Slow Flow Yoga for Focus and Concentration

If you're feeling scattered and need to focus, try this gentle, slow flow yoga sequence to help you reconnect with yourself through accessible movement and breathwork, regaining your clarity of mind and concentration.
Blocks are optional but encouraged for this practice; come as you are.

Transcript

Hi friend, I'm Laia. Welcome to this yoga for focus and concentration class. This practice is ideal for when you want to tackle a task or a project and you feel like your mind is scattered, Your energy is all over the place and you want to just give yourself a few moments to settle into the present and get productive. We'll start in a comfortable seat, So bring yourself to the ground or to a chair and bring your hands onto your lap or your knees as you soften your gaze down or maybe you choose to close your eyes and let's just take three breaths together in through the nose, Out through the nose or the mouth. Two more like that, Inhaling, Noticing the air coming in through the nostrils, Expanding into the body, Exhale, Emptying all the way out. One more just like that, Deep breath in, Long slow breath out. Ground through your sitting bones, Lengthen your spine, Inhale, Reach your arms out and up, Unite your palms overhead. Now keep your fingertips together and your wrists separate and as you exhale, Draw the fingertips in front of your heart coming into Hakini Mudra. Send your fingertips forward, Inhale, Separate and open as you lift your chest, Exhale, Take your arms forward, Round your spine and gaze down toward the navel, Once again uniting your fingertips. Keep your fingertips together, Inhale, Reach your arms overhead, Exhale, Bringing this mudra, This hand gesture right in front of your heart, Soften your gaze down maybe to the hands and just take a moment here to breathe in and breathe out. What is it that you want to bring your attention, Your focus, Your concentration to? Inhale, Open your arms out to the sides, Lift your chest, Exhale, This time bring your hands to the floor behind you, Press through your palms, Lift your chest here and remain or maybe you lift your hips off the floor, Finding a bit more space to the front body, Inhale, Exhale, If you lifted your hips, Lower them back down. Start to slide your legs to either side, Coming to tabletop, Bringing your hands underneath your shoulders, Spread your fingers wide and bring your knees about hips distance apart. Your toes could be tucked under to start to warm up the soles of the feet or maybe you rather point your toes. But find any movement here that serves you, So maybe you start to bring movement as you move the hips around the knees, First one way and then the other. Perhaps there's something else that you rather do here that really helps you start to connect to how you feel in your body right now. One more breath, Inhale, And as you exhale, Pause the movement. Bring your attention to your navel and on your inhalation, Send your right leg behind you, Keep your toes on the ground and walk your left fingertips forward. You can keep everything on the ground or perhaps on your next inhalation, Your right toes hover and your left fingertips hover as well. Exhale, Lower your left hand back down, Lower your right knee back down. Inhale, Take your left toes behind you on the ground, Right fingertips walk forward. Stay here or let everything hover as you inhale. Exhale, Return to your tabletop. Tuck your toes under this time, Bring your hips all the way back to the heels or as far back as you want to go. Your hands can stay on the floor or slowly walk them up, Resting them on the thighs as you lift your torso. Or once again, Inhale, Take your arms out and up, Unite your fingertips. Exhale bring Hakini Mudra in front of your heart. Let your shoulders relax, Your spine remain long and whatever sensation arises here, Can you be with it? And as I ask you this question, There's no need for you to judge yourself, Just use it as information to collect about how you're showing up in the present before you tackle the tasks that you have today. Breathe in, Breathe out. Bring your hands to the ground, Shift your weight forward and either roll your ankles in circles or tap your feet to the floor. Now as you inhale, Move your knees slightly back, Shift your weight forward, Finding a knee plank, Engage your core. Exhale, Lower yourself down to your abdomen, Hands underneath your shoulders, Toes pointed back. Inhale, Press into your hands as you lift your chest. Exhale, Lower your spine back down. Two more like that, Inhale, Peel your chest off the floor. Last thing to lift is your head, Exhale, Come down. One more, Breathe in. And as you breathe out this time, Bring your hips back. You could stay in tabletop or tuck your toes and send your hips up and back for Downward Dog. It's absolutely up to you. Breathe in deeply, Breathe out completely. One more inhale, Long, Slow exhale, Gaze toward the top of your mat as you bend your knees. If your knees are down, Take a few steps forward. If your knees are off the floor, Also take a few steps forward or perhaps hop. Bring your hands to the floor, Two blocks in front of you or to your shins. Inhale, Lengthen your spine halfway, Finding length through the back body. And on your exhalation, Bend your knees enough that you can let your torso relax over the legs, Let your head hang heavy. And I invite you here to move your head yes, Yes to this project you're about to engage in, These tasks that you're going to tackle. Whether you finish them or not, You are committing to it. So move your head yes. And then take a moment to move your head now to those things that distract you, That pull you out of the state of flow, That grab your attention even when you don't want to. Breathing in and as you breathe out, Slow down the movement of the head, Press down through your feet. Inhale, Rise up slowly. Take your arms out to the sides and all the way up. Let them extend. Unite your palms overhead. Exhale, Bring once again the mudra in front of your heart, Uniting your fingertips, Relaxing your shoulders. Breathing in, Breathing out, Letting yourself root down through the feet. Maybe you let yourself shift the weight forward and back a couple of times or side to side, Eventually finding your center. Inhale, Take both arms out and up. Exhale, Bend your knees and send your hips back, Finding a chair pose. Your arms could stay by your ears or come a little bit more shoulders level in front of you. You could also bring your hands to your hips. Ground through your right foot, Lift your left hip off the ground and stay here or begin to extend your right leg and then your left toes could stay on the floor, Come to your block or float in front of you. Remain here or reach your arms up. Inhale. Exhale. Exhale, Take your right hand maybe to your left knee or to your left hip and your right arm may circle back. Whether your gaze stays forward to the side or back is up to you. Whether your toes float or not is also up to you. Come back to the center, Arms rise, Gaze forward, Breathe in, Breathe out, Left foot next to the right. Find extension as you inhale. Fold forward as you exhale. Inhale, Flat back. Exhale, Fold. Rise back up. Inhale. Exhale, Bend your knees, Coming back to your chair pose. This time ground into your left foot, Lift your right heel and stay or maybe ground more into your left leg as you extend it and your right toes may float. Find a block, Find the floor. Breathe in. And breathe out. Perhaps take a twist toward the right. Left hand on your right knee or right hip, Left arm or right arm extends back. Notice your ability to stay present whether you feel stable or wobbly. Breathe in. Breathe out. Take it all forward again. Lift your arms up. Inhale. Exhale, Right foot comes to the floor. Stretch through the arms, Stretch through the legs, Gaze up, Breathe in. Breathe out. Fold forward, Hands to your blocks or the ground. Inhale, Flat back. Exhale, Frame your right foot with your hands or your blocks. Step your left foot all the way back. You can lower your left knee down to the ground or keep it off the floor. That's absolutely up to you. Draw your right hip back and your left hip forward and stay here as you inhale. Reach both arms all the way up. Exhale, Hands together in front of your heart. Take your arms out to the sides. Lift your chest. Maybe lift your gaze up. Breathe in. And as you breathe out, Take your right arm over the left, Giving yourself a hug. You can keep your hands toward the shoulders or bring the backs of the hands or the palms of the hands to touch. Breathing in to lift a bit more. Breathing out here. Release the arms, Lift them up. Inhale. Exhale, Frame your right foot with both hands. Lift your left knee off the floor if it's lowered. Now, Start to either tap several steps forward with your left foot or one big step forward. Feet parallel to one another. Inhale, Flat back. Exhale, Fold. Press through the feet, Rise up. Stay with the flow of breath and movement. Inhale, Reach your arms overhead and extend. Exhale, Fold again. Flat back to breathe in. Frame your left foot this time. Step your right foot back. Right knee can lower or stay off the floor, Depending on how much you want to play with your balance today. And you can stay here or on your inhalation. Lift your torso. Take your arms out and up. Palms unite overhead. Exhale, Hands together in front of your heart. Maybe you use the mudra again. Inhale, Take your arms out to the sides. Lift your chest. Lift your gaze. Exhale this time, Left arm over right. Hands toward opposite shoulders. Elbows lifted away from the chest. Or maybe bring your arms to Garudasana arms, Eagle arms. Breathe in. Breathe out. Release any bind you may have in the arms. Lift your arms overhead. Inhale. Exhale, Hands to your blocks or the floor. Step forward. Inhale, Flat back. Exhale to fold. Shake your head, Yes. Shake your head, No. Raise through your feet. Rise up. Inhale, Stretch. Exhale, Bend your knees. Bring your arms either by your ears or shoulders level. Inhale here to lift your left heel. Exhale, Move your hands to your hips. Ground into your right foot. Left toes land on a block or float in front of you. Inhale, Reach your arms up. Exhale, Twist to the left, However you want to. Take it to the front again. Breathe in. Keep your balance or perhaps your toes touch the floor for a moment. Exhale, Soften your standing leg. Step your left toes all the way back. Take your arms by your hips. And as you lift your chest, Inhale, Circle your arms out and up. Palms unite overhead. Exhale, Bring the mudra or the hands in front of your heart. Open up through your arms. Lift your chest. Breathe in. Breathe out. Bring your hands this time to your blocks or the floor. Step forward. Inhale, Flap up. Exhale to fold. From here, Bend your knees right away. Arms forward. Utkatasana, Chair pose. Ground into your left foot. Lift your right heel this time. Eventually, Find your balance. Move at your own pace. Keep your drishti, Your gaze, At a point in front of you that isn't moving. Breathe in. Breathe out. Stay or twist to the right. Inhale, Back through center. Exhale, Hands to your hips. This time, Step your right foot all the way back. Find your balance. Lose it and find it again. Arms up to inhale. Fingertips in front of your heart and then all the way down as you exhale. Step your right foot forward. Flap back, Inhale. Fold to exhale. Rise up. Breathe in. Come up to your tippy toes this time. Starting to notice what it's like to get wobblier. And then start to bend your knees. Imagine you're descending down an imaginary wall behind you. You could eventually land on your heels. Your arms could stay up. You could also find your blocks near you or the floor to help you keep your balance. Maybe you play with the mudra again in front of you. Notice what it's like to be here. One more breath, Inhale. And on your exhalation, Start to draw the knees out. How close your feet remain to one another is up to you. So for some folks, Bringing the heels toward one another may work and drawing the knees out. Some other folks may want to bring the feet more separate and come toward a yogi squat, Malasana. So just choose what works for you. Use blocks or don't. Continue to lift your chest wherever you are. One more breath. And then slowly let yourself come down to the floor. Bring your feet in front of you and let your knees move a little side to side. And eventually bring yourself to a comfortable seat. Your hands can rest on your lap or your knees. Soften your gaze or close your eyes. And we'll practice three rounds of square breath, Which means you inhale for four, You hold for four, You exhale for four, And you hold for four. And that's one round. How long the count of four is is up to you. So mine is just for guidance, But do what works for you. So let's just take one regular breath together in through the nose. Letting it go. And now begin. In, Two, Three, Four. All, Two, Three, Four. Out, Two, Three, Four. Hold, Two, Three, Four. In. Hold. One more round at your own pace. Once you complete, Take a deep breath in through the nose. Let it go. Let yourself notice how you feel. And for a moment, Imagine yourself already doing the thing that you want to do. Moving through the project, The task, With joy, Confidence that you can complete it, That you can move forward, That you've got this. Take a deep inhalation through the nose once again. And let it go with any resistance. Once you feel complete, You can open your eyes, And I invite you to go straight to your task. I hope that this practice has helped you find some focus and concentration, And that you utilize it anytime that you are getting tired. That you are getting ready to get to it, And you find yourself scattered. Until we meet again, Take care of yourself, And be well.

Reviews

Perfection! Thank you so much!