Energizing Kapha Balancing Practice

A dynamic practice designed to balance Kapha energy when heaviness, lethargy, or stagnation arise. Through uplifting, energizing movement, this sequence helps stimulate circulation, awaken vitality, and support a renewed sense of motivation and clarity. Especially supportive when Kapha is high or during Kapha times of day.

Props needed:
- 1 strap
- 2 yoga blocks

Please note:
This practice is offered for educational purposes to support your understanding of Yoga and Ayurveda and is not a substitute for medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment. Please consult a qualified healthcare provider to determine what is appropriate for your individual needs, and seek professional medical care for any health concerns.

Transcript

Kapha energy is earth and water. So kapha energy is really stable, Has a lot of endurance, Has a lot of capacity and can get a hard time started or keeping going depending on what's happening. It can get a little heavy, A little sluggish. So we need a lot of fire to pacify kapha. We need that kind of energy. We're going to start with breath work that is going to stoke that fire and then we're going to have a slow burn, Right? We're going to do a lot of sun salutations and then we're going to do repetitive movements and some twists. Twists are really nice to bring things out and then bring more space. So that's the energy for the practice today. Get ready for some fire. We're going to get moving and not fast paced but steady and rhythmic, Right? So take a seat. I'm sitting on a block right now. You will need a strap for this practice. We're going to get to supta parangostasana at the end, Stretching the legs. So you might need to be able to reach your legs in a different way. Sit on something so that you have space for bhastrika which is what we're going to start with which is a bellows breath. So you can imagine a bellow that stokes the fire, Right? It brings oxygen to the fire. That's what we're going to do. So it's a forceful inhale and a forceful exhale. You might feel a little dizzy so go slow, Be mindful, Stop if you need to, Take a break. And notice what's happening when you bring more oxygen into your body. If you want to close your eyes you can or you can keep them open. We'll take a normal breath in and a normal breath out. And then it's strong inhale, Strong exhale. Strong inhale and exhale. Keep going. Let's do three more. Last one. And then normal inhale, Pause for a second. Notice I'm feeling a little hot right now. It just brought a little fire to my body. I feel also some kind of movement and buzzing in my limbs. You can feel there's like movement happening already. You don't want to overdo it but Bhastrika is really good practice when you feel that moment of sluggishness, When you want to bring a little bit of that fire. So we're not going to repeat it but just know that you could do a few rounds like this. Go ahead and come to all fours. And then take a moment, Cow pose, Drop the belly, Look up. And cat pose, Round the back. Let's do one more. Inhale, Drop the belly. And then round the back. Walk your hands forward, Downward facing the dog. I want to get us moving right away because if we don't start, You know kapha, It's just not going to start. So find our facing dog. Beautiful. And when you're ready, Walk your feet all the way to the front of your mat. Fold forward, Uttanasana. And roll all the way up to stand. Find a prayer at your heart center. So we're going to build that flow, Right? Reach your arms up, Urdhva Hastasana. Inhale. Exhale, Fold forward. Not fast but steady. Inhale, Lift halfway up. I would suggest hands on blocks, Long spine. Exhale, Refold. Come all the way to stand, Press on the feet, Reach your arms. Inhale, Urdhva Hastasana. Wide away, Exhale, Refold, Uttanasana. Lift halfway, Ardha Uttanasana. Inhale, Unraveling the legs, Unraveling the body. Exhale, Fold. All the way to stand, Strong legs. Inhale, Reach your arms. And fold forward, Uttanasana. Just half salutations, That's how we start. Inhale, Lift halfway up. And exhale, Fold. Tune into your breath. All the way to stand, Urdhva Hastasana. This time, Exhale, Hands to heart. Release Tadasana. Let's switch gears. Bring some lunges. Inhale, Reach up. Exhale, Fold forward, Uttanasana. Inhale, Lift halfway up. Exhale, Step your right foot back, Keep the knee lifted, And reach your arms up for a high lunge. So not a lot of instructions just getting into the flow. Inhale, Hands down. Exhale, Hands down, Downward facing dog. Inhale, Come to plank pose. Drop the knees and lower all the way. We don't want to beat Kapha up too much. Open the chest, Inhale, But we want to, You know, Bring some brisk movements. Exhale, Down dog. Reach your right leg up, Breathe in. Slow and steady. Exhale, Right knee to chest, Pause, And then step your right foot forward. Keep the left knee down, Up, And then reach the arms, High lunge. Exhale, Hands to your blocks of the ground, Step your left foot to the front of your mat, And fold. Press the feet down, Come all the way to stand, Inhale. Right away, Exhale, Fold forward. So we're not going fast, But we're going steady. Inhale, Lift halfway up. Exhale, Step your left foot back. High lunge, Inhale. Exhale, Hands down, Step your right foot back to down dog. Inhale, Plank pose. Don't go to chaturanga, Drop your knees, Lower all the way. Inhale, Cobra, Press the top of the feet down. Exhale, Down dog. Left leg up, Inhale. Left knee to chest, Pause. Step your left foot forward, And then come up to a high lunge, Big breath in. Exhale, Bring hands to the block of the floor, Step forward, Uttanasana. We'll do that again. Come all the way to stand, Inhale, And exhale, Fold forward. Inhale, Lift halfway. Step your right foot back. Exhale, Inhale, High lunge. Notice like what's happening energetically. Hands down, Downward facing dog. Slow and steady, But you know, Steady, Steady. Inhale, Plank pose. Knees down, Lower all the way. This time, Reach your arms back, Shalabhasana, As you breathe in. Exhale, Hands next to you, Press back, Down dog. Inhale, Right leg up. Right knee to chest, Pause. Step your right foot forward, High lunge, Big breath in. Exhale, Step to the front of your mat, Hands on blocks of the ground, And fold. All the way to stand, Inhale. Exhale, Fold forward. Lift halfway, Inhale. Step your left foot back, High lunge, Inhale, Come up. Exhale, Hands down, Down dog. Notice the shift of energy that's happening. Inhale, Plank pose. Knees down, Exhale, Lower. Reach your arms back, Inhale, Shalabhasana. Exhale, Hands down, Press back, Down dog. Left leg up, Inhale. Left knee to chest, Pause. Don't get flustered, Just stay with the movement. Step your left foot forward, High lunge, Big breath in. You got this. And then exhale, We're stepping to the front of the mat and folding. All the way to stand, This time, Hands to heart on your exhale. Let's transition to low lunges. Inhale, Reach up. Exhale, Fold. Inhale, Lift halfway. Exhale, Step right foot back, Right knee down. Anjaneyasana, Low lunge, Big breath in. Exhale, Hands down, And step back to down dog. Inhale, Plank pose. If you want chaturanga, You can bring it at this point. If you want up dog, If you feel ready, Urdhva mukha svanasana. And then down dog, Adho mukha svanasana. Right leg up on your next inhale. Right knee to chest, Pause. Step your right foot forward, Drop the left knee down. Low lunge, Anjaneyasana, Inhale. And then hands down, Step your left foot forward and fold, Uttanasana. Inhale to stand, Exhale to fold. Stay with your breath, Your movement. Inhale, Lift halfway. Exhale, Step your left foot back, Left knee down. So that slow burn, We're getting into it, And then we're going to amp it up a little bit later. Hands down, Down dog. But we don't want to start too strong. It's too hard to start strong. Inhale, Plank. Maybe chaturanga or all the way down. Up dog or cobra. And then down dog. Inhale, Left leg up. Exhale, Left knee to chest. Left foot forward, Drop the right knee down, Anjaneyasana. And then step to the front of your mat and fold. Come all the way to stand, Inhale. Exhale, Hands to heart. Pause for a moment. Inhale, Reach your arms up. Exhale, Fold forward. Inhale, Lift halfway. And then exhale, Step back both feet, Back to plank. Take a breath in and plank. Reach the crown of the head forward and reach your heels back. Exhale, Drop both heels to the right. Sneak peak attack. Exhale, Sneak attack. Exhale, Heels up. Inhale, Heels up. Exhale, Heels to the left. I know I didn't warn you. Inhale, Heels up. Exhale, Heels to the right. Cool, Calm, Collected. Inhale, Heels up. Exhale, Heels to the left. Inhale, Heels up. You could drop the knees or go to chaturanga. Up dog or cobra. It's up to you. And then down. We're facing dog. Good job, Everybody. Reach your right leg up. Inhale. Hug your right knee to your chest. Pause. Step your right foot forward and then come up to a high lunge. Get settled in your high lunge. And then as we exhale, We're going to bring the knee to the chest, Standing on that right foot. So get a little situated on your right leg. Inhale, Reach up. Exhale, Knee to chest. Maybe interlace fingers in front of your left knee. Inhale, Reach back. First one's always a little tricky. And then exhale, Knee to chest. Inhale, Reach that left leg back. Exhale, Knee to chest. That's three. We'll go to five. Inhale, Reach back. Exhale, Knee to chest. Press on the right foot to lift yourself up. Inhale, Last one. Knee to chest. Exhale. One more thing, That kapha knees is a little bit of laughter, A little bit of lightness. It can get a little heavy, Even mentally. Reach your arms up. When things get hard, It's like grumpy, Grumpy. So as you exhale, Bring your left hand down. Reach your right arm up for a gentle twist. Kapha knees a little bit more joy, A little bit more lightness sometimes. Bring your right hand to the mat. Step back to plank pose. You could skip that vinyasa or come to plank pose. Exhale, Chaturanga. Inhale, Ab dog. And exhale, Down dog. Lift the left leg up. Breathe in. Exhale, Hug your left knee to your chest. And step it forward, High lunge. Big breath in. And then take a moment, Get situated on that left foot. Breathe in. Exhale, Right knee to chest. Interlace fingers maybe. Press on that left foot to anchor you. Inhale, Back. Exhale, Knee to chest. It's a little bit, You know, Depends sometimes, A little bit easier. Sometimes it's a little harder, Depends on the day. Number three, Knee to chest. Right leg back, Inhale. Exhale, Right knee to chest. Last one, Inhale, Back. Exhale, Knee to chest. Inhale, Leg back. And then exhale, We'll twist right hand down, Left arm up. You can have a block obviously on your right hand. Big breath in. Exhale, Left hand down. Downward facing dog. Inhale, Plank pose. Exhale, Chaturanga or knees down. Ab dog, You could also have shalabhasana on the inhale, Really strengthening pose. And exhale, Down dog. Reach your right leg up, Inhale. Exhale, Knee to chest. And step it forward, High lunge, Big breath in. And as you exhale, Open your arms and twist to the right. Inhale, Arms up to the center. Exhale, Twist to the right. So the torso is the only thing that's moving, The legs are staying the same. Inhale, Arms up. Exhale, Twist. Inhale, Arms up. Exhale, Twist. Inhale, Arms up. Exhale, Twist. And this time, You have the twist already. All you need to do is bring your left elbow to your right knee and palms together. And then that left leg has a tendency to buckle. So see if you can restraighten through the left leg. Big inhale. Big exhale. Come back up, High lunge, Breathe in. Hands down. Downward facing dog. Inhale, Plank pose. Chaturanga or knees down. Ab dog, Cobra or shalabhasana. Exhale, Downward facing dog. Lift your left leg up, Inhale. Exhale, Left knee to chest. Step your left foot forward, High lunge. Notice we're kind of getting a note about you, But I'm kind of getting into the rhythm. I'm like, Oh, This feels good. Exhale, Twist, Arms open to the left. It's hard, It's challenging, But it feels good. Inhale, Arms up. Exhale, Twist. It asks us to tap into that endurance, Right? Inhale, Reach your arms, That earth and water. Exhale, Twist to the left. Inhale, Reach up. You're like, No, Not at all. Exhale, Twist. That's okay too, Last one. Inhale, Reach up. Exhale, Twist to the left. And then you're almost already there. Right elbow to left knee. And then that right leg restraightens as you get anchored. Big, Big breath. Very nice. Come back to center. Arms up, Inhale. Hands down. Downward facing dog. Inhale, Plank pose. You can switch it up. I'm going to take chaturanga. I did in the previous rounds. That's okay. Up dog or cobra. And then down dog. Reach your right leg up. Inhale. Hug your right knee to your chest. Step your right foot forward. Come up to a high lunge. Big breath in. And big breath out. And then go ahead and move your right foot to the right. Anchor your left heel down for warrior one. So you might need to kind of adjust, You know, What's happening in your body for a second. Anchor through both legs. And then inhale, Reach your arms up. Exhale, An audible breath out, Devotional warrior. Inhale up. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale. Three times, Two more. Inhale. Ha. Last one. Inhale up. Exhale. Ha. And then stay. Reach your arms back. Drop the head. Rebend that right knee. Hug the right hip in. Use your legs. Super strong, Super strong legs. Bring your hands to frame your right foot. Come to the ball of your left foot. And then step back to downward facing dog. Inhale, Plank pose. Exhale, Lower your weight. Inhale up. And exhale back. Lift your left leg up. Breathe in. Hug your left knee to your chest. Step it forward. Come up to a high lunge. Inhale. Ha. And then pause for a moment. Move your left foot to the left. Anchor your right heel down. Virabhadrasana one, Warrior one. And then let yourself get into your legs. Get anchored. Find that stability, That earth and water. Inhale, Reach up. And then exhale, Audible breath out with devotional warrior. Ha. Inhale. Exhale. Ha. Inhale. Exhale. Ha. Two more. Inhale. Exhale. Ha. Last one. Inhale. Exhale. Ha. And then pause in devotional warrior. Let your head hang. Reach your arms back. Shoulders away from the ears. Left hip hugs in. Beautiful. Hands down. Lift your, To the ball of your right foot. Downward facing dog. Exhale. Last one. Inhale, Plank. Exhale, Lower. Inhale, Lift. Exhale, Down dog. Drop your knees to the mat. Sit back on your heels. And notice how you're feeling. We want, So, This is the beauty of Ayurveda. We want to balance. We want to bring opposites. But we don't want to overdo it. We don't want to over stimulate in the case of kapha. So, I don't know about you right now. I feel like a little sweaty, I'm a little hot. And to be honest, You know, I've moved, I've breathed. But I'm not like, My mind isn't all over the place. Like, I feel like some fire has run through me, But it hasn't, You know, Burnt everything. It's just, Oh, I feel more energized. So, Notice how you're feeling. Might be different than me. If you do feel overstimulating, Stimulated, This is not the right practice for you. Not today. If you feel calm and energized, There might be something to it. Open your eyes if they're closed. And then we're going to transition to our back. So, Make sure you have your strap nearby. What we're going to do is go to bridge pose. We're going just a tad more fire, I promise, And then we're done. So, Bridge pose and then we'll find a stretch of the legs with the strap. So, Make sure you have that. So, Go ahead and lay down on your back, Please. Feet down, Knees bent. Take a moment to let yourself transition. You don't need to rush. I'm going to encourage you to have palms up. I feel I have more space in my shoulders. I think for most of us that's true. So, What we'll do is we'll do one round of normal bridge. And then the next two rounds, We'll center one foot and lift the other leg. So, You don't need to rush through any of it. Know that there is time. Anchor your feet down. Make sure your knees are right above your ankles in the same direction as your feet. And then press your big toes down. Bring your knees forward and that's going to lift your hips to bridge pose. And once you get to bridge pose, Go ahead and engage your legs even more. Quads, Hamstrings, Somewhat the glutes. And you can shimmy your shoulders underneath you. You don't have to interlace your fingers unless you really want to. And then take a breath in. Get really strong into your legs. Get really steady. And then stay here for another few breaths. And see how you can channel that fire again to stay, To be with the discipline and the endurance. And then on your next exhale, Go ahead and lower down. So, The next one, We're going to channel that fire again to center one foot and lift one leg. So, When you feel ready, Take a breath in, Press the feet down, Bring the knees forward, Lift the hips up. And this time, Actually, You might want to interlace the fingers behind your back. I feel like it gives me a little bit more space. And then go ahead and center that left foot. And then when you feel ready, Press the left foot down and then lift the right leg up. And usually, This kind of sound comes out of me as I get settled. Spread through the right toes, Reach up and really press that left foot down. Use the left quad. On your exhale, Bring your right foot down. Remove the interlacing of the fingers and go ahead and lower down. Beautiful job. Good job. Take a breath in and a breath out. And we can't stay too long because we'll never do the other side otherwise. So, Readjust your feet, Press the big toes down, Bring the knees up, Lift the hips. And then go ahead and interlace your fingers the weird way behind you. Get settled, Don't rush. And when you feel ready, Center the right foot, Press that right foot down, Engage through that right quad, And then lift the left leg up. You might come with me into this sound. Big breath in and big breath out. Spread through the left toes, Reach them up. Exhale, Left foot down. Remove the interlacing of the fingers and lower. Good job. That is it. We are done with the fire. Bring your feet a little further away from each other. Bring your knees in and soften down. Constructive rest. Notice how you're feeling. We'll be here for just another couple of breaths. We'll close with supta parangustasana, Which is a reclined forward fold, Stretching the legs. So, You're going to separate your knees, Keep your left foot where it is, And go ahead and hug your right knee into your chest. And then from there, Loop the strap over the ball of your right foot. Lengthen that right leg up. So, You want, Don't bring the leg towards you yet. You want to bring both hands onto each side of the strap. You want the elbows bent and the shoulders really are onto the mat. They shouldn't be hiking up. So, Adjust your hands as needed. From there, Rather than bring the leg towards you, I'm going to encourage you to stack right ankle and right knee on top of the right thigh and flex the right foot. Press it up towards the ceiling. Yes, And you might feel all that opening in the back of the right leg happening. Calf, Hamstring, Maybe a little bit of the glute, The back of the right knee. Beautiful. And then go ahead and place both sides of the strap in your right hand. You might lengthen the left leg and place the left hand to the left hip, Or you might keep the left foot down. Go ahead and open the right leg towards the right side. So, We're going for an external rotation with the right toes down towards the ground. Big inhale and big exhale. Bring your right leg back up. Switch your strap to your left hand. The right arm can open next to you and then bring your right leg towards the left side and you're going to start to say hello to all the outer right leg. You might move a little bit towards the left hip as you rotate, That's okay. Right leg straight up. Bend the right knee, Remove the strap and then lengthen your right leg for a moment along your left. Pause here, You don't need to rush. And when you feel ready, Bend both knees again, Both feet onto the mat. And hug your left knee into your chest with your right foot still down. Lube that strap over the ball of your left foot, Lengthen the left leg up. So, One side of the strap in each hand, Shoulders down, Elbows bent. And rather than bring the left leg towards you, Actually stack left ankle, Left knee over left hip. Flex the left foot, Press it up, All of the left foot up and then you're finding all that space on the back of the left leg. And move both sides of the strap into your left hand. You can lengthen that right leg and place the right hand to the right hip as you open the left leg to the left side. And again, Find that rotation of the toes down, That's going to externally rotate your leg. And you're still pressing onto the strap, Big breath in and big breath out. Bring your left leg back up and this time the strap goes into your right hand. Your left arm is going to open next to you as your left leg comes towards the right, Feeling all that stretch on the outer right leg. The left shoulder is still down, Right? So, The lower body is rotating but the upper body is staying the same, It's really staying grounded. Bring the left leg back up, Bend the left knee, Remove the strap and then lengthen your left leg alongside your right and take a moment to breathe. Inhale and exhale. And take a few more cycles of breath on your own. If you can, Keep your eyes closed and start to lean towards one side. Press yourself up and find a seat. And together, Sitting here, We'll find hands to prayer at the heart center, Bow the head, Finding a moment of gratitude for our teachers, For the lineage and wisdom of both yoga and Ayurveda, For the ability we have to support ourselves with these systems. Thank you so much for your practice today.