50 Minute Slow Strength Yoga | Full Body Flow

Slow doesn't always mean easy! Join me for 50 minutes of full body hatha yoga as we move through a challenging, steady-paced flow designed to build strength, balance, and flexibility.
We'll take our time through each movement, focusing on control, stability, and mindful breathing. Throughout the class, I'll offer options to progress and challenge yourself further, so you can choose what feels right for you.

Transcript

Hello and welcome to your slow strength yoga practice. My name is Jillian and I'm honored to be guiding you through this class. The slow strength comes from a style of yoga called Hatha yoga and it just means that we're holding poses for About five to eight breaths each. And so that's where the challenge can come from. We're not necessarily moving super quickly, But you're challenging your strength, Your muscles to support you through the whole thing. It's not going to be actually anything crazy, But hopefully you'll feel a little bit warmer. Personally, I'm freezing and I can't wait to feel just a little bit warmer. No blocks are necessary but they are always welcome. I use them in my cues and we're going to get started with this class on our backs. You can have your feet stepping down to the ground and then just let your knees fall in together. Constructive rest pose. Tuning into your breath. In Hatha Yoga, Your breath is your guide. When you notice your breath starting to get really shallow and deep, And you can always come out of the pose. Try to find full inhales and slow exhales, Emptying out entirely before taking in your next breath. Noticing the thoughts in your mind. Your thoughts are really loud and fast. You if things are quiet. Not much going on, You're able to stay present. In faster paced classes, Your mind can focus on the movement, On where you're going, On what you're feeling. In hatha yoga when we're in the pose for a little bit longer then your mind has time to Feel the posture, But then wander off. And so focusing on your breath or even setting an intention for your practice to give your mind something to focus on will really help you to stay present throughout the whole practice. Making sure that your low back is grounded, Gather your knees into your chest. And wrap your arms around the shins or hamstrings. And you could stay in stillness or you can rock from side to side or circle your knees. There's no real right or wrong here. You're just starting to bring some awareness into your physical body. And now finding a reclined Tabletop Pose. Bring your knees roughly on top of your hips and your shins parallel. Notice if your low back starts to arch off, And no matter how much strength you find in your belly to press down, Your low back still arches. Bring your knees in a bit closer towards you. Bring your palms towards your lower thighs or I guess upper thighs closer towards your hips. Take a really deep breath in. And then press your palms and thighs into one another. So you're in control of how much effort and strength you put into this. Keep breathing slowly and deeply. One more breath in. And then release into a reclined butterfly pose. Bring the soles of your feet to touch, Let your knees open, And then reach your arms overhead, Take a stretch. Even arching off of the low back, Breathe. Bring your arms back down, Scoop up your knees and come back into your reclined tabletop. We're going to take a second round, But this time bring your palms higher, Closer towards your knees. Ground down to the low back, Feel your core engage. Take a soft breath in. And then with your breath out, Press the palms and thighs into one another. Maybe this time you lift the head and the shoulders off the mat. You And one more inhale. And exhale, Release, And just gather your knees into your chest here. Very good. Now you can cross up the ankles, Bring your hands behind your knees, And rather than finding a lot of momentum, Try to use a bit of strength as we start to rock and roll along the spine. If this doesn't feel good in your back, Just roll onto your side body. We're going to come up into a butterfly pose. So you can bring the soles of your feet to touch, Let your knees open in Sanskrit. It's a Baddha Konasana or bound angle pose. And you can just keep your hands on your ankles and lift out of your hips, Or you could take a forward fold. A little sway from side to side may also feel nice in the low back. We'll take a twist, Lift yourself up and bring your right hand behind your hips. Left hand might find your right ankle or anywhere that works. Try to lift up taller and then twist deeper. You Face forward and bring your right hand anywhere along your left leg, The ankle, And place your left hand behind your head. And back through center. And then you can just make your way into a tabletop pose. Give yourself enough room at the top and the bottom of your mat. And we'll move through our cats and our cows, Lifting the gaze and the tailbone, Lowering the belly. Inhale. And with your exhale, Tuck your tailbone round into the spine, Pushing the mind away, Chin to the chest. Follow your breath in, Opening the front body. And taking your last exhale. Then come back to a neutral spine. Extend your right toes back behind you. Then reach your left fingertips towards the front of your mat. Option to even keep your fingertips down. Otherwise, Lift your hand, Lift your right heel. Finding a neutral spine. Try not to sink into the belly, Look forward, Keep your gaze down. Push the mat away with your right hand. Balancing tabletop. And breathe deeply. Good. Now bring the knee and the elbow together, Curling into the back, Bring your chin inwards, Push them out away. One more breath. And release. Find a tabletop. You can bring the top of your right hand down to the ground just to give the wrist a bit of a break. Maybe roll it out. Now switching sides, Extend your left toes back. Sweep your right fingertips forward. And then hover your left foot off the ground. Make sure your right toes are on tuck so that you're pressing down through the right shin. Feel your breath. Try not to sink your chest to the mat. And you get your heel a bit higher. One more breath in… And then bring the knee and the elbow together, Breath out. Hold this here, Try to curl yourself inward even more. Push the matter away. And release, Tabletop. Now you can bring the top of your left hand to the ground, Just countering that. Good. Downward facing dog, Tuck your toes under, Lift your knees and send your hips up to the sky. Taking a few petals of the leg. And then make your way to the top of your mat. Halfway lift, Breathe in. And forward fold, Breathe out. Come up to stand, Take a breath in. Reach your arms overhead. Bring your hands to your heart center, Breathing out. And take an inhale. And then exhale. We're going to move through a shortened and slower paced variation of a sun salutation B. Just to bring a little bit of warmth into the body to reconnect to the breath, To really find depth. We'll start in a mountain pose. And sweep your arms overhead, Take a deep breath in. And breath out, Sink into a chair pose, Sending your hips back. Hug your belly in. And one more inhale. One more exhale. Pressing up to stand, Breathe in. Forward fold, Breathe out. Halfway lift, Inhale. Exhale, Fold and plant your hands. Step your left heel to the bottom of your mat. Then rise up into a warrior one. Sweep your arms overhead. Try to bring your left shoulder to point forward, A deeper bend into your right knee. And take one more inhale. Exhale, Fold, Plant your hands. Step your right foot back into a downward dog. You can just stay in downward dog, Or you can move through a vinyasa, Shifting forward into a plank, Knees up or down. Exhale Chaturanga. Finding the backbend of your choice. Maybe a baby cobra lifting your chest a little. A cobra straightening your arms or an upward facing dog thighs and hips stay lifted. Whenever you're ready, Lift up into your Downward Facing Dog. Lift your right toes up to the sky, Breathe in. And breathe out place your right foot between your hands let your left foot follow halfway lift breathing in Forward fold, Breathing out. Sweep your arms overhead, Inhale. Bring your hands to your heart, Exhale. Stay for just a breath in. And a breath out. Good. We'll take this now to the other side. Breathing in, Reach your arms overhead. Breathing out, Sink into your chair pose. I'm gonna shift your weight back into the heels. Open the heart, Engage your belly. Inhale, Press yourself up. And exhale forward fold. Halfway lift, Breathe in. Breathe out, Plant your hand, Step your right heel back for your warrior one. Rising up, Reach your arms overhead. You can sink a bit deeper into your left knee, Pull your right shoulder forward. Engage both legs. Your exhale, Forward fold, Planting your hands. Step back to a downward dog or a plank, And you can move through your flow, Breathing in. Chaturanga breathing out. And your backbends. Downward facing dog. Take a cleansing breath in. Open the mouth and sigh it out. Lift your left toes to the ceiling. And then place the foot between your hands. And step your right foot forward. Halfway lift, Breathe in. Breathe out forward fold. Take your arms up high, Inhale. And bring your hands to your heart, Exhale. And bring your arms down along your sides. Take a cleansing breath into the nose. And let it go. Reach your arms up high, Breathing in. Forward fold down to the mat, Breathing out. Halfway lift, Inhale. Plant your hands, Step back into a downward dog. Lower your right shin down to the ground. Have your left toes extended long. And bring your right hand underneath your face. Open into gate pose, Bring your right toes back behind you as you sweep your left fingertips up to the sky. And then take your left fingertips towards the front of your mat. And taking a full breath in. When you get your hips a little higher, Reach your fingertips a bit further. Good. Now lower your left hand down, Bring your hands shoulder width apart. Spin onto your back toes, Push the mat away and hug your right knee into the chest, Round the spine, Push the mat away. One more inhale. And then lower your right knee to your right wrist, Pigeon pose, Lower your shin, Flex your right foot. We're staying lifted here in a more active pigeon, But you can slide your left leg further back. And then you can use blocks here to get yourself into a deeper bend, A back bend. Push your shoulders back to be closer over your head. Maybe you bring your hands to heart center. Plant your hands back down if they were lifted. Finding a three-legged downward facing dog, Tuck your left toes under. Sometimes it helps to shuffle your left knee forward first, Then re-tuck your toes so that your stance is shorter and you can sweep your right toes up high. Staying strong here, Keep your shoulders and hips level. Can you lift a little higher with your right toes? Place your right foot in between your hands for a low lunge. Releasing your left knee down to the ground. And tuck your toes, Sweep your arms up high, Breathing in. When we're taking a prayer twist, Bring your hands through heart and hook the left elbow outside of your right thigh. Press your palms together and twist deeper. Now you can take this option, Otherwise just the forearm to the thigh and reach your right fingertips back. Don't force yourself into something that doesn't feel right. You can stay as you are or tuck the back toes under, Lift off of your back knee. Good, High lunge, Face forward, Reach your arms overhead. Take an inhale. You could sink a little deeper into your right knee. Strengthen your belly. Your legs. Soften your shoulders. Runner's lunge, Reach your fingertips forward and then sweep them back. As you hinge forward, Notice if you're folding, Try to just keep a straight long line of energy from your back leg to the crown of your head. Roll the shoulders back and breathe. Almost there. Good. And slowly rise all the way up into a stork pose. Try not to use momentum. I definitely just did. Try to use your strength. But bring your left knee in front of you. And now we're going to take a twist. Bring your right hand to the thigh. You can always keep your toes grounded, Or you can reach your right hand for the big toes. Sweep your left fingertips back. Maybe you straighten the left leg as you take a twist. Take one more breath. If your leg is straight, Release the toes, Open the knee and land in a warrior two. So your left foot will come down towards the bottom of your mat. I challenge you here, If you typically take a shorter warrior two stance, Bring your foot a little bit further back. Some people say your mat is as wide as your warrior tear should be. Think into your right knee. Turn your chest, Hips to face the side. Hatha Yoga really allows you the time to find the alignment in your body. And then breathe. Soften your toes. Reverse Triangle. Enjoy the release as you straighten your right leg. Let your left hand fall back as you lean back, Sweeping your right fingertips high. Side angle, Re-bend your front knee and bring your forearm to the thigh. Sweep your left fingertips overhead. Now it's your choice. As you turn your chest, You could just reach your fingertips in line with your back leg or reach your fingertips up to the ceiling. Notice if there's a lot of weight in your right arm, Try to almost float it, Or you can bring your fingertips down to the ankle. Option for a bind, Turn the back of your hand to your low back or your right hip crease. Or sinking a little deeper, Wrap your right forearm around your right thigh and interlace your fingers. If you have the bind, Let it go and very slowly lower your left hand down inside of your foot. Enjoy the release here. Spin onto your back toes. We're taking a really big transition. Lower your left knee down to the ground. I'll move slowly. From here, Take your right foot all the way to the bottom of your mat and then kickstand your left toes back behind you. Rearranging on your mat so that you can find your side plank. We'll move through the other side. Checking in that you're in the right form. Left hand is under your face. Left shin is to the ground and your right toes are back. You can take your fingertips towards the top of your mat, Breathing deeply into your right side. And then releasing your right hand down to the ground. Spin onto your right toes. Hover your left knee into the chest, Push the mat away, Almost rounding into the back a touch. Pigeon pose, Flex your left foot and lower your left knee to your wrist. You can slide your right toes further back. You can walk your hands closer towards you, Even bringing your hands to heart center. Each side may feel different, So make sure that it works for you. Pressing down through your right foot as well. Good. Lowering your hands if they were lifted, We'll find a three-legged downward dog. Tuck your right toes under, You can bring your knee closer, Re-tuck the toes and then lift up. Finding strength here, Keep your hips level, Strengthen your shoulders, Your belly, Bring intention into your left leg rather than just letting it float, Push the toes up higher. Step your left foot between your hands. Low lunge and drop your right knee to the ground. Untuck your toes and then reach your arms overhead when you're ready, Breathing in. Breathing out into your prayer twist, Hands through heart, Right elbow hooks outside of your thigh. Your option here is to also bring your right hand to the leg and sweep your left fingertips back. And you can turn your gaze down to the toes to help with balance. Tuck your right toes under and lift off your back knee. High lunge, Move with control. You're always welcome to lower your hands first. Reach your arms overhead. Then don't forget to bend a little deeper into your left knee. If something doesn't feel right in your foundation, Fix it now. Take one more breath in. Runner's lunge, Breath out, Airplane arms hinging forward but not collapsing. Can you shift forward a little bit more? Come on to your big toe and use your strength to lift all the way up into your stork. Find your balance, Using your muscles, Your control here. Bring your left hand to the outside of your right thigh for your twist, Reaching your right arm back. Option to reach for your big toe. Warm our breath. Then re-bend your knee if it was extended long. Open the knee into your Warrior II, Stepping your right foot all the way back. Find your stance where you're in line, Where you feel good. And make sure your chest and hips are facing the side. Weight is in your heels. Maybe close the eyes. Reverse Triangle, Lean back, Straighten the front leg. Side angle, Bend your front knee, Forearm to the thigh. Sweep your right fingertips overhead or to the ceiling. Little adjustments to really find strength in this pose. First of all, And most importantly, Try not to sink all of the weight into your left forearm. Challenge yourself by bringing the back of your arm to the inner knee. Maybe sink deeper into your fingertips. And if your hips are really lifted, Bend deeper into your knee. Option for a half bind reaching your right arm back or a full bind, Left fingertips underneath your thigh. One more breath here, You've got this. Good, Lower your right hand down, Just framing your foot here, Spin onto the back toes. And step your left foot to a downward dog. Cleansing breath into the nose. Let it go. Child's pose or a comfortable seat wherever you would prefer to be. Taking really slow and deep breaths. Feeling your heartbeat. The power and the rhythm, The depth of your breath. Feel the warmth in your body And you're welcome to linger here for as long as you'd like. We're going to take Sleeping Hero to open into the front of the hips to really lengthen things out. We used a lot of our quads, So now we're going to stretch them. I will give a prone option if this doesn't feel good in your knees. But shift forward towards the front of your mat. Bring your knees out a little bit wider than your hips. They can even be as wide as your mat. Wiggle your heels so that they're outside of the glutes. And you can stay like this. You can sit up onto a block if it's becoming to be too much. Or you can move deeper, Bringing your hands behind your hips. Stopping whenever your knees start to lift. If they start to lift, Back out a bit a bit. You can lower onto your forearms. You can lower onto blocks. Or all the way onto the shoulders. And if this doesn't feel good anywhere in your body, If it's sharper pain, Especially in your knees, Then come onto your belly. And then you can reach back for your heels one at a time or reach for both. Whatever works for you. If you are all the way onto your back, Press down to the elbows and slowly lift yourself up. Squeeze the belly and bring your shoulders over your hips. If you are on your belly, Then you can slowly lift yourself up, Even take a child's pose. And you can just lean onto your hands here, Just easing sensation away. Send your legs off to one side and take a seat. We'll make our way onto the back. And have your feet stepping down to the ground. And bring your right knee into your chest. Option to extend your left leg long. It might feel nice to open your right knee out towards the shoulder. Even taking a half happy baby, Reach for the outside of your right foot and lift your heel. Pure and half happy baby, Re-bend the knee. And now we're just going to bring the hands behind the hamstring around the back of your leg. Lift your right toes up high, Flex your foot, And then pull in the leg a bit more to stretch into the hamstring. If it feels right, You could even reach for the toe. I use one hand behind the leg still for support. Good, Now re-bending your knee for the moment, Bring your left foot to the bottom left corner of your mat and then cross your right ankle either on top of your left ankle or just beside. But make sure that your hips are equal and grounded. Option to bring the head and the shoulders over towards the left and reach your arms overhead, Holding on to either your elbow or your right wrist. Let go of any binds and return to a neutral position with your feet, Hips, And shoulders all in alignment. Now you can bring your left knee into your chest, Hands around the legs. Maybe you find a half happy baby, Open your knee to the shoulder, Reach your left arm inside of the foot or inside of the leg for the outside of your foot, Shin or ankle. Coming out of your half happy baby. Just bringing your hands around the hamstring, Lift your toes up and flex your foot. Now bringing your right foot to the bottom right corner of your mat, Left ankle can cross on top. Make sure that your hips are level and then maybe bringing your head and your shoulders over to the right finding a crescent shape. Arms can take a bind overhead as well. Let go of Bananasana, This crescent shape. Bring your feet to the ground. Adjust your hips, Your shoulders, And open your arms out wide. Taking our final twist, Breathe in. And then lower your knees over towards the left, Breathe out. Lift your head and lift your knees. Bringing the twist over towards the right, Your gaze can turn to the left. Come back through center, Bringing your hips, Shoulders, Head back in line with one another. Setting up for your Shavasana, Our final resting pose. And you could just stay in a constructive rest pose with your knees falling in together. Bring the soles of your feet to touch, Letting your knees open for a bound angle. Or just take up space, Starfish out on your mat, Arms and legs along your sides. I'll call you back in a few minutes to close off the practice. And taking a gentle breath in. And a soft sigh, Let it go. In your own way, In your own time, Wake up your body. Maybe wiggling fingers and toes and rocking your head from side to side. Blink the eyes open. If you'd like to take a full body stretch, Reach your arms overhead, Your legs long, And yawn if you need to. Place your feet to the ground and gather your knees into your chest. Giving yourself a great big hug full of gratitude. Gratitude for your body and all the things that it can do, For your breath for being there for you every moment of every day. And for yourself for making it to this practice, Giving yourself this time to connect to your strength. It's always within you. Yogi's choice, Coming into a seat. You can roll along your spine or onto your side. Lift up and we'll take a final breath together. Inhaling, Reaching your arms overhead, Palms come to touch. Exhale your hands to heart center. The light in me sees, Acknowledges, And honors the light in you, And knows that they are the same. Namaste. Much for joining me for this practice. Again, My name is Jillian and it was my honor to guide you through this class. Please give it a like and I'll see you in another one soon.