pillow,
Bolster to sit on,
Lean up against the wall,
Do whatever you need to do to be comfortable.
Moving,
We will just be breathing.
And Nadi Shodhana is a great practice to balance the energy channels in the body.
It works with the Ida Nadi,
Which is the left energy center or the moon side of the body,
And the Pingala Nadi,
Which is the right side or the solar channel of the body,
And it brings them into balance.
So I like to practice Nadi Shodhana towards the end of an asana practice.
I find that it just kind of brings all of that energy that I built through the practice and kind of brings it back down,
Calms everything,
Brings me back into focus and into stillness.
Getting comfortable,
Whatever that looks like for you right now.
We're going to be using our right hand.
So you can take your right hand and we're going to bring it in front of the face and you can either take your index and middle finger and rest it on your forehead like this.
Or if you want to tuck those fingers in,
You're just going to be using your thumb to plug your right nostril and your ring finger will plug your left.
So you can rest your hands there.
Let's close the eyes down.
And just taking a few moments here to breathe through both nostrils.
Closing the eyes and tuning the attention inside.
Just noticing the breath,
How it is right now.
No control or technique just yet.
Softening into the belly.
Can you draw the breath in a little bit deeper?
And if you do find holding your hand in front of your face gets a little bit tiring for that right arm,
Sometimes I take my left hand and just kind of rest it underneath my elbow just so I have my right arm has somewhere to rest.
So if you opened your eyes there,
Just closing the eyes back down.
Let's empty the breath fully.
Inhale through both nostrils.
Exhale,
Both nostrils.
Plugging the right nostril,
Inhale through the left.
Pausing at the top,
Switch,
Exhale through the right.
Staying there,
Inhale through the right.
Pause at the top,
Switch,
Exhale through the left.
That's one round.
Inhale through the left.
Pause and switch,
Exhale through the right.
Inhale through the right.
Pause,
Switch,
Exhale through the left.
Inhale left.
Exhale,
Right leg.
And how right.
Exhale left.
Inhale that.
X how right Inhale,
Right.
And exhale,
Lift.
And how loved.
X.
How right.
Inhale,
Right.
Acts,
How left.
And continuing for five more rounds on your own.
If you get lost or confused,
Just remember you pass the nostrils on the exhalation.
And it's no rush at all.
The next time you exhale through the left nostril,
You can just let that right hand come back down.
And just take a moment to notice.
How you feel.
Allow the breath to return back to both nostrils,
Noticing the sensations in the nose and in the body,
The mind.
And whether you are using this practice at the beginning of an asana practice,
You can move into your movement.
Or just moving into the remainder of your day.
With balance in the body and the mind.
We can join the hands together at heart center.
Allow the eyes to blink open and thank you so much for joining me once again and we will see you again tomorrow.
