Welcome to this mindful movement practice.
This is a practice of moving the body slowly,
Intentionally,
And with great care and attention to what is happening in the present moment.
As you go through each movement,
Pay curious and compassionate attention to the messages and sensations that arise in your body.
Anytime that you notice stress or tension,
Bring special attention to that part of the body.
Breathe deeply in and out through that part of your body,
Just noticing whether that allows your body to release any of that stress.
If you have any health issues or injuries,
Or if any particular movement causes pain,
Do not force yourself to do it.
Instead,
You may modify the movement so that it works for your body,
Or you can choose to skip it entirely and just practice mindful sitting or standing instead.
Remember,
What's most important is staying present with your body,
Not trying to get any certain kind of stretch or workout.
So let's begin.
We'll begin with standing like a mountain,
Standing tall,
Feeling your feet firmly rooted on the ground,
Your head reaching towards the sky,
Stable,
Solid,
Dignified.
We'll hear one sound of the bell,
Breathing in and out deeply and mindfully,
Allowing the breath to fill the entire body.
Breathing in,
I know that I am breathing in.
Breathing out,
I know that I am breathing out.
In,
Out.
And with the next breath in,
Rolling your shoulders forward and up as you breathe out,
Bring your shoulders backwards and down.
Breathing in,
Rolling your shoulders up.
Breathing out,
Rolling your shoulders down.
Continuing at your own pace and just noticing the sensations in your shoulders.
Rolling your shoulders forward,
Rolling your shoulders up,
And rolling the shoulders back down.
Noticing the sensations in your shoulders and if there's any stress or tension,
Or maybe it feels light,
Loose,
And relaxed.
Continuing to breathe mindfully and reversing directions,
Rolling your shoulders forward as you breathe.
Rolling my shoulders,
I am aware that I am rolling my shoulders.
And then allowing your shoulders to relax,
Coming back to neutral Breathing in,
Breathing out.
Rolling your neck forward and down,
Looking towards the floor.
Breathing in,
Rolling to the right,
So your right ear is close to your right shoulder.
Breathing out,
Rolling forward and down.
Breathing in,
Rolling to the left.
Breathing out,
Continuing to roll your neck.
Breathing out,
Continuing to roll your neck.
Breathing in,
Rolling to the left and then rolling to the right.
Gently noticing any sensations in your neck and then coming back to neutral,
Relaxing and checking in with your body and maybe even shaking it out a bit.
Just loosening it up.
Now with the next breath in,
Bringing your arms to the side and up over your head,
So your hands are above your head,
Your fingers are pointing up.
And breathing out,
Bringing your palms down in front of you,
Palms facing down,
So your arms are by your side again.
Breathing in,
Arms coming around and up over your head in a big circle.
Breathing out,
Gathering the breath through the middle of your body and hands coming down.
Continuing to breathe,
Moving your hands and arms in circles,
Gathering your breath at your own pace as best as you can,
Staying with the breath and staying with the body.
Noticing when the mind wanders,
Noticing where the mind has wandered and simply bringing it back to the breath and to the body.
And now coming back to neutral,
Relaxing your arms by your side.
Breathing in,
Breathing out and bending forward at the waist,
Bending your knees slightly,
If that's comfortable for you,
And allowing your arms to hang and your head to hang just like a ragdoll.
Giving your arms a little shake,
Shaking your head no,
And then nodding your head yes,
As best as you can,
Bending forward at the waist instead of in the back,
Perhaps finding a little bit of extra length in your spine and just letting it hang slightly.
And now just breathing,
Noticing the sensations in the body as you are bending forward and with the next breath in coming back slowly to standing,
Straightening the waist slowly and gently.
There is no need to rush.
Standing and just noticing how your body feels right now.
Now taking a seat,
Either on the floor or on the chair.
If you're sitting on the floor,
Have your feet out in front of you with your knees bent slightly,
Giving you some extra time to take a comfortable seat on the floor or on the chair.
And again,
If you're sitting on the floor,
Having your feet out in front of you with your knees slightly bent,
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
Bending forward at the waist,
Reaching towards the feet with your hands,
And as best as you can,
Bending at the waist instead of in the back,
Finding a little bit of extra length in the spine,
Breathing in,
Breathing out,
Noticing the sensations in your legs,
In the hips,
In the spine,
And in the body,
Breathing in,
Bringing the back body upright to a neutral sitting position.
In our last movement,
We'll be doing a twist.
We'll first twist to the left,
And in order to do so,
We'll put our right hand on the left hip,
Move the left hand behind your back,
And look over your left shoulder,
Breathing in,
Finding a little bit more length in your spine,
Breathing out,
Just noticing the sensations in the body as you twist,
Breathing in and out three times.
With the next breath in,
Coming back to neutral,
And with the next breath out,
Switching directions and twisting to the right,
Putting the left hand on the right hip,
The right hand behind your back,
And looking over your right shoulder,
Finding length in the spine and breathing,
Simply noticing what sensations are present in the hips,
The spine,
And the shoulders,
Breathing in,
I know that I am twisting,
Breathing out,
I smile,
And with the next breath in,
Coming back to a neutral position,
And facing forward,
And now simply checking in with the entire body.
How does the whole body feel now?
Taking a moment to scan through the entire body from head to toe,
Noticing if there are any areas of tension and stress,
Noticing if the body feels any different,
Or if it simply feels the same,
Breathing in,
Breathing in,
I am aware of my body,
Breathing out,
I smile to my body with awareness and compassion,
And now taking a moment to thank yourself for practicing this gentle,
Mindful movement,
An act of self-compassion for your body and your mind,
And we'll come to the end of this meditation,
Which we shall signal with the sound of the bell.
