My name is Sean Corey.
And today we're going to be working with the low back.
The part of our body that carries so much.
We sit on it.
We lift with it and we twist through it.
Yet we often don't spend any time to care for it.
And so today we're going to do just that.
We're going to take about 10 minutes to really work with the lower back and the entire spinal column.
We're going to move through some Cat-Cow.
We're going to sit back into child's pose to release that low back.
We're going to make our way onto our back,
Bring our knees into our chest.
Get a nice release also for the low back.
And then we'll do some gentle supine twists.
Releasing the spine,
Releasing the back muscles.
Props are optional.
If you have a block or a bolster,
It can be a great addition to the practice,
But not necessary.
This practice is really good to do any time of day.
Especially if it's been a really long day or you feel like you've been walking or lifting more than you normally would.
Nice way to really release and care for your back.
Before we start to move,
Just one note of care is that you want to be always moving within a pain-free range.
So,
Especially if you have any recent low back issues or injuries.
You're likely going to want to skip any of the twisting movements.
And rather just participate.
In the cat-cow and child's pose and knees in toward the chest.
All right,
So let's begin.
We're going to make our way to a table position.
So let's come to all fours.
And we want to create a nice base for ourselves,
So we spread the fingers ground through the palms.
We're going to move through Cat Cow.
So as we inhale,
It's lengthened through the front of the body.
We're breathing through the nose.
As we exhale,
We're going to start to tuck the tailbone.
Chin comes in toward the chest as we round the spine.
And then we repeat.
Inhale,
Lengthen through the front of the body.
Exhale as we round,
Chin comes in toward the chest.
And do this a few times.
Move with your breath.
Each time you inhale,
Lengthen the front of your body.
Each time you exhale.
Around the spine.
Really good way to work with the spine.
You've got the support of your table here.
You're free to move.
Waking up the lower,
The middle,
The upper spine.
Good,
Come back to center.
I'm going to come into child's pose.
So you're going to bring your knees nice and wide about the width of your mat and then start to send your hips back towards your heels.
Now there's a few options here.
If you've got a block,
A block can be really nice to place down so you can rest your forehead on a block.
You could also stack your fists,
Resting your forehead down onto your fists.
Or if it's available,
You could extend your arms and rest your forehead down.
So take a moment to settle in.
You can settle into your hips.
You want to relax your shoulders.
Breathe with awareness down into your lower back and all the way down into your hips.
Take a few relaxed breaths.
Good.
We're going to slowly release.
Rise up.
And then let's make our way on to our back.
Start with your feet down.
Your knees are going to be bent.
Lie onto your back,
Take a moment to settle in.
Arms resting comfortably alongside your body.
And then you're going to bring both knees in toward your chest.
Feel the length through your low back here,
Chin slightly tucked in.
On to the knees or the backs of the thighs.
Take a few breaths.
Feeling that length through your spine.
And then keep hold of your right knee,
Bring your left foot down.
Shoulders stay down.
We're going to breathe here.
Now you can either stay like this or you can extend your left leg.
Press through your left heel.
As you draw that right knee into your body.
Take a few breaths.
Shoulders are relaxed.
Whole backside of your body is nice and long.
Good.
Left knee comes in toward the body.
We're going to hold on to the left knee,
Right foot comes down,
So switch sides.
You choose your version,
Either it's this one here,
Or if it's available,
You extend that right leg.
And you really feel that you're pressing through that extended heel as you lengthen up through the crown of your head.
Shoulders relaxed.
Breathing here,
Nice relaxed breath.
Good.
Bring both knees back in toward the chest.
Then we're going to bring the chin in toward the chest.
Just a nice little gentle squeeze.
Lengthening.
Backside of the body.
Keep your knees bent,
Lower your shoulders.
Extend your arms.
Let's come into a gentle twist,
A supine twist.
So we're going to go to the right side first,
As if you wanted to place your knees directly under your right armpit.
You're going to twist over to the right side.
Both knees to the right.
Shoulders are relaxed,
Head is relaxed.
Now if this feels very tight or uncomfortable,
This is a good place for some propping.
So using a yoga block.
Or perhaps a bolster or a pillow.
Placing that in between the thighs.
Will help to Soften the twist in the low back.
So breathe into the abdomen.
Breathe into the backside of the body.
Good.
Slowly come back towards center.
Release your prop if you have one.
Take a moment,
Re-center the hips.
And then go to the other side so as if you wanted to place both knees directly under that left armpit.
This helps give a nice spinal alignment as you lower both legs to the left side.
And maybe on this side,
You're also using your props.
So either that block or a bolster.
Just gently placing it between the thighs.
Shoulders are relaxed,
Head is relaxed.
Breathing down into the abdomen.
Breathing down into the low back.
Good,
We're gonna release,
Let's come back to center.
Knees come back in.
Relax your arms.
And then clasping onto the front of the legs,
Bringing your chin in toward your chest.
From here,
We're going to transition to a seated position,
But it might feel nice to move forward and back.
So,
Keeping the chin tucked.
Gently start to rock forward.
Rock back.
You decide if this is a small movement or it's a larger movement.
Eventually rise up,
Come to a seated position.
I'll spend just a few moments here.
Can be really helpful to sit on something,
So propping yourself up either on a block or a bolster.
Or maybe you want to sit in a chair.
Just take a moment to.
.
.
Get into a comfortable seat.
Feel nice and grounded.
Extend up through the crown of your head.
Relax your shoulders,
Relax your arms.
Breathe through your nose.
Find some steadiness in your body.
Find some steadiness in your breath.
And start to check in,
Notice.
The difference in the back of your body.
Your low back,
Your spine.
Notice the overall energy of your body,
The quality of your breath.
We've taken care of the lower back and the entire spine here.
You can come back to this practice at any time.
You can shorten the practice.
You can lengthen the practice as your time permits.
Thank you for practicing with me.
