Yoga in Practice

Support for Yoga In Practice is provided by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina.

Hi!

My name is Stacy and I will be leading you in your practice today.

Please take a good seat.

Close your eyes and breathe easily.

What do we know about the moon?

We know it waxes and wanes and is sometimes visible during the day.

It also pulls at the ocean causing the ebb and flow of the tides.

You have seen it all your life, but have you given it the full attention it deserves?

Perhaps you've heard of the sun salutation but not the moon salutation.

The moon salutation is a fluid sequence that offers a soothing alternative to an active practice providing equilibrium in an intense and uncertain world.

It is also a nice practice for the evening when you wish to slow down and connect to some inner quiet.

Let's begin.

Joining us today are Deedi and Loredana.

You may need a block and a blanket for this class.

So, let's come to standing.

Stand in the middle of your mat which is turned sideways.

The moon salutation will be a movement from side to side.

So plant your feet, sit bone distance apart.

Spread your toes and anchor yourself into the solidity of the earth, releasing your arms down take a nice good posture and a deep full breath in as you inhale, raise your arms over your shoulders.

Lifting up.

And as you exhale float the arms back down.

You can keep your eyes closed here if you wish.

Inhale, Rise up Exhale.

Reach.

Stretch down.

Bringing your hands beside your hips.

Three more times.

Inhale.

Rising and just feel that breath coming in cool and as you Exhale the full releasing out finding a quality that is a bit softer for your practice.

Inhale again.

And exhale.

One final time.

Reach the arms overhead full stretch up and reaching down through your feet and then exhale.

Float the arms down.

Come into a squat, placing your hands across your knees pushing your hands onto your knees, stretch your hips back.

Now lift your chest and roll your shoulders open so you've created more of a backbench shape through your lower spine.

Now as you exhale, round inward.

Tuck your chin towards your tailbone and then inhale.

Look up and arch.

And as you exhale, tuck and round in.

Twice more.

Inhale.

Create that back bend, Open the heart and as you exhale, tuck and round feeling a broadening across your back.

And one more time.

Inhale.

Look up an arch.

Exhale and round.

Come to a neutral position.

Reach your arms out in front of you and then rooting through the feet, rise up to mountain pose.

As you exhale, sweep the hands back down to your hips.

Roll the shoulders back.

One more time, lift the arm up and over And as you exhale, float the arms down, syncing your movement up with your breathing.

Inhale, raise the arms up.

As you exhale, lower the arms down.

Now, inhale lift your arms overhead and holding your right wrist with your left hand stretch up no guide your ribs back and bend over to the left side of your mat.

This is called crescent pose and what I want you to focus on is moving the sides of the ribs back keeping your shoulders more on top of each other and just extending and pulling through your arms as you inhale, rise to the middle and change sides holding your left hand.

Inhale.

Reaching up and as you exhale draw over.

Pull the sides of your waist back, so you're not pushing your hips and your belly forward but you're staying a little bit softer through the back of your body.

As you inhale, rise back up to middle mountain pose and then come back through a squat sending your arms out in front of you.

Exhale.

Bend forward, bring your hands down to your mat.

If you can't touch your mat, place your hands against your shins or you could put blocks beneath both hands and pause.

Now holding this pose Uttanasana.

Standing forward fold, just pause and breathe for a minute.

Let that tension flow from your neck and your shoulders.

And then bend your right knee only.

I'd like you to push back more strongly through your left thigh until you feel that hamstring.

And then bend your left knee.

Push back through the right thigh and again right knee bending, left leg stretching left knee bent, pushing back One more time, both legs bend your right knee reach down lengthen your spine.

Bend your left knee root your right thigh back and breathe.

Good.

Both legs strong, Inhale.

Lifting halfway forward, Pull your belly and your heart and your head away from your hips.

And then raise your hands up onto your hips, pulling your shoulders up.

Inhale rise to mountain pose.

Lower the hands Take a breath.

Feel settled.

Take a wide stance across your mat, approximately as wide as your wrist would be, as you lift your arms.

Now if you need more stability, it's fine to shorten your stance a bit but look down to make sure that your feet are parallel with each other.

Lined up with the short sides of your mat.

Bring your hands to your hips and bend forward placing your hands on the floor in front of you or again maybe lift it up onto a block if you need to.

As you exhale, fold more deeply down.

Now you can stay here, keeping your hands on the floor like Deedi will demonstrate or adding the shoulder extensions, sweep your arms around your lower back.

Interlock your fingers or simply hold a strap between both of your hands.

Raise the arms up and as you do so, I want you to feel that opening come across your chest.

Soften yourself down.

Breathe easily but breathe deeply into the pose, feeling your hamstring stretch.

And then exhale float your hands back down onto your mat.

And turn your toes out slightly, maybe to like a 45 degree angle.

Now walk both of your hands to the right and as you do so lunge over into your right leg, aligning the knee over your heel and then walk back to center and go to the left.

And just feeling this right inner thigh opening up.

Good.

Come back to center.

We'll do this twice more to both sides.

So go to the right, exhale.

Inhale to the middle.

Walk over to the left and lunge.

And inhale Last time here to the right side just feeling fluid through your hips, more curvilinear and reflective as you move from side to side.

And then come back to center.

Turn your feet parallel with each other and walk your feet in slowly together.

Heel toe them in.

Sit bone distance apart.

Bring your hands to your hips.

Pull the shoulders back.

Now adding a squat here, sweep your arms out in front of you.

Squat down.

Rice to standing Join your hands.

Bring them down to your heart.

Take a full breath.

Soften Let's prepare for the moon salutation, now.

You may want to have a block handy, so you can move the block up to where you can reach it.

And we'll just go through this sequence slowly.

So joining your hands again, palm to the heart.

Honor yourself.

Pause.

Inhale.

Raise your arms over your head.

And then as you exhale bend to the right.

You can simply keep your left arm raised and your right hand coming down as a modification and then inhale, sweep back up and then bend to the left.

Either both hands remaining overhead or simply one arm at a time and then inhale rise up.

Lower your hands to your heart as you exhale.

Step out slightly wide and turn your toes out 45 degrees, again.

Now, not as wide as you were earlier but just a little bit longer.

Now bend your elbows and squat down.

We call this goddess squat.

And rise back up.

Two more times, exhale.

Squat down.

Feel your inner thighs, inhale, rise and exhale come down.

Pull back up.

Turn your feet parallel and widen your stance a little further, five pointed star.

Now taking your right foot, spin your right foot sideways, spread the toes, press your thighs back, and then lengthen out over your right leg for triangle pose.

Place your hand either down on your ankle, your shin.

Place it on a block or you can reach down, put your hands on the mat as long as you can reach over without compromising what you're doing through your legs or your spine.

You may need to take a slightly longer stance.

Now, bring your left hand to your mat and pivot around, pulling your left heel off the mat.

Both legs straight.

Take a deep breath.

And then lunge forward into your right knee Extend.

Lower your left knee onto the mat And then raise up placing your hands up on your shin first, or your leg here.

You can hold at this position or if possible raise both arms over your shoulders looking up.

Open the throat.

Take a deep breath and allow yourself to settle into your legs.

Exhale bring both hands to your mat and move your right hand to the inside of your foot and raise your left knee.

Now this is a pivot.

You're going to turn forward pivoting around to face the long side of your mat and squat down on your right heel.

Now you may have to modify this slightly by raising up putting your arm across your thigh or to simply take a wide stance.

If you have the balance and the strength, lift your hands to your heart.

Keep breathing, hold steady, soften.

Then we're going to change sides.

You can bring your hands down, walk over to the left and squat down sitting down either on your heel or modifying like Deedi is showing.

If possible, bring your hands up and find your inner strength here.

Find that quality of being quiet and calm and self reflective.

And then turn, pivot to the left and lower your right knee.

Inhale.

Rise to a lunge.

Pause.

Breathe.

And then exhale.

Bring the hands back to your mat.

Lift your right knee and stretch your left leg straight into pyramid pose.

Bowing your head toward your shin.

Inhale.

Look up.

Extend and then turn your right foot down onto the mat and open to triangle pose.

Again use a prop under your left hand if you need to.

It's fine not to be quite so low in the posture.

Meet yourself as you are.

As you inhale, rise up.

Turn your feet parallel five pointed star and now turn the toes out and squat goddess squat.

Inhale.

Extend.

Twice more.

Exhale squatting down.

Inhale.

Extend.

Exhale.

Squat down.

Rise back up.

Turn your feet parallel.

Step together.

And join your hands.

Lift your arms.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Squat down.

Rise back up into a little back bend.

At the top of your pose here, Looking up.

Curling back and then join your hands to your heart.

Palms together.

Finish here in mountain pose and close your eyes.

Breathe through your nose and I invite you to open your palms like you're receiving a gift, pouring it into your heart.

Rejoin your hands as you open your eyes.

We'll now begin on the opposite side to complete the full round of moon salutation.

Inhale.

Raise your arms up.

Exhale.

Bend to the left.

Inhale to center.

Exhale, right.

Inhale, center.

Lower your hands to your heart.

Step out for goddess squat.

Turn your toes out.

Exhale and squat down.

Rise up.

Two more.

Exhale.

Inhale.

Exhale.

Pull up for five pointed star.

Feet parallel.

Take a little longer stance, if you need to and spin your left foot out sideways.

As you exhale, reach out into triangle pose and turn.

Find whatever level is appropriate for you.

Gazing up, feeling grounded from your right hip into your right heel.

Now, swing your right hand onto your mat.

And then pivot your right heel up off the mat.

And the bow forward.

Pyramid pose.

Good.

Look up.

Extend.

Exhale.

Lunge forward and lower the right knee.

Inhale.

Rise to a lunge.

Remember to keep your hands on your legs, if you need to.

And then exhale.

Hands to the mat.

With your hands to the inside of your foot.

Raise your right knee and pivot forward.

Sit down on your left heel.

Flex your right foot or stay high in your squat.

Find your balance.

It's totally fine to keep your hands grounded on your mat and then shift over to the right.

Squatting down.

Breathing.

Steady.

And then spin to the right.

Pivot around and release your left knee to the mat.

Inhale.

Raise your arms.

Pull up.

Take a deep breath here finding extension and opening.

And then exhale, hands to the mat.

Raise your left knee and stretch your right leg straight.

Pyramid pose.

Keep your legs strong.

Sweep halfway out and turn your left heel down an open slowly into triangle pose, Utthita Trikonasana.

Extend Find whatever level is appropriate for you.

Not over doing, but use the posture to receive.

As you inhale, rise up.

Turn both feet parallel, five pointed star.

Stretch.

Now, spin the heels out.

As you exhale, squat goddess squat coming down.

Inhale rise up.

Exhale and squat.

Inhale rise up.

This is your last one.

Exhale.

We've almost completed the whole round.

Inhale.

Rise back up.

Turn your feet parallel.

Step your feet back into each other.

Palm to palm.

Mountain pose, Anjali Mudra.

As you inhale, raise your arms up over your shoulders and squat down.

Exhale.

When you rise up, inhale.

Lift do a back bend at the top of your pose.

And then palms to the heart.

Come to mountain pose.

Close your eyes.

Receive a calming breath.

Allow yourself to feel cooler and more grounded.

Good.

Release your arms.

Notice how you feel.

And then sit down onto the floor.

So whenever you sit down on the floor, if you feel tight through your hamstrings, your hips or your lower back, please sit up on with some height.

You can even use a block if you'd like to.

Just getting up so you can maintain the good curve in your back.

We're going to cross the right ankle in front of your left ankle, so the lower part of your shins are connected.

Rise up, putting your hands against your knees.

Pull up and get some length through your spine.

Now, reach your right hand over across to your left knee cap.

Reach your left hand right behind the hips.

And then rising up through the spine.

Turn.

And breathe.

This poses is called Sukhasana the word sukha means sweetness.

It means a delight.

The back of your body is soft.

It's like the moon receiving.

So allow yourself to receive the softness of this pose.

Extend through the heart.

As you inhale, turnaround back to center.

Put both hands on your knees.

Take a deep breath.

Rise up.

And as you exhale, reach your left hand across to your right knee, turning around.

Enjoy the breath.

Stay grounded through your hips.

breathe into your back.

Pull your rib cage to the back, much like you felt when we were doing crescent pose at the very beginning of our class today.

And then as you inhale, turn back around to the middle.

Good.

Once you're in the middle, release your ankles and put your feet together, sole to sole.

Seated bound angle pose.

Now, this is meant to stretch the inner thighs.

To intensify this pose, you could place a block between your feet, adding a little bit more space and therefore a little bit more stretch.

Hold on around the front of your ankles.

Push through the feet.

Rise up through your spine.

Now, decide for yourself where you are during practice.

If you'd like to just stay here, staying soft, please do so.

Or if you want to go a little bit deeper full.

Remember that when you work into the hips, the hips are very much about releasing.

So, allow yourself to soften like the moon.

Receive the light.

Receive the pose.

Enjoy the breath.

And then inhale.

Raise to seated.

If you used a block, clear it out of the way.

Good.

Turn sideways on your mat.

If you're sitting up on a blanket, just clear your blanket off.

Plant your feet and reach around and hold the back of both of your legs.

In grabbing the legs, roll down slowly, engaging your core, so you don't just flop onto the mat.

Extend your legs and extend your arms beyond your head and take a deep breath lengthening here.

And exhale soften.

And just simply keep enjoying your breath.

Take another deep breath in and as you exhale, pull your right knee in and up to your shoulder.

Wrap your hands around the leg and feel your back pressing into the mat.

Move your foot a few times.

Point and flex the ankle.

Perhaps, turn it in circles.

And then inhale.

Sweep your arms beyond your head once again.

And raise your foot toward the ceiling.

Keeping the legs strong.

Exhale.

Lower the leg slowly to the mat, feeling your core engage again.

Take another deep breath and just stretch out through your arms elongating, stretch and soften yourself into the back.

And then as you exhale, pull the left knee up and into your shoulder.

Take your hands around that leg.

Again, move your foot slowly and make sure that your extended leg stays grounded.

Enjoy the breath.

Good and then inhale.

Sweep your arms beyond your head.

Raise your foot toward the ceiling.

Keeping the strong core.

As you exhale, bring the legs back down.

Reach through the toes.

Point your ankles.

Stretch your arms.

Take a deep breath in.

And as you exhale, soften.

Inhale again.

And then feeling that releasing.

One more time.

It feels so nice just to reach out and stretch through your body.

And exhale.

Bring your arms down and pull both of your knees this time into your chest.

Wrapping your arms around both of your legs.

Press the small of your back into your mat.

And inside your hands, underneath both of your knees and raise your feet toward the ceiling.

Good.

Breathing.

And what you want to feel is your grounding, feeling that you're pressing into your feet.

Sweep your arms beyond your head.

And feel engagement from the feet to the hips and make sure the back feel subtle.

Take a deep breath.

And as you exhale, either lower one leg at a time or both legs together.

Breathing and then when your legs reach the mat, pause.

Take another breath in.

Stretch out.

Breathe through your nose.

Exhale.

Again inhale.

And exhale.

One more deep breath to finish out.

And exhale.

Good.

Now bend both of your knees.

Plant your feet.

Draw your arms down beside your body.

Join your feet together into reclined bound angle and rest your hands lightly across your abdomen.

This is the reclined form of the pose that we just did a moment ago.

So, it's good for the back, helping to realign the back.

Close your eyes and relax into your face.

Feel the rise and fall, the ebb and flow of each breath.

Enjoy the breathing.

And find the peacefulness at the end of your practice that reflective quality that you find the moon reminds us of.

As you inhale, slowly raise your knees back up into each other.

And then extend your legs one at a time.

Shake them out onto the corners of your mat.

Move your arms out now beside your body and wiggle your fingers.

Move your wrist a few times.

Make sure you have no tension across your brow or tension across your jaw.

Your eyes closed.

Just allow yourself to settle.

Enjoy Savasana.

A quiet mind is all you need.

All else will happen rightly once your mind is quiet.

I invite you to remain here in Savasana for as long as your mind and your body desire.

But when you're ready, roll over onto your side, take a breath and then pressing into the floor with both of your hands, walk yourself upright.

Come to a good seated position like the one you began class with.

Bring your hands together in front of your heart.

Remind yourself that this gesture is about honoring and respecting yourself and finding the quiet within you.

Thank you for practicing with us today.

Namaste.

Support for Yoga in Practice is provided by the ETV Endowment of South Carolina.

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