Latest / Ten-Minute Mornings / Morning Yoga for Shoulders, Hips & Triceps | Dolphin Pose + Chaturanga Flow
Transcript
- James @ Daily Flow: Hello friends. Thanks for downloading the audio version of today's 10 minute mornings practice. The YouTube video is linked in the show notes. And if you're staying with just the audio, don't worry about doing it right. Just move and breathe in a way that feels honest. That's enough. a follow or review goes a long way. And of course, you're always welcome to practice live with me on YouTube, 8 a.m. weekdays. James: Just 10 minutes to ground, energize, lunge, and twist into our day together. Hello, friends. Welcome to your daily flow 10 minute mornings practice. My name is James. And of course, be sure to practice until the end so that we can draw a card together and set intention for the day. Come to staff pose. So extending your legs out in front of you, peel the fleshy part of your glutes away from your sits bones. Now if you're waking up and your legs are a little tight, you need to keep a micro bend. That's fine. Or can even cushion up. Maybe sit yourself up on a blanket or a cushion. Flex your feet. Roll your shoulder blades back. Float the arms overhead, inhaling. As you exhale, take a side bend to your left. Bring the left hand to the floor, reach the right fingertips over. And then notice how we wanted to rock your whole body that way. So see if you can use that left hand to anchor the floor and then also spiral your heart. Up towards the ceiling, inhaling. Exhaling, and then really sweep that right arm forward and across so the right hand comes beside you. Left fingertips reach over, inhaling. Exhaling, and again, think about sweeping that left arm forward towards the toes. I'm not even trying to reach them, I'm just finding a sweep across. And then side bending to the left. Step the left foot in, so release the side bend, step the left foot in, step the left foot over the right thigh, and set up a seated spinal twist. Ascend that right arm forward, wrap it around the left knee. Left hand is nice and close behind, energize down, lengthen the spine, inhale. Exhale. And then coming back to center, a little counter twist over to the right. Coming into a figure four. So the left ankle's at the right knee. Just step the right foot in and then ground down. Feel like you're pressing the left hip out and pulling the right knee towards you gently. Lift your heart. So you're looking for a stretch here in the outside of the left thigh. If you're not feeling that, maybe rounded back, then just see what you can do. Maybe the right heel goes further forward. Speaking of the right heel, ground down there and then press down. See if you can't lift the hips up, but keep this figure four. Keep those elbows wrapping under, external rotation of the biceps, inhale. Exhale, lower down. Let's do that again. Energize down that right foot, float the hips. So it's a back bend, keep the chin tucked. Open up that outer hip and then lower down. Yoga likes three, so let's do one more. Inhale, lift up. Really getting into the hip space and the shoulders and lower down. Reextend the legs. Give them a little shake. Maybe you feel a difference in how your left and right legs feel. Float the arms. Side bend over to the right so the right hand comes to the floor, left fingertips reach over. Open up into those left ribs, inhaling. Exhaling, sweep that left arm forward, make a big sweeping arc. And over to the right, trying to find some dynamic warmup, some dynamic spine movement. And energize the right fingertips over, inhaling. Exhaling. Think about going deeper into your side bend as you reach the arm forward. Sweep across, up and over. Release the side bend, step the right foot in and then step the right foot over the left thigh. Send the left arm forward, wrap it around that right knee and then right hand behind. Inhale, get taller. Exhale, wrap that left shoulder blade under to look over your right shoulder. Inhale. Exhale. We'll counter twist over to the left to release. And then as you come back into center, you're in your figure four, so step that left foot in. Hands are firmly rooted under the shoulders, external rotation of those biceps. I already feel the stretch, it feels really nice. In the outside of the right thigh, the AIT bend. Stay grounded in that left heel. Lift up as you inhale. Lower down as you exhale. If this feels like too much, you can keep both feet on the floor or you can just stay and enjoy the stretch. Otherwise, just kind of flow this a little bit this time. Inhale, lift the hips. Exhale, lower. I'm really thinking about keeping my right knee pressing sort of forward, I guess, or down as we come up. So I don't let it peel up too much. And then go ahead and lower down. Untangle your legs. Little lean back, find a boat. So legs can be straight or bent. You can keep your fingertips beside you or send them forward. But notice if you slouched back a lot, see if you can get up on your sits bones, that might mean bending your knees is a little bit of a better idea. Take a breath and then cross the shins. Grab the outsides of your feet, roll forward, coming to all fours. 10 fingers spread wide. Cow pose, pull your heart forward again, external rotation of those biceps, lengthen the spine, and then untuck the toes and round. Inhale lengthen. Exhale around. One more time. Inhale, cow. Exhale, round. Step back to a plank. So fingers are spread wide, shoulders a little forward of the wrists, big external rotation of those biceps, energy into the finger pads and the finger, the knuckles rather. So that pressing down in the tops of the fingers will create a little bit of a cupping in the palm. Take your breath and then lower your knees, your chest and your chin. Go, Bupas. And let's go ahead and send your hips back to your heels. with the toes tucked. Roll forward to a plank. and then downward facing dog. Breathe. Separate your feet about as wide as the mat. Walk your hands back, coming to a yogi squat or malasana squat. Feel the grounding down in the outer edges of your feet, lifting up through that pelvic floor. Careful not to just sort of dump down. Feel the energy in the outer edges and then your elbows support your inner thighs rather than pushing them out. Lift the heart, take a breath. Exhale, release the hands to the floor. Lift the hips. Heel toe your feet together. Bow deeply. Walk yourself forward to plank. And this time, lower your knees and then set your forearms down on the mat, setting up for a Sphinx pose. We haven't done this together. I don't think maybe we have. don't know. But feel your forearms pressed down in the abdomen and feel like you're really pulling yourself forward using the whole forearm. Take a breath. and then tuck the toes. Start to send your hips up and back. You'll have to walk your feet in a little closer, coming to your dolphin pose. So it's a down dog on your forearms. And especially if your wrists bother you in this practice, it can feel really good. It's also a big ⁓ shoulder opener, at least for my body. I feel the space between my shoulder blades as I pull my heart back towards my thighs. Take your breath. Now come forward. Release the knees and the hips to the heels. It can be intense. Come back to all force and then Downward Facing Dog. Inhale, roll forward to plank. Exhale, release the knees, send the hips to the heels. Now you're releasing the forearms down straight away. So this time come forward. Bring your eyes just over your thumbs. Step back to a forearm plank and then downward dog, or rather dolphin pose, apologies, dolphin pose. Now this is challenge. Can you come forward to Chaturanga? So you have to pick up those elbows. It's not easy. And then you roll over your toes for an up dog. Yeah, we'll try it again. Downward facing dog. Come forward, release the knees, and then forearms come down to the floor. As you roll yourself forward, feel your abdomen engage. Feel yourself pulling forward and then downward or den dolphin pose. Again, think forward, shift your weights more into your hands so you can pick up one elbow and then the other and then come forward to chaturanga. And then you're up dog and you're down dog. or roll forward to plank. Lower your knees, release your elbows down as you send your hips back. Come forward just with your eyes, bring your face just in line with your thumbs and then tuck the toes for dolphin pose. Now, last time I did one elbow at a time or one forearm at a time, this time we're gonna try both. Shift forward, pick up the elbows, pull your heart forward, chaturanga. Upward facing dog, big tricep burner. Downward facing dog. Come to sit. That was a big tricep strengthening workout, which is not particularly what I'd planned, but. ⁓ Good. I hope you like that. Wake everything up. All right. Let's pull our card. Sometimes we just go where our bodies and breath leads us. And that's where my body and breath led us today. So I hope you enjoyed it. All right, let's see, what do we got? Desire. This is the same card we pulled yesterday. I shuffled the deck, I promise. So there's something in this for us. When directed wisely, desire is a powerful ally. What is it that you want? And how can the thing that you want serve others? Today, apparently, I wanted to do dolphins and chaturangas. I hope that had a benefit for you and for our community. Let me know. Regardless, if you choose to, anchor your intention for the day on how you will use the things that you want to benefit your community to guide you into right action. The light that is in me bows to honors and is so grateful for the light that is in you. Namaste. Thank you as always for your time and your practice and your gameness. Got those triceps fired up, so go out there, put on a tank top, enjoy your day. And be sure to like and follow and subscribe. Let me hear from you. Leave comments. Have a wonderful day. Namaste.