Slow Down + Savour Yin Yoga Practice

This is a yin practice that is an invitation to slow down and tune into the gift of being present. Dive in, immerse yourself in the juicy practice of yin. These online offerings are in response to COVID-19 to allow us to be together even while apart.

Transcript

Welcome.

Let's start in a seated posture.

Perhaps sitting cross-legged or perhaps any other way that would feel comfortable for your low back and your hips.

When you arrive there,

Allow the crown of the head to reach towards the sky.

The chin slightly draws down towards the heart,

Not quite allowing the head to hang but finding the sweet balance between reaching and softening.

Rolling the shoulder blades back together as if they were discs.

Maybe allowing the eyes to gently fall shut or soften.

Take a full breath in through your nose.

Exhale,

Sigh out.

Let's do that one more time.

Deep breath in.

Exhale,

Sigh out.

Allow your hips to soften or the knees to be heavy if you feel them creeping up slowly.

In this mini sequence,

We'll be experiencing moments of stretching and holding postures to release tension and really get into our connective tissue,

The memory of the body.

And we'll also be savoring the transitions between these postures,

Treating the transitions as postures themselves if they aren't traditionally known as a posture.

So we might do this dance of holding a yin posture for a minute and equally holding space for the transition out of the posture for another minute.

Staying open and curious to the automatic mind,

Wanting to get from one thing to the next,

Completely missing the soupness of staying present.

And just allowing the body to have a gentle sway,

So maybe moving the shoulders from right to left or the front to back.

Having this gentle movement for the spine,

Maybe you go into goals.

And you can find this spontaneous movement.

Perhaps you'd like to slow down from the speed that you're going or move just a bit faster.

And starting to bring the movement just a bit smaller,

Coming back to that tall spine,

Feeling the sitz bones stay heavy.

Take a deep breath in through your nose once again.

Exhale out through the mouth.

Trying to pour the heart forward,

Walking the hands out in front of you.

Seated forward fold,

Allowing the head to hang,

Allowing the arms to reach and the upper back to round,

Our sitz bones stay rooted to the earth,

To the mat.

You're welcome to bring any props along this journey with you.

To melt into the props,

To feel the support.

Many a times there's this battle between softening and pressing and holding back,

Sometimes subconsciously in our muscles and in our joints.

And so props could perhaps allow you to really lean into this posture.

If there is space between you and the floor.

Using your breath,

Allowing the upper back to really expand on the inhale.

And on each exhale,

Gently releasing.

Using the neck,

The shoulders,

The hands,

The hips.

Which pose do you prefer?

Vocal'd name?

Checking out the jaw,

Seeing if you can just maybe open the jaw up,

Rocking it from side to side,

Ensuring not clenching the teeth.

And as we allow ourselves to just hang here for a bit longer,

Finding our breath.

We'll begin to yawn our bodies back open,

But not quite yet.

Before we do so,

I will let you know we'll be moving quite slowly.

So we'll take some time and some space to transition out of this.

So move even slower than what you would think.

There's so many times in our lives that we're rushing because it's natural and sometimes demanded of us.

So think of this as a sweet treat that you have permission to slow down and notice if it feels challenging.

Notice if it feels nourishing.

So now beginning your journey upwards,

Slowly using the hands to pull your way back up even slower than what you think.

Slow motion.

Coming back into seated,

That upright spine slowly allowing your spine to roll up,

Allowing the head to come up last.

Continuing this transition,

Bring your palms right behind you after the head makes its way up.

Untangle the feet,

Plant the feet into the earth,

Pressing through the palms and through the feet,

Reverse table,

Lifting the hips up towards the sky,

Pressing through the palms,

Shoulder blades together,

Allow the chin to stay on towards the heart.

Take a breath and then notice if it feels natural for your neck to hang back behind you.

Take a deep breath in,

Exhale out,

Slowly drawing the chin back up towards the heart's face,

Allowing the hips to meet back down on the mat,

Extending the legs out nice and long in front of you.

Flexing the feet,

Rolling the ankles,

Maybe even swaying the knees from side to side.

Bring your arms out in front of you as if you were reaching for a hug for someone.

Slowly allowing your journey to come down on your back,

So we're reaching for this hug and then keeping your arms extended,

Allow the spine to roll vertebrae by vertebrae,

Lying down on your back.

Once you get there,

Allow the knees to just rest on the earth,

The feet to flop open,

Arms to turn up,

Savoring this moment,

Just lying down on the mat.

Noticing what your mind does or doesn't do during moments of stillness.

Beginning to draw the knees up in towards the heart's face,

Giving yourself a gentle squeeze in,

Maybe a rock from side to side.

Let's extend our legs up towards the sky,

Reaching the arms back behind you,

Elbows wide and clasping the base of your skull as if you were stargazing or watching the clouds pass by in a field.

Flex the toes,

Flex the feet,

Roll the ankles here.

Bringing the knees back in towards the heart,

Leaving the arms just as they are.

Allow the knees to topple over one another,

Over to the right,

For a twist through the spine.

You're welcome to bring any props in between the knees or underneath the knees.

And if this feels like not the right place for the arms,

Take the arms out,

Maybe to a cactus arm or to a T.

Hips are heavy,

Head is heavy,

Heart is open towards the sky.

Lamborghini at Andorra do Spencer it on me.

On an inhale,

Come back through center,

Knees hug together,

Bringing the arms right around the knees or the shins,

Giving the knees a squeeze in towards the heart space.

Allow your tailbone to still be heavy down on the mat.

Allow your body to be heavy here.

There's that perhaps tension between wanting to present and jump into that twist on the other side.

Notice,

Breathe,

Soften.

Bringing the hands back behind the head,

Finding the twist over to the other side,

Knees topple over one another.

Yawning the heart back open.

Elbows wide.

Yawning the heart back open.

So as if we were closing a book that we weren't ready to put down,

That's how we're going to transition out of this twist.

By continuing our journey over to the left,

Taking your time to gently roll the right arm,

Maybe even reach the right arm up and around,

Eventually touching down into the fetal posture.

And staying here,

Perhaps cradling the head still with your left elbow,

Feeling the heaviness of your right shoulder.

Nothing to do here.

Just breathing.

Taking another breath here.

Let it go.

Beginning your journey back into all fours to tabletop just for a moment.

Pressing into hands,

Pressing into knees and tops of the feet.

Before we begin to sink back into child's pose,

Knees spread apart,

Hips sail back towards the feet,

Allowing the heart to drop down towards the earth,

Walking the hands out,

Bending the spine long,

Head pours down,

Relaxing the neck.

Breathing through your throat.

Taking two more deep breaths here.

And we'll begin our slow movements.

Forwards.

Coming onto forearms as you start to shift the hips back up.

Eventually making your way into Sphinx.

Touching the hips down to the mat.

Legs extended behind you.

Palms and forearms flat.

Shoulders roll down and away from the ears.

Shoulder blades hug together.

Feeling this openness across the front side of the body.

Gently beginning to make your way down.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Perhaps resting one temple down on the palms or down on the mat.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Perhaps resting one temple down on the palms or down on the mat.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

And beginning to roll back onto our backs.

So as if you were threading one arm underneath the other to allow yourself to flip over all the way onto your back.

When you get there,

Allow the knees to travel back in towards the heart.

Rolling the ankles,

Maybe flexing the toes,

Flexing the feet.

Take the feet back up towards the sky.

And then as you bend the knees,

Hips open,

Reaching for the outside soles of the feet.

Maybe the ankles or the calves.

Happy baby.

Allowing the knees to be heavy.

The palms to be heavy.

You can find a gentle sway through the hips.

Taking some deep breaths.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the knees to be heavy.

Allowing the knees back together and slowly taking one leg out at a time.

As if you were pressing sand away as your heel meets the earth.

Grasses away from you,

Extending both legs,

Feet flop open to the sides,

Turning the palms up towards the sky.

Taking up space for perhaps the best transition of them all.

Shavasana.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

Allowing the heart to meet the earth.

You're welcome to stay here as long as you would like.

Thank you so much for practicing with me.

Allow yourself to savor moments throughout your day.

From my heart directly to yours.

Namaste.

Reviews

Hello beautiful 🌹🌺🌹🌺🌹Thank you so much for the wonderfully yin yoga⭐️I’m melting like chocolate in the sun 🌞 and feeling so relaxed 🗺️have a blessed day 🕉️Namaste