Hello and welcome.
My name is Leah Sugarman and this is lower back relief.
So for a lot of people we hold a lot of tension and even pain in the lower back.
A lot of this lower back pain is non-specific so there's just no understanding of where it comes from but it manifests as pain in the lower back.
You might have a specific injury like a herniated disc or something like that.
You might not have a diagnosis at all but either way you came here because you have low back pain and I myself also have low back pain so I totally understand where you're coming from and the need to find relief.
And what I have found is that styles of practice like this that are very soothing,
Restorative and relaxing can really make a huge difference in my pain levels in my lower back.
So I hope that it will do the same for you.
What you will need for this practice is a bolster.
No worries if you don't have a bolster,
You can grab anything that's similar in shape to this.
So maybe a firm pillow or a couple of pillows stacked on top of each other.
You can grab a firm couch cushion or a rolled up blanket or a rolled up yoga mat or anything like that.
You can kind of just stack things on top of each other,
Stack a couple of blankets up to get a firm structure that you can release onto.
So grab your bolster or whatever you have that mimics this shape and come to sit.
Stretch your legs forward in front of you and you're more than welcome to elevate your hips so if you have blocks you can sit onto a block,
You could sit onto a blanket or a towel or a pillow,
Anything like that if you'd like to,
To get a little bit of height through your spine.
This can sometimes be really nice.
And then take your bolster or whatever you have and place it over your legs in front of you.
Now start by reaching your hands back behind your hips and just gently ground down into your hands to create more length through your back body.
You have the option to stay here,
This might already create enough of a stretch through the back of your legs to stay just like this.
Often we have tight hamstrings,
The muscles running up the back of the legs that tend to pull down against the pelvis and cause some aching and pain in the lower back.
So stretching and releasing the hamstrings can be really nice to release tension from the lower back as well.
So this might be enough for you.
If you would prefer,
You can slowly start to walk your hands forward and surrender and release over your bolster.
You can have this bolster arranged in lots of different ways.
You can place it on an angle and just rest your forehead onto the bolster.
You can surrender over the bolster,
Maybe even placing your hands under it to draw it a little bit higher up under your head.
You can turn it sideways and maybe rest your head into your hands or cross your arms and rest your forehead onto your arms.
So you can kind of play around with lots of different options to find a comfortable position to fold forward.
And you have two choices.
You can either fold forward with a really elongated spine and that will probably cause you to stay up quite a bit higher.
Or if it feels nice on your back,
You can round your spine and allow the weight of your head and neck to become heavy as you fold and release forward over your legs.
So kind of play around,
Experiment with a few different options,
Find the position that feels best for you.
And when you find that place,
Really allow yourself to melt into that release.
Allow your breath to deepen.
Allow your body to become very heavy.
Let everything soften and relax toward the mat.
And just bring your attention to your lower back and observe the sensations there.
Feel the gentle stretch in the lower back.
Imagine any tension there just softly melting away.
Take another five deep breaths here.
Really allowing yourself to soften your body and specifically soften your lower back.
On your next inhale,
If you fold it forward,
Slowly round up through your spine to rise up to sit.
Move your prop over to the side for just a moment and bend your knees.
Cross your ankles and place your prop now in front of you so that the long edge of your prop is parallel to the long edge of your mat.
And then turn so that your right hip is up against your bolster or the prop that you're using.
And then release both knees over toward the long side of your mat and grow tall through your back body.
Take your right fingertips behind your right hip,
Draw your left hand to your right knee and inhale,
Lengthen your spine.
Really create length in your lower back.
Exhale,
Spiral and rotate to twist your torso toward your prop.
You have the option to stay up tall here,
Focusing on the rotation in your spine.
Or if it feels nice,
Then you can simply fold over your prop and relax the weight of your belly onto the prop.
And you can take any arm variation here that feels nice.
You might just relax your arms by your sides.
You might slide your hands underneath your prop to give it an extra lift as a pillow.
And you can release either cheek to your prop.
Maybe close your eyes.
And soften into this gentle twist,
Bringing your awareness to your lower back.
Deepen your breath as you melt into this shape.
And really imagine and visualize your lower back rotating and spiraling in the twist.
Imagine yourself creating lots of space in your lower back.
Take five deep breaths here.
And on your next inhale,
If you lowered to your poster,
Slowly press the floor away to rise up.
Gently unwind your twist and turn your whole body to face the back of your mat.
And then release your legs over to the opposite side.
Release your left hip beside your bolster.
And take your left fingertips behind your left hip.
Draw your right hand to your left knee.
Inhale,
Lengthen your spine.
Exhale,
Spiral and twist over your left shoulder.
Again,
You have the option to stay here just like this.
Or if it feels good for you,
You can slowly release your weight over your bolster.
And then you can place your hands wherever you'd like.
Maybe slide them underneath your prop to add a little height for a pillow for your head.
And you can release the opposite cheek to the bolster this time.
Maybe close your eyes.
And allow yourself to really soften and surrender into the twist.
Soften your lower back.
And really release control there.
Allow yourself to consciously let go of tension that you're holding there.
Take five deep breaths.
And on your next inhale,
If you lowered to your bolster,
Gently press the floor away to rise up.
This time,
Unwind your twist to face toward the top of your mat.
And come to a tabletop position.
So stack your shoulders over your wrists.
Stack your hips over your knees.
So you're over the bolster.
And then slowly and mindfully release the weight of your whole torso onto the bolster.
Onto whatever prop you're using.
You can place your hands wherever you'd like.
Again,
You may wish to stack your hands underneath your head to give some extra lift and support there.
And then from here,
Turn the toes of your left foot to face toward the left side of your mat.
Externally rotate your left leg.
And then keep this rotation as you bend your knee and draw it up toward your left elbow.
And just allow the weight of your upper body to melt into the bolster.
And let this simple bend in your knee support the left side of your lower back.
Maybe close your eyes.
And soften into this space.
Consciously relax the left side of your lower back.
On your next inhale,
Stretch and straighten your left leg back out.
Turn your toes to face toward the floor.
And then turn your right toes to face toward the right side of your mat.
And bend into your knee to draw your knee up toward your right elbow.
Softly release the right side of your lower back.
On your next breath,
Stretch and straighten your right leg and turn your toes to face the floor.
Just pause for a moment.
Allow everything to melt toward the mat.
And then place your hands down underneath your shoulders.
And gently press the floor away to rise up.
Take your bolster and turn its position so that it's parallel to the short edge of your mat.
And then release your hips to one side and swing your legs forward in front of you.
Walk your feet to the opposite side of your bolster.
Lift your hips and sit onto your bolster.
And then slowly make your way onto your back.
So let your prop just slightly elevate your hips toward the sky.
And then relax the weight of your hips onto your prop.
You're welcome to stay here like this with your knees bent.
Or if it feels nice for you,
You can stretch and straighten one leg at a time.
Or maybe even both legs simultaneously.
If this causes any sensitivity in your lower back,
Then keep your knees bent.
But if this feels good,
Really relax the front side of your whole body.
Soften its weight to the floor.
And you can take any position of comfort for your arms.
You can rest your hands onto your ribcage.
You can release your arms by your sides or open out wide or even over your head.
And then close your eyes.
And really soften into the shape.
Bring your awareness to your lower back.
And consciously give your lower back permission to soften.
To relax here.
Draw a full breath in.
And a full breath out.
If your legs are straight,
Softly bend into your knees and plant your feet to the floor.
And then press against your feet to lift your hips off of your prop.
And slide it out from underneath you.
Walk your feet out as wide as your mat.
And knock your knees in toward each other.
You can relax your arms by your sides.
Or if it feels nice,
You can cross your arms over each other.
So cross your right arm under your left.
And then walk your hands toward each other on your back.
And then,
So you really relax control,
Turn your palms to face the outer edges of your mat.
So that you're not gripping,
But you can completely surrender muscular control here.
And then close your eyes.
And visualize the weight of your thigh bones drawing down toward your hip sockets.
Visualize the weight of your pelvis sinking into the mat.
And observe how this creates a very gentle,
Neutral arc through your lower back.
So it just subtly lifts away from the floor.
Imagine that you could send your breath directly to your lower back.
And fill it with fresh energy and new life.
Consciously,
Give yourself permission to soften your lower back.
Allow it to surrender toward the floor.
Without any resistance.
Visualize any pain that you feel there just melting away.
Releasing down to the mat and exiting your body.
And give yourself permission to let it go.
This is where I will leave you.
So feel free to stay relaxing in this shape for as long as it feels nice.
Allow your lower back to soften and relax as you allow tension.
To melt away.
I hope that this has helped to make your lower back feel a little bit less intense.
Maybe a bit more open and relaxed.
Thank you for sharing your practice.
Namaste.
