MFR + Yin: Release & Restore

Roll out tension in the quads and upper traps with MFR, then settle into longer Yin holds including Saddle, Deer Twist, and Forward Fold using a block and bolster for support. MFR helps improve mobility, release physical tension, and cultivate greater body awareness while the slow, mindful practice encourages the mind and nervous system to relax. Finish with a restorative heart opener to leave you feeling softer, calmer, more spacious, and restored.
Suggested Props: 2 Therapy or Tennis Balls, Bolster or cushions, Blocks and Blanket or Towel.

Transcript

Welcome to your practice. I'm Rebecca. Nova's here and Luna and they might stay through the practice or leave. Gather your props, You'll need. . . A bolster, A blanket. Two blocks if you have those and two Maya Flash release files, But if you don't have those that's totally fine. We will start in child's pose but have the balls nearby. So I'm just having the balls near me. Um. . . Your knees can be wide or your knees can be together, Whatever feels good in your child's pose as we arrive on the mat. Start to notice your breath. Noticing your inhale. And noticing your exhale. Beautiful. Letting the outside world fade away. For the next 60 minutes or so. And moving inward. The invitation to really use the breath today. Letting go of tension or thoughts. On the exhale. Any expectations? Even your to-do list, You can just let it go on the exhale. Beautiful. We'll be here for two more rounds of breath. Beautiful. On your next inhale, Reach your fingers forward a little bit more. Exhale, Slowly walk yourself up. Beautifully, You can circle your shoulders one way. And circle the shoulders the other way. Grab your balls, And we're going to use one ball, And we're going to go right above the knee and the front of the leg for the quad. If you don't have a ball, You could use your foam roller. So again, We're going to lie back down. On our bellies. You can use your forearm for support, And you'll take the ball and place it just above your knee. If it's too much for one ball, You can always take two balls. And if you were at the knee myofascial release class, We worked on this. So we're right above the knee. With that attachment. And you can stay still or you can bend. And straighten your leg. Or you could stay still and kind of move your. . . Side to side and that's going to move your body over the ball. Just exploring the front of the thigh. He takes a lot of real estate. And the leg. And now you're going to roll your body down and the ball is going to move up or you can just lift the ball and move it about a third of the way up. If you have your foam roller, You'll be probably getting into both sides at the same time. Stay still, You can move a little side to side. Miss using my toes on the mat to help. Move my leg over the ball. And being really kind, Because this can be a really tight place. Or tender. And so you want to be really kind. And you can also bend and straighten your legs. And if two balls feel like too much, Again, You could bring, I mean, If one ball feels like too much, You could bring two balls. And it feels a little less. Using your exhale as that release valve if any tension bubbles up, Letting it go on the exhale. Moving the balls up. We're going to go two more areas, So moving the balls up. To another section. Again, Stay still or move. Your heel side to side, Moving the tissue over the ball. And bringing gratitude to this upper thigh that works so hard for us. And we might not think about as much. Okay, In the next area, If you feel your pokey bone of your hip, You're going to go down and you'll move the ball up. So let's do that. It's lined up with the pokey bone of the hip, Going down, Avoiding that crease of the hip. Beautiful. And so this one, I'm like kind of moving my hip a little side to side. And you could also bend and straighten the leg. We're getting into the rectus femoris. Are you going to be doing some. . . The other side for this myofascial release, Then we're moving into the yin posture. We'll be here for two more rounds of breath. Great. And when you're ready, Just walk your hands up and you can come into that child's pose. Just as a transition. So any transition, You could come up to hero's pose. And even rub your hand on that quad or take your fist and just a little gentle tapping. And now we're going to do the second side. But before we do it, I just want to show you if you're doing the the foam roller instead. It's going to look like this. You're going to be getting a lot more at the same time, You know, Just rolling. You can start right above the knee, Bend and kind of move your knees, Your feet a little side to side and then roll up or stay down and roll. You're following along with me. I'm going to move to the other side so you can see me. And we're going to go right above the knee with the ball. So I'm finding a comfortable, As comfortable as I can get. And then one or two balls are going to go right above the knee. So if you add two, They're going to just be beside each other. I've got my forearms down. And for me, This side feels a little more intense. So just knowing that our bodies are so different on each side and depending on what we're doing. You can stay still. You can move your knee, Your heel a little side to side, Which will move your knee. Or you can do that bending. And straightening. Myofascial release is really nice to do before sleep. I like to do it as a transition from. . . My work day into my day. Home life. You can also do it after lifting weights. After sport, For sport recovery. Beautiful. So then you could lower your, Move your body. Down the mat as the balls move up to the next spot or you can just adjust it with your hand. I'm going about a third of the way up or so. Stay still. Move your heel side to side. Or bend and straighten your leg. This is great to work if you have hip issues, If you have knee issues. Even for low back pain. Everything is so connected. And where you are feeling the pain is usually not where you need to work. I'm just going to move to the next section. I'm going to just take my fingers and move my ball up, But you could roll. Your body down. It's noticing how this section feels. It might be a little more tender. You can always add a second ball so there's two balls lined up with each other. Just stay still and let the ball press into the tissue. Or you move your heel side to side. Can even hold stress and emotion in our body. So just kind of clearing the slate this morning. And now we're going to go to that place where the hip bone is. You're going to go down. It's going to line up with the hip bone. Down. So you're going up towards the groin area but you're not getting right there and you're moving down from the hip point. Stay still, Bend a leg. Even when you bend it, You can move a little side to side like that. And you can even lower your head down on your hands. Beautiful. Two more rounds of breath. Bringing your hands beside you and just slowly press up. Into child's pose. Or hero's pose Move the balls to the side. And just pause and notice. You can rub your hands on your quads. You can do those little hairs. On the quad you worked at or. . . It just feels good. It's just this light tapping. Okay. Now we're going to set up for our first yin posture. Which is saddle pose. So I have my bolster and I have a block. If you don't have. . . Block you could always use blanket folds. Or two bolsters. You could even bring a blanket on top of the bolster or two pillows and stack them on top of each other. So I've got my. Block and it's making that runway and then I've got my I've got another blanket to make it a little higher for myself. And then you're going to turn around so you're. Sacrum's about a third, Maybe like a hand's width away. In saddle pose, Both knees are bent, The heels are towards the glutes. You're going to just lean back. And you can adjust your. Blanket fold so it goes underneath your neck a little bit. If that doesn't feel good, You could always stretch one leg out and bring one leg in. Being really kind to yourself. So I've got my props adjusted. My sacrum is close to my prop and I'm leaning back. And you could always make your props higher. Fold that blanket and bring a block even on your mat. So making it work for you. And when so taking the first. Maybe 30 seconds of the posture to really get yourself comfortable. So you can move a little side to side, You can adjust your legs. So taking that time to make any movements so when you're ready to drop in, Quieting the body and quieting the mind. Using your exhale to release any tension that bubbles up. And being really kind to yourself. If something doesn't feel good in your body. Adjusting. Or coming out of the posture and coming back in. Beautiful, You're doing great. Using the exhale as a release vowel. Beautiful. Stay here with the arms to a T if you have one knee bent. Switch out for the other leg. You can always bring your arms past your ears. You could hover in the air or you could just bend them over the bolster. Relaxing the hands down. So making any adjustments and dropping. In once you're ready. Back to the stillness. Beautiful, You're doing great. We'll be here for three more rounds of breath. Softening. Tops of the feet. Shams. The top to the sides. Front of the hip. The torso. The shoulders. The arms. The head. Softening the whole back body. Beautiful, One more. Inhale, Maybe reach the fingers past the ears a little more. Exhale with great care. Take your time to come out. The hands will come down. You can press yourself up. And then just be really careful releasing. Greatly. Releasing the left leg. Point the toes away. Point the toes towards your face. Circle your feet around your ankles. And take your soft fist and do tapping from the tops of the feet. The outer shins. What? The inner sense, The inner size. Beautiful. Let's flinch and wipe our legs a little side to side. From here, We're going to come. For a twist so you can bring your right shin your right thigh to the towards the top of your bolster so my bolster is touching my right thigh and my left leg is kind of splayed to the side. Almost like deer pose, A very relaxed deer. So you could stay with them. The bolster upright and lie down with the You've got the block underneath you and lying down like this into a twist. Or you can remove. The block and lie down. So you decide if you want a little lift or not. So I've got into my twist. Arms are by the side, Or you can have your arms hugging underneath the bolster. Softening your legs. Your torso. And shoulders. And your head. As you soften, You might feel heavy. As you melt towards the earth. Stay here. Or turn your head to the right. Her last three rounds of breast. Beautiful. Slowly, With both hands. To the mat, Press yourself up. Taking time. Hands behind you. Feet hip width apart. And again, Windshield wiper, Just opening your heart. And if you'd rather, You could straighten your legs out and just move your feet a little side to side or any other transition that feels good. Beautiful. Now we're going to go to the other side. So your left thigh is close to the bolster, Like you're side-lying. And then you're going to. And my feet are draped, So my knees are apart, Almost like I windshield wipered. And then I drop my knees to the side. My torso is looking at my bolster, My little ramp. I'm lying over it. I've got my. Right. Lower leg resting into the arch of the left leg. You can decide. And you can even bring your arms underneath the bolster like you're giving it a hug. So I'm going to turn so you can see me a little better, But you just stay where you are. Time's already started. If you're not feeling a lot of sensation. That invitation to drop into the stillness. Priding the mind and priding the body. We're not only working into the body, We're working into the nervous system. Stay here or turn your head to the left. One more inhale. Exhale, Bring your hands to the mat and lift yourself up. Okay, Our next posture is going to be a forward fold. So you can bring your feet About off the mat, They're going to be really wide apart. You could use a wall or a block to lean against. And you could stay upright with your knees out, Your feet out wide, Or you can use your little platform that you've built. You might lose a bolster. Closer to the center so it brings the volume in. You move the block closer to the center so the bolster comes up. And if your knees lock out, A slight bend to the knees. And if you have another blanket, You could always bring it underneath your knees. Stay upright. Or fold forward. So folding down, I like to bring my elbows onto the bolster and rest my eyes and my hands. But you can decide how much you want to ag, You could bring your hands onto the bolster and then just bring your head to the side. So once you've gotten yourself. Into the posture, Making some movements, Moving a little side to side. Getting your body in the right position and then dropping in. Bye. Beautiful, Beautiful. My dog sees something out in the forest, But she'll settle down. You're doing great. If you feel a little more spaciousness. You can move the block so the bolster comes down a little bit more. And you're folding down. Or stay upright. Big bend to the knees. Three more rounds of breath. If your head is looking one way, Turning it the other way. Beautiful. One more inhale. Exhale, Slowly walking yourself up. Pick your hands, You can press them onto the bolster and walk yourself up. Just take your time. Hands come behind you. You can bend your knees and that windshield wiper ring. Circle the shoulders away from the ears. Beautiful. Move your bolster to the side. Grab, Have a block nearby. And you'll have your myofascial release balls. And this time we're going to go. You're going to lie on your back. And you're going to bring the balls between the neck and the shoulder, Right at the center. And if you place your opposite hand there, It's like where you want to get massaged. You'll lay down. Your bolster is nearby, So you can grab it while you're lying down. I've got my two balls. I have one in each hand. You'll take the ball in the right hand and place it underneath the left. Area right in between the neck and the shoulder, That center area. And then you'll take the left ball and place that underneath the right side. You might not feel a lot yet, So lift your sacrum. Lift your pelvis. And you'll place the block underneath your sacrum. And that's going to help roll. The body over the balls a little bit more. And you can always adjust the balls with your fingers. And making this relaxing, You can just bring your knees and the feet out wide. And breathe into the balls. So pressing into the balls and breathe in. Exhale, Soften as the balls nuzzle. Into the tissue. Beautiful. Stay still or you can bring some movement with your arms like you're making snow angels. Or you're lying underneath a tree that's blossoms have come onto the earth and you're making angels underneath with blossoms. Sometimes I like to leave my arms past my ears and I just move my body side to side. Beautiful. Two more rounds of breath. You can stay still or add movement. Beautiful. Slowly remove the balls. You can place them to the side. Lift your pelvis up. Remove the block. Hug your knees into your chest. And maybe rock a little side to side, Just feeling that warmth and tingling. Underneath the shoulders. Can grab hold of your feet, Happy baby, Just as a transition. Beautiful. Grab your bolster. Or your pillows. And we'll make a runway again further back this time. So I've got my block. And I've got my bolster to make the runway. It's like we used before. You can use a blanket fold. For your head. I'm making this nice, Cozy. Platform from my back. My hand's about a sacrum. My hand's about. . . My sacrum's like one hand away, And you're lie back. Feet together, Knees out wide if that feels good. And if you have a cover for your eyes. You can place that over. Making any adjustments that you would like. Arms can be to a T with the palms facing up. Shoulders away from the ears. And imagine. Dividing your breath into three sections. So take a sip of breath and breathe into the belly. Breathing into the mid-ribs. Breathing into the chest. Then a long, Slow exhale through pursed lips. Breathing into the belly. The midribs. The chest. Pause at the top. Long, Slow exhale through pursed lips, Straw breathing. Beautiful, One more time, Breathing into the belly. Midriffs. Upper chest. Pause at the top. Long, Slow exhale through pursed lips. As you drop into your Shavasana. Bye! Noticing your next inhale. And noticing your next exhale. Bringing movement back to your fingers. Into your toes. You If your feet are together, Slowly stretch your legs out long. Reach your arms past your ears, Get really long. And then hug your knees into your chest, Getting small. Bringing gratitude to your precious human form. To this beautiful practice. It's an amazing community. Roll to your favorite side watching out for your props. Pausing in the shape of rejuvenation and rebirth. Slowly make your way to seated. Placing your hands at your heart space. Bowing to the inner teacher within each of us. Light of awareness. It connects each one of us and makes us one. Om Shanti Shanti Shanti. Peace, Peace, Peace. Thank you so much for practicing with me today.