Yoga in Practice

Support for Yoga in Practice is provided by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina. Welcome to Yoga in Practice. My name is Stacy and I will be your teacher. Please close your eyes for a moment. Deepen your breathing and relax. Balance is a juggling act in our bodies and in our daily lives. To find balance in either requires us to embrace a true steadiness at our core. yoga postures teach us to find balance within the asymmetries of the body we begin this by anchoring our feet to the ground and drawing into the middle or the axis of the body by finding balance imposes or in life we can create peace even in the unexpected events. Today hug in to yourself. Open your eyes and please come to standing at the front of your mat. Joining us today are Laura-Ann and Jenny. Look down at your feet and bring them parallel underneath your hips. Spread your toes and feel the weight of your feet as ground you down, rooting. Now gently hug in. And as you inhale sweep your arms out to the side. Raise them up over your shoulders and just pull up and then when you exhale, lower the arms back down pressing the air out of your body. With the inhale raise up and exhale, release. Take your time. Inhale, lift. And exhale, lower. Raise one more time. Inhale lifting up now keep your legs and your hips steady and on your exhale twist. Taking your left hand forward and your right hand behind you. Turn your hips forward again even as short turning through the torso and then inhale lift up. Let's see the second side go to the left. Focus here on just the strength of your legs as you add this rotation. Now moving with your breathing, inhale lift up. Exhale right Inhale over head. Exhale left. One more time. Inhale. And exhale. Inhale. And exhale Raise your arms hold them up over head. Ground the feet again and then exhale bend forward. Touching your mat or you can bring your hands to the front of your shins or bend your knees. Take a breath and just fold over here and as you look down at your feet. Make sure the feet are still parallel with each other and that there's an equal weight across the inner and the outer edges of the feet. On your inhale sweep halfway forward and as you extend from the belly, through the chest, through the crown of your head look up. And then bend the knees into a squat. Once you're squatted sweep the hands out in front of you. Pull down through the tailbone and then inhale. Lift to standing. Come all the way up Stretch fully. Good. Exhale. Bend forward. Touch the floor. Inhale. Lift halfway forward. Bend the knees squat moving with your breath. Inhale rise to standing. Exhale bend forward. Lift halfway. Inhale Squat exhaling. And rise to standing inhale. Bend forward. Exhale. Touch the floor. Now as you look down at your feet. Raise your toes and spread the toes apart. Notice the weight on the mound of your big toe and on the inner heel and balance that way now stretch across to the mound of your little toe and place weight on the outer heel. And balance those four points of your feet. Lay your toes back down onto the mat. Inhale take your left leg back and lunge. When you get the leg back with the front knee above the heel exhale and lower the back knee and lower your left hand. Planting it on the mat with your inhale twist open to the right side of the mat. Now you can remain kneeling here if that's best or raising your left leg again strong and straight. Sweep your arm over your head. Exhale. Bring it all the way around and lift it to the ceiling. Inhale. Exhale forward. Inhale overhead Exhale forward Inhale lift. And bring your right hand to the mat and pause. Lift to your finger tips and step forward once again. Check your feet and just feel your energy grounding. Second side take your right leg backward lunge. Make sure the knee is over your ankle and then bring the back knee down, checking that back knee feels comfortable. As you lower your right hand planting it on the mat lengthen your spine and open your left hand to the ceiling. Please raise your right leg if you're taking that variation and then as you exhale swing the left arm over your head and pull it back up to the ceiling. Exhale forward. Inhale rise Exhale forward. Inhale rise. And plant your left hand to the mat. Step back to downward facing dog Now remember the four points of your hands as well the mound of the index finger and the base of your thumb the mound of your little finger and the outer heel of the hand relax your neck slightly and then extending up in high through your hips enjoy your breath and stay well grounded here. Keeping the breath moving deeply and fully inhale slide to plank pose bringing your shoulders above your hands. Hold for a moment in between your shoulder blades soften the upper back. Lower your knees on to the floor and then bend your elbows coming down through a pushup. Chest toward your thumbs. Inhale Cobra pose Roll up. Take a breath. Soften, drawing your shoulders back and keeping the legs grounded. Exhale roll down. Place both forearms in front of your chest. Let's begin for a thigh stretch. So roll the front of your thighs towards each other and lengthen your legs. Bend your right knee and sweep the ham back behind you. You can hold the outside of your foot as Laura-Ann is demonstrating or hold the inner foot and swivel your hand across whatever feels most comfortable for you. Push the knee down. Bring the heel tighter. And press your hips into the floor lengthening your tailbone. Now as you rise up don't forget the right shoulder. Keep your right shoulder lifted feeling this in your thigh. And as you exhale release now. Second side so with your right hand forward sweep around for your left foot and enjoy the breath. Pressing both knees into the floor. Keeping the shoulder lifted up. Enjoy Pressing into that hip feeling this in the front of your thigh Remember that the shoulder stays lifted. And then as you exhale release the foot. Take it back. Bring your hands beside your chest and push to table position hands knees. Tuck in your toes take downward facing dog. Make sure your downward dog has enough length and that you're fully engaging the front of your legs, engaging the belly, stretching out through your finger tips. Look forward to your hands and slowly walked forward back into a standing forward fold. Spread your toes. Inhale lift half way forward. And this time raise your hands to your hip bones. Lift your elbows. Lift your shoulders and extend your heart forward. Inhale. Rise to standing release your hands and the fold into your heart. Pause. Honor that peacefulness that is always within you. May your practice today increase some of that. Keep your hands joined together. Inhale raise your arms overhead. As you exhale, squat. Inhale lift back to standing and then bend forward. Exhale Uttanasana. Step to plank pose. And then come to a push up. You can lower the knees and come down. And then inhale. Cobra pose. Roll up. And then tuck your toes downward facing dog you can always move through table pose to get here. Take a deep breath and draw in feel your hands hugging in feel your feet in your lower legs. Hold on to the middle. Hold on to that access and raise your right leg. Look forward in step the foot between your hands. Now you may need to take more than one step to get there. Inhale. Lift your arms come up through a high lunge, pulling up through the arms toning your legs. Feel the foundation. Remember your feet. Exhale touch the floor. Plank pose. Push up pose. Cobra. Inhale. Downward dog. Exhale. Lift your left leg. Step forward. Exhale. Keep your knee above your heel. Inhale raise your arms pull up to a high lunge. This can also be done kneeling if you'd like. And then exhale bring your hands back to the mat. Plank pose. Push up pose Cobra inhale. Downward dog exhale. Three breaths and allow the pose to center you. Whatever's going on in your life you still find that way to pull into yourself into your heart. Please look forward. Walk up to your hands and bend over. Inhale. Lift half halfway and then squatting again sweep your arms up and bring your palms together. And rise up to standing. Do a little back bend here at the top and then pulled the hands down to your heart. Come back to mountain pose. Back to Anjali Mudra and slowly breathe. Keep your eyes steady And now release you hands. Look down at your feet make sure they're parallel. And particularly your right foot. Spread the toes and feel the four points of that foot. Let's go into tree pose. So tapping your left foot out to the side. Bend the knee and raise the foot along the inner edge of your leg. You may be able to lift it as high as your inner thigh or as Laura-Ann is demonstrating keep it down low more towards your ankle or your calf. Join your hands. If you need extra balance, take your arms out to the side. If you feel fine raise your hands above your shoulders. Here find the balance not only in just holding the pose but seek balance in the levelness of your hips. And as you exhale slowly step down. Shift your weight. Look down spread your toes. Take a breath and just let yourself center. Second side, tapping the right foot. Bend the knee and slide the foot up. Vrksasana holding on. Squeeze in an assist hugging into the middle will increase your balance. Folding the hands, you can take them out side ways or inhale lift your arms. Stretch up. With the eyes remaining steady These poses often challenges the most to remain in our hearts to remain with our breath, even though they are challenging. Then as you exhale step back down to mountain pose. Saddle. Let's turn sideways. Turning sideways on your mat. Step wide. Lift your hands. Check how wide your wrists are and try to place your ankles as wide as your wrists. If you feel unsteady however you can shorten your stance. Keeping your arms raised please turn your right foot sideways and spread the toes, ground the four points of that foot. As you exhale lunge to Warrior Two. I want you to look for is that your knee is over your heel and eventually you're lunging deeply bringing the bottom of your front thigh parallel to the floor but stay wherever you need to. Now maintain the lunge and lower your left hand. Turn the right palm up to the ceiling and lean back as you lean back lifting and turn, sweeping that arm up in then inhale rise to standing. Turn your feet forward, five point star. Second side turn your left foot. Exhale, Warrior Two. Adjust the stance as needed and check that the left knee is above your heel and you're sitting down a little bit lower and it's totally fine even in this challenging pose to smile to remember your peacefulness and now take your left hand down to your leg. Turn the left palm up to the ceiling and sweep back. Slide back reverse Warrior staying deep in your lunge. And then inhale rise to standing Turn your feet forward and step together. Mountain pose. Release the arms. Let's turn forward again. Stepping at the front of your mat, inhale. Lift your arms Follow the breath. Exhale bend forward. Step your left leg back and lunge. This can also be done kneeling. Inhale. Lift your chest, come to a high lunge and then twisting to the right revolved Warrior Two. Laura-Ann is showing the kneeling version Just keeping the arms up, hug in and find the steadiness of your feet and hug to the middle and then inhale. Raise the arms up. Exhale touch the floor. Inhale, step forward. Take a breath. Second side step your right leg back Inhale high lunge. Remember you can kneel. Come up, strong. Twist to the left revolved Warrior Two. Lean through the back leg. Lean through the back arm. Inhale rise up. Exhale touch your mat. Downward dog again. Stretch back. Enjoy your breath. Bring your knees to the mat, table pose. Taking a breath. Settle and let's step your right foot forward. Place it up between your hands. Again this can be done kneeling so feel free to do that variation or raise your back leg again. Let's add on, one more step. Inhale raise your arms lift up. Exhale. Twist to the side. You can just pause here. Now adding on a variation lower your right hand on to the back leg. Turn your left hand up to the ceiling and reach back hold on steady. This requires balance. So remembering that steadiness in your heart and then inhale, raise up. Exhale touch the floor. Lower the back knee and take table position. Pause. Second side. Step your left foot forward. Make sure you step the leg far enough forward knee over the heel. Stay here kneeling or raise the back leg and then inhale raise the arms Come up. Exhale twist to the left. And the lower your left hand. You can also lower this left hand when you're kneeling so pulling up, lift right from the lower right hip all the way up through your right hand and feel that stretch and then release come up over head. Exhale. Touch the floor. Downward dog. Step back. Deepen the breathing. Hug in Pull your outer wrist towards your inner wrist and feel the four corners of your hands the four corners of your feet and then draw right into the middle of your body. Hug yourself. Please lower your knees and take child's pose. Spread your knees apart and bow down. Enjoy the breathing. Notice the heart rate and just with the steady breath letting it slow down so that you can feel a little bit more calm. It's really the intent that you bring from your practice into your day. No matter what happens can I remain in my heart on your inhale please lift up. Stretch your legs out in front of you. You may need to slide forward slightly on your mat. Please bend your knees hold the backs of your legs for support. As you exhale roll down take your back down. One vertebrae at a time. When you reach all the way down, take a breath. Bring your feet together. Rest your hands on your belly. Reclined bound angle. So your feet pressing together just like your hands press together in Anjali Mudra maintain that gentle engagement. Close your eyes. Relax the face. Even notice that tiny muscle between your eyebrows the way that you're holding your jaw. As you inhale, please raise the legs back up to each other. Once your feet are planted lift your right foot and interlace the fingers around your right hamstring. Begin by bending the knee first. And just push the leg away from you into your hands. Now stretch the leg toward the ceiling, raising the foot up and flex the ankle. Even here be aware of the four points of your foot be aware of the mound of the big toe, the inner heel, the little toe and the outer heel. Draw the outer foot down and stretch the inner foot up. Please take your right leg and slide it out on to the mat. Keep your left leg strong here and breathe. This back leg this bottom leg that's on the floor root it down. Let the breath flow down your spine. Stretching out through the back of the leg and stretching the muscles across your low back, release your hands and bend your knee. Plant the foot on the floor and bend both knees and pause. Take a breath. Settle and in the second leg so keeping your right knee bent clasp your fingers around your left leg. then simply push the leg into your hands. And now slowly stretch the leg up. The object is not necessarily getting a straight leg. The object is to feel this opening you up through the back. Opening up through the hamstring. Now remember the face enjoy the breath. And feel the four points of your feet. Good. Exhale. Slide your right leg onto the mat. And staying grounded in that right leg, breathe. Pressing down. And then release the hands, bend the knee. Placing both feet on the mat. Pause for a moment. Grounding. And then raise your legs off the floor and bring your knees into your body. Bring your knees into your chest. Allow yourself to rock side to side. Enjoy the massage of your spine against the mat. And then sweeping your hands behind the back of your knees. Raise your feet up toward the ceiling and move your ankles a few times to stretch and point. And then bend the knees again. Place your hands down on the floor and lower your feet as well. Good. Now once again bound angle pose so join the soles of your feet together and rest your hands across your abdomen. Close the eyes and feel the lift in the lower of the breath. Lift your chin a little bit make sure the back of the neck is long. This last part of the practice is always so important as we head out into the day perhaps into your night keeping the breath steady. With your inhale bring the legs back up to each other. Take your arms out nice and wide and just easily lower your knees to the right side of the mat. You can stack your feet. You can stack your knees. Keep the left side of the back left shoulder grounded. A deep breath and expanding through the waist. With your inhale, raise the legs back up. And as you exhale lower your knees to the left. And then inhale bring the legs back up Pause. Bring the arms down beside your body and gently shake out through your hands, wiggle your fingers. And now extend your legs one at a time. Slide them out onto the mat. They don't need to go wider than the mat but they don't need to stay tight either. You want to find that place of the middle, the place of the axis the midline and this is where the breath is going to be the most friendly the most easy. Take a breath. Soften. If you make an inner intent to remain steady in a completely unsteady atmosphere, you'll be able to remain steady. This is because steadiness is indeed the quality of your own self form. Remain here in relaxation for as long as your mind and body need. However when you're ready to come from your backs, bend your knees one at a time. Take a breath. Roll your legs to the right side of the mat. Pushing down with both of your hands, raise back up to see them. And then sit well. With your eyes closed, I invite you to fold your hands together once again at the heart, the place of your peacefulness. Hold on to that peacefulness today. Thank you for practicing with us. Namaste. Support for Yoga in Practice is provided by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina. To purchase Yoga in Practice on DVD order online at shop SCETV.org. Thanks for your support of public television