Hey friend,
It's Susan.
Welcome to Mindful Whole Body Developmental Movement.
In my nourishing movement classes,
I teach the essential nutrients of movement,
The most vital movements we can do to help the body thrive.
One of the essential nutrients of movement is what I call Explore All the Floors,
That is,
Moving your body on and close to the floor,
In the middle at heart level,
And up high.
Most of us tend to move almost exclusively at the middle level,
Sitting,
Standing,
And lying on a bed.
What the body loves,
Though,
Is moving through all levels,
The full range from low to high.
One way to explore all the floors is developmental movement.
Developmental movements are what our bodies use to learn how to move in our first years of life.
These stages of movement build on each other to increase strength,
Flexibility,
And mobility in the whole body.
Moving through these stages as adults reconnects,
Grounds,
Relaxes,
And heals the body,
The nervous system,
And the mind.
While these movements are simple,
Adult bodies are often not used to doing them.
So go slowly,
Listen to sensation,
And adjust for comfort and ease.
If you find yourself holding your breath or feeling any pain,
Change what you're doing so it feels good.
We'll spend a minute or two in each of the five movements.
If you want to spend longer at any stage,
Just pause the recording and restart when you're ready.
We'll begin on the floor and gradually move to the feet.
It's also fine to go back to previous movements if you don't feel ready for the next step.
It can be helpful to wear snug fittings,
Stretchy clothes like yoga pants,
And to have some clear floor space to move in.
There are benefits and downsides to moving on a smooth surface like a wood floor or on a softer surface like carpeting,
So go with what you have.
I like to put a blanket onto a hardwood floor so I have options.
Knee pads can also be helpful here.
You might like to have a couple of yoga blocks,
A stool,
Or a chair nearby in case they are helpful.
Keep breath flowing through the practice.
If you can,
In and out through your nose to let your nervous system relax as much as possible.
Let's explore all the floors with developmental movement.
Begin lying on the floor in any position with your eyes closed if that feels comfortable.
Take some long,
Slow,
Deep breaths.
Just feel yourself here.
The first developmental movement is floating.
Gently start to move as if you were in water or in space.
Move as if there is no gravity and you are completely supported.
No edges,
No separation.
Floating,
Flowing.
Let your body roll back,
Belly,
Both sides.
Non-linear floating.
No up or down.
You could do big sweeping movements or small wriggling movements.
Joints open and close as if they were breathing.
Coiling and uncoiling.
Fluid and soft.
Gently relaxed.
Floating.
Take a breath and when you're ready,
Move on to creeping.
Roll to your belly.
On one side,
Lengthen your arm and leg.
On the other side,
Draw your elbow and knee close together.
Feel your shoulders and hips close to the floor.
Your eyes are up and looking ahead.
Now draw in the long side,
Elbow and knee close,
And lengthen the short side,
Elbow and knee reach.
Slide your limbs along the floor.
Keep switching.
One side long,
The other side short.
Slowly switching back and forth.
Keep switching sides,
Looking around and noticing the sensation of your joints and your front body.
You can keep doing that or you can start to move yourself with your hands and forearms along the floor.
Eyes keep looking ahead.
Push with the inside of your thighs and the arch of your foot as you pull and push with your arms and hands.
This movement strengthens the entire body,
Mobilizes all of the joints,
Particularly hip joint,
Cervical vertebrae in your neck,
And core.
It coordinates the upper body with the lower body.
As you slide along the floor like Spiderman climbing up a wall,
Your front body is supported and relaxed.
See if you can move in different directions,
Sliding yourself along,
Creeping.
Now take a breath and when you're ready,
Move on to crawling.
Push up onto all fours.
Your belly hangs head up,
Tail up.
Shins rest on the ground.
Feet long,
Soles up.
Hands spread wide like big paws.
Eyes look around like a bear coming out of hibernation.
Crawling strengthens your bones,
Joints,
And muscles and creates mobility in your spine,
Particularly your lumbar spine at your low back and your side body.
If your knees are sensitive like mine,
You can crawl on a carpet,
A blanket,
Or with knee pads.
Move your head,
Tail,
And spine in any way that feels good.
You can keep doing that or begin to move.
Take easy steps with your big hands and soft wrists.
Move forward,
Backward,
To the left and right.
Step with your hands.
Keep the soles of your feet up,
Shins sliding behind,
Eyes looking all around.
Move some,
Then pause and hang your belly and spine.
Move head and tail to stimulate your sides back and front,
And then move again.
Move and pause,
Crawling.
Take a breath,
And when you're ready,
Move on to squatting.
Squatting is a stage that moves the spine into vertical alignment and exposes your core in the front and in the back,
Making your physical body more interactive with the space around you.
Squatting creates deep opening in the hip joints and is a movement that most adults don't often do.
It can be more challenging for many bodies.
Ideally,
From crawling,
Open the feet wide,
Tuck the toes under,
Feeling the arches of your feet open,
And then press back and onto your feet.
But with tail down,
Legs folded deeply,
Crown lifted,
Spine long,
Feet flat and parallel,
Arms free and easy around the body.
And if this doesn't work for your body right now,
There are lots of options to get the benefits of squatting.
You could sit on a chair with your back straight,
One foot on the floor and one foot on the seat of the chair or on a stool,
And alternate legs.
You could also sit on two yoga blocks or a low stool so your spine is vertical,
Knees bent,
Feet flat on the floor.
Another great option is to use a sturdy railing to hold onto so you can get a long spine and deeply flexed hips without falling backward.
With no props,
You can experiment with the distance between your feet and the position of your feet,
Perhaps with toes out.
Lift both heels or alternate lifting one heel than the other.
One or both hands can be down for support.
Pause and experiment.
Which squatting option feels the best for you right now?
If you feel tightness or discomfort,
Especially in your knees or hips,
Make an adjustment.
Never force or push anything.
In whatever variation you've chosen,
Squat and feel your legs folded and your spine lengthen up.
Your arms free and hands out,
Eyes looking around.
You can shift side to side,
Twisting gently to look around you.
Let your arms relax and move around you.
Squatting takes practice and it's worth doing.
I cannot overstate how much it helps the hips and spine stay healthy.
Now take a breath and when you're ready,
Move on to standing and walking.
From squatting,
Extend your arms up.
Look up and press your feet down to unfold your body.
Take a moment and balance on the balls of your feet and then begin walking on the balls of your feet.
Keep looking up and toddling on the balls of your feet.
Take a big breath in and then exhale and gently drop your heels and your arms and walk around the space.
Now your body is fully extended upright,
Moving freely around a vertical axis.
Your arms hang,
Your feet move you.
Walking,
Pushing your feet into the floor with a roll from heel to ball to toes.
Big,
Strong,
Supportive feet carry your upright structure.
This last movement integrates everything that has gone before.
All your joints,
Muscles,
Connective tissue,
Your senses,
Even your skin.
Keep walking and breathing.
Pause and feel yourself standing.
Then walk again,
Standing and walking.
Now pause and close your eyes and notice the sensations in your body.
If you like,
You can go back to any of the five movements if that would feel good.
And as you get ready to move into whatever is next for you today,
See if you can incorporate developmental movement into what you do.
Perhaps float on your bed before you get up.
Creep on the floor with your pet or your child.
Crawl to get your shoes at the back of the closet.
Squat down to pick up your laundry.
Stand and walk with awareness all around you.
Explore all the floors with your movement today and support the amazing instrument of your life,
Your body.
Thank you for practicing with me.
My name is Susan.
I love connecting with you so please leave a comment or a message on my teacher page.
Until then,
Breathe deep,
Shine bright,
And show up.
