Mindful Movement with Gentle Yoga

Mindfulness Northwest's new integrated mindful yoga series created by Karen Schwisow, E-RYT.

Transcript

To begin this period of mindful movement, Come to a standing position, Sensing in, Feeling the general feeling tone in the body right now as it is today. And perhaps rocking back and forth on the feet, Shifting the weight, Feeling two feet on the floor, And taking a slightly deeper breath. And then on an inhalation, Sweep the arms all the way up overhead. And on an exhalation, Let the arms sweep back down. And continuing on at your own pace, Your own breath timing, This feeling of the arms reaching up and slowly coming back down. Turning into the subtle sensations of the arms moving through space. Really taking care to listen to the messages that the body gives as you move through the different postures. And if there's anything that is talking to you in a way that feels unsafe or uncomfortable, Give yourself permission to back off. Effort is okay, Strain not so much. And if you find yourself holding your breath or grimacing, That's a sign that you've moved into strain. This is a practice that really honors the messages that the body gives rather than pushing through them or overriding them. The next time that both arms are down by your side, Pause there, Feeling two feet on the floor and the breath. Noticing if there's any echo in the body from that bit of movement that you just did. And then the next time you inhale, Sweep the arms up overhead and this time keep them there. Really reaching up overhead, Maybe looking up past your fingertips. Stretching, Lengthening. It's a sense of pressing the floor away with the legs as you reach up. And then on an exhale, Letting the arms come down once more. And pausing for two feet and a breath. And then begin rolling the shoulders, Letting the arms stay relaxed and just lifting the shoulders up towards the ears, Back towards the spine, Down towards the floor and then forward towards each other in front. And around you go. Just exploring the full range of motion here. And then reversing directions. Settling back in this beginning posture, Standing, Mountain pose. Two feet and the breath. Noticing how it feels to stand here, Maybe to lengthen the spine a bit, To encourage the top of the head to float up towards the ceiling. And to lift the heart up a little out of the belly. Relax the shoulders. It may be different than the way you normally stand. And then on the next inhalation, Lift just the right arm up, Really lengthening through the right side of the body. And a little bend in the knees and then arcing over towards the left, Side bending towards the left. And allow yourself to kind of move in and out of this side stretch, Deepening the stretch and then lessening it a bit. No need to go to your edge and just stay there. If you feel any discomfort in the low back, Bend the knees more, Draw the low belly in towards the spine. Releasing the right arm back down, Finding that tall, Long, Mountain pose. Lifting the left arm up overhead and arcing towards the right. Really exploring what it feels like to stretch along the left side of the torso. And then once more, Coming upright, Noticing if there's any lingering sensation from what you just did. Now we'll play with a balancing posture. So if the support of a chair, A table, A wall nearby would be helpful, Feel free to move over and take advantage of that support. And then when you're ready, Let the weight come into the left leg, Feeling the strength there of that side of the body. And when it feels right, You can bend the right knee and just begin to lift the right heel. Maybe you leave the ball of the right foot there on the floor. You can lift the ball of the foot and lower it, Almost like a kickstand, Lifting up and bringing it back down, Playing with that balance. All the little adjustments the body makes to keep you upright. You might lift the foot all the way off the floor, Keeping the knee bent. Maybe the knee can lift all the way hip height. See what it feels like to flex the foot here, Spread the toes. Arms can stay at your sides or they might be lifted up, Shoulder height. Maybe even all the way up overhead with palms of the hands together. And notice what happens in the mind, Perfectionist mind, Striving mind. At some point, You let the foot come back down, Arms at the side, Two feet in the breath. What do you feel now? Sometimes it's between the postures that we recognize, Oh, I was holding my breath or clenching my teeth. Tongue pressing against the roof of the mouth. And so with a breath, We can invite those places to soften a bit. And then try again on the other side, Bringing the weight into the right leg, Beginning to bend the left knee, And deciding maybe to leave the ball of the foot on the floor. Just exploring with a sense of play, Curiosity. What happens if I try to lift my knee higher? You might find it helpful to keep your gaze in one spot. And see if you can use your peripheral vision. Even though the eyes stay in one spot, It's not a hard focusing, But rather you can see all the way to the corners of your eyes as you attempt to balance here. And if you want to do an advanced version of the pose, See if you can also lift the corners of your mouth and not take it all so seriously. Once again, Coming back to mountain pose. Maybe by conscious choice, Maybe gravity had a little something to do with when the foot came down. Bringing yourself back into mountain pose, A sense of two feet solid on the ground, And the breath coming and going. From here, Glance down at your feet and see that they're more or less parallel to each other. Bend the knees and take the hands to the tops of the thighs. Draw the heart out of the belly to lengthen the spine. And then slowly, Hinging at the hips, Keeping the back in neutral or a sense of having a flat back, Allow yourself to fold forward. Knees can bend even more to keep the back in this neutral position, Where the spine feels long and the heart is moving out of the belly. Maybe the back comes parallel to the floor. And if you have any low back issues, This is probably the best place to stay, A good place to work. Even pausing here and feeling the legs active as if they're trying, Once again, To push the floor away. You might feel that change, Maybe in the belly, Something engaging, Muscles perhaps. And if it feels comfortable, You can fold even farther forward. Bend the knees enough that you feel the belly come all the way to the thighs. Belly comes all the way to the thighs. And then let the head completely relax, This weight at the end of the spine. Maybe shake the head gently side to side. Hands might slide a little closer to the floor. You can straighten the knees, But only so long as the belly stays connected to the thighs. The moment the belly leaves the thighs, Bend the knees once more. One more breath here. Hands come back up to the thighs. And press into the heels of the feet to bring yourself all the way vertical. Take your time, Nice and slow, Until you find yourself back in Mountain Pose. Scanning through the body to see what lingering effects from that posture are here. What's happening with the breath. And looking down at your feet once more. We'll move toward something called Chair Pose. So allow yourself to bend through the knees, Bend through the knees. Make sure they don't go beyond the tops of your toes. You can still see your big toe perhaps. And then going a little deeper to sit, As if someone's going to slip a stool right underneath you any moment. You can keep your hands on your thighs if you like. You might take them forward, Overhead a bit. Knowing that you can come in and out of this as you need. Straightening the legs, Returning to Mountain Pose, And coming back into it. And the invitation is to play at your edge here. As the posture becomes a little more intense. Maybe there's a sense of fatigue in the muscles. Something arising here. Is it possible to simply observe it as another sensation? Pleasant or unpleasant? It arises. It's temporary. And at some point in your own time, Returning back to Mountain Pose. Two feet in the breath. We'll move through our Forward Fold once more. Hands coming to the thighs, Lengthening the spine, Heart lifts out of the belly. Soft bend in the knee as you exhale to fold forward, As if to bring the spine parallel to the earth. Taking your time. And then bending the knees enough that you can come onto your hands and knees. So your hands will come to the floor. You can bring yourself all the way down into what we call Table Pose. Knees are beneath the hips and hands are a little ahead of the shoulders. So the shoulders are a little behind the crease in your wrist. And then a chance to move the spine here. Imagine an arching Halloween cat. We'll bring that into the spine as you lift it towards the sky. Head and tailbone release towards the floor. And then reverse that. It's as if the heart is moving towards the floor and forward a little bit. And the head and tail lift. And back and forth you go. Moving the spine in its full range of motion in each direction. Just noticing, Where do you feel the sensation most? There might be a place in the spine that really moves easily. And then there might be a place or two where you don't feel much of anything at all. Or it might feel dense, Stuck. Let this be an exploration of what's here today. Not yesterday, But right now. And it's possible one direction feels better than the other and you might want to linger there and take a couple of breaths. And then on an exhalation when you're ready. See if the hips can come all the way back to the heels. Maybe there's a need to take the knees a little wider apart. This is child's pose. It might be possible to bring the forehead all the way to the floor. If it doesn't reach, You could stack one fist on top of the other and that might be enough for the forehead to rest there. Or you slip a pillow or two underneath the forehead if they're handy. And if this doesn't feel good on the knees, If there's anything that's complaining, Then find your own modification or skip this one. And remain in table pose. And seeing how this posture feels in the body. Maybe pleasant or unpleasant. Allowing it to be noticed. And then the next time you inhale, Bringing yourself back up to table pose. It might help to bring the knees a little bit closer together. Finding that neutral spine, Sense of drawing the heart a bit out of the belly. But you're neither in arching cat, You're neither in that sway back to posture. You're right in the middle. Lift the belly towards the spine. And then you can take your right leg straight back behind. Flex the foot, Your toe could rest on the mat. Or if you like, You can lift the right leg so the foot's about the same height as your hip. And you can stay right there. Or you could play with lifting your left arm. Reaching that forward with the thumb facing the ceiling. And from that, Place deep in the belly, Reaching in opposite directions through the right foot and the left arm. And again, Watching the ways that the body shifts and adjusts. And what's the attitude of the mind. And then bringing the hand and the knee back down. Pausing here for a breath. And then changing sides, Straightening the left leg back behind. Leaving the ball of the foot on the mat. Or lifting the foot hip height. Try flexing the foot, Pressing back through the heel. And then the right arm, If you choose, Can come up about shoulder height. Thumb towards the ceiling. And this sense of reaching long in opposite directions. Supporting the spine by this lift of the belly. One more breath there. And then exhaling, The knee and the hand come back down. Staying in table pose for a couple of breaths, Or if you found child's pose to be comfortable, Bringing the hips back to the heels. Letting the head, The forehead, Rest on something. And taking a couple of breaths here. Watching, Maybe some sensation. Watching with the inner gaze on the low back, The side ribs. And what happens as you breathe in this position. And then scooching yourself forward so that you come all the way onto the belly. The legs are extended back behind. And you can stack your hands, One on top of the other, And place the forehead on top of the backs of your hands. And then you can breathe here for a moment. How does it feel now to be on the belly? And then the next time you inhale, Can you lift the right leg a little off of the floor? And think about making it longer rather than higher. Really opening up behind the knee. And then letting that leg come back down. On your next inhale, Lifting the left leg. Imagining that you can grow it a little longer, And keeping all that length. And then when you exhale, Bring the leg down. One more time on either side. Just exploring what muscles have to work in the body to lift a leg like this. And let it come back down with control. And when you've evened yourself out, Feel the pressing of the tops of your feet into the floor. You might feel how that engages leg muscles. And this time as you inhale, We'll keep the legs down, And lift the head and your top arm up. Maybe the chest lifts a little away from the floor. Maybe very little movement here, Maybe a lot. And on an exhale, Come back down, Keeping your hand not on top of the other one, But a little off to the side. Keeping the elbows bent. And on your next inhale, Whenever that arrives for you, Lifting up, Head, Chest, Other arm. Seeing what the range of motion is here. Just using your back muscles, And then coming back down. And continue on at your own pace, Your own breath timing, Alternating this lift. And being careful not to bring it so much into the neck because you're really cranking through the back of the neck. Let the back of the neck still feel long as you lift up and lower down. Giving yourself a chance just to rest there. When you've evened yourself out. Once more, Pausing to sense the echo in the body after that bit of movement. What can be known here now? You may just stay resting and breathing, Or if you feel like it's in the body today, You could play with lifting both legs, Head, Chest, Both arms. If it feels okay, You could lengthen your arms, Straightening them forward in front of you, Thumbs pointing up towards the sky. Maybe staying for one or two or even three breaths. And when it feels right to you, Coming right back to this place of pausing and resting, And then letting everything soften. Everything let's go. No more effort. What does that feel like to release? And then coming back to table pose by pressing the hands into the floor, Lifting the torso, And cross the ankles and bring yourself to sit. Letting yourself rock back so that you're seated and you might slip a pillow or a blanket underneath you if it's more comfortable, Right underneath your buttocks or your sitting bones. And the soles of the feet come together in front with the knees wide apart. And the feet can be as close in or as far away from the pelvis as feels comfortable to you. And bring the fingertips back behind. Gently press down into the fingertips to encourage the heart to lift up out of the belly. And then taking the hands to the outsides of the knees, Slowly bringing them back towards each other, And the soles of the feet come back to the floor. Make our way all the way onto the back. And then bring your hands back behind to support you or transition in some way that feels comfortable to you until you find yourself lying on your back with the knees bent and feet flat on the floor. Two feet and a breath. And then draw the right knee in towards the chest. You can bring your hands onto the pant leg or hands interlaced behind your right thigh or shin to hug the knee in towards the chest. And the left foot can stay resting on the mat or you might straighten it. Flex that foot and lengthen it out along the mat. And you can stay right here, Just seeing what this feels like. You have the option to curl up as if to bring the heart closer to this bent right knee. If this creates too much strain through your neck, You might take one hand and support the back of your head. Perhaps moving in and out of it with the breath, Exhaling in one direction and inhaling in the other. Or staying curled up for one or two, Three breaths. Just noticing what makes the decision. Is it some attitude in the mind? And can you listen to the messages from the body and to honor those messages? So that you can play at your edges but not beyond. At some point, Finding yourself back down on the mat with the head and the shoulders, Letting go of the right knee, The right foot comes to the mat, And so does the left foot. Two feet and a breath. And then changing sides, Drawing the left knee in, Holding on wherever it's comfortable, If it's comfortable, Straightening the right leg if you like. And this choice to stay as you are or curl up, Moving in and out or staying. Whatever you choose, Can you observe sensation in the body and breath? Observe as well the changing attitude of the mind. And then releasing and coming back to two feet and a breath. And noticing here, Sometimes this is the time to realize, Oh, My face is tense, The jaw is tense. Sometimes it relates to a tenseness in the mind as well, And you ask whichever system is most available. Maybe body, Maybe mind, To soften just a bit. And from here, You can walk the feet a little closer in towards the buttocks, But not so much that you feel any strain through the knees. Arms at the side. And gently press the feet into the floor and see if you can press down with the legs enough that the hips unweight or maybe lift from the floor. And then slowly, Carefully release back down. This can be coordinated with the breath. Inhaling as you press down with the feet to unweight or lift the hips. And then on an exhale, The hips can come back down. And moving again at your own pace, Your breath timing, Maybe the hips can lift just a little bit higher each time. And then if you like, You could add movement with the arms so that as the hips lift, The arms come up overhead, Reaching towards the ceiling and maybe back behind towards the floor. And seeing if you can coordinate that movement with the breath and the hips. So when the hips come back down to the floor, So too do the arms. And inhaling in one direction and exhaling in the other. And then this option once more to perhaps stay with the hips lifted. Just breathing here, Either arms back behind or down at the side. Watch that you don't collapse the chin in towards the chest. Tip the chin just a bit towards the ceiling. And why does it feel like to stay here for a bit? As the effort or sensation intensifies, It gives us a chance to observe our habits and body, Breath, Mind, When things intensify. In this place where we always have the option to come out. Can we keep a steady breath, A soft jaw? And notice the inner narrative in the mind. Just let it pass through. And at some point, Hips come back down, A chance to let the effort go. A sense of release, Maybe relief. Two feet in a breath. Then lifting the right foot off the mat and taking your right ankle to the top of the left knee or thigh. It's like you're creating a number four with your legs. You can take your right hand to the right thigh and gently press it away from you. You might feel some sensation there through the right hip, Right buttock. You can stay right there, Just exploring that sense of pressing the right thigh away from you a bit. Be releasing that pressure. It can be juicy enough. Or you might try lifting your left foot as if to bring the left knee into the chest. And taking your right hand in the hole that you just created with your right leg and interlacing it with your left hand behind your left thigh or shin. Seeing if you can be comfortable here with the head relaxed on the floor, Shoulders relaxed, No strain. If you find that's not true, Then just take the left foot back down to the floor. A moment here to breathe. And on an exhale, Releasing that, Coming back to two feet flat on the mat and the breath. And when you're ready, Changing sides. Now the left ankle comes to the top of the right knee or thigh. You're pressing the left thigh away from you with the left hand. And perhaps staying there or drawing the right knee into the chest. The whole thing coming towards you. Finding the version that works for you. And maybe this side is different than the other one. And when you're ready, Bringing both feet back down to the floor. Sensing what's here now. And then rolling over into your right side. It would be helpful to have something under your head. Maybe a rolled up blanket or a rolled up mat. Something to support you here so you don't feel any strain through your neck. Knees are bent about hip height. Legs are stacked, One on top of the other. Reach the arms forward, Shoulder height. Left arm on top of the right. And then from here, Take the left arm up so it arcs up towards the ceiling. And the gaze can follow the hand. The head turns as the arm moves up towards the ceiling. And then towards the floor back behind. Really taking your time here. And only going as far as the neck and the spine, The whole body is in agreement with. And then when you feel ready, Arcing that arm back up and all the way on top of the right arm. And continuing on here at your own pace. Watching your hand move through space. Maybe even able to sense the air rolling between the fingers. Your arm, Your hand, As it is right now in this moment. Nowhere else to be. Nothing else to do. And the next time both arms are together, Pause there. And rolling over to the other side. Repeat this same movement. Knees bent about hip height, Arms stacked, Head and neck supported. And when you feel ready, This lifting of the top arm, This arcing up. And then back behind. It might come towards the floor. Doesn't have to touch the floor. It's this exploration. Letting this twist really be in the upper, Mid to upper part of your back. Seeing what's available as you move today might be different than yesterday. If it feels good to linger in the twist, You might do that for a breath or two. Eventually finding your way back, Both arms stacked. And then rolling onto the back. Resting there with the knees bent and the feet flat on the mat. Or you might draw the knees in towards the chest. Holding onto knees or shins. Maybe rocking side to side a bit. And then in your own time, Coming to a resting posture on your back. Lengthening the legs out. Letting the feet fall away from each other. Sometimes it feels better to lay them over a pillow. Letting the arms be a little away from the body. Palms up if that doesn't feel like too much work. And now no more muscular effort. Instead of softening. Inviting a heaviness as you surrender the body to the support underneath it. And letting the breath be whatever it wants to be. And staying here for as long as you like. Just being. In this body, This moment, Exactly as it is.

Reviews

One of the best clearest safest audio yoga sessions I’ve ever done! Thank you!

Lovely! I especially appreciate the reminders to be kind, gentle and mindful of how my body feels and to notice any clenching. Thank you!

Exactly what I needed as a warm up pre-physical therapy exercises. I'll be back. Thank you.

Thank you for this gentle, wise instruction! ❤️❤️❤️

Excellent stretching and breathing sequences