Latest / Ten-Minute Mornings / Ease Where You Can, Effort Where You Need It
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: What if the goal today isn't to work harder, but to find where you need effort and to let go of the rest? Hello, friends. Welcome to your daily flow 10-minute mornings practice. I'm James. This is Max. And of course, on Fridays, we flow and practice till the end so we can pull a card and set intention, not just for the day, but for the weekend. And like and subscribe. Feel your feet on the floor. Give your shoulders a shrug up and back. As you start to energize down into your feet, that sense of right effort starts now. Feel your feet on the floor. And then see if you can feel your spine rising up from that ⁓ nice sense of grounding. The head can be relaxed and soft and easy. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale floats the arms overhead. Exhale, bow forward. Inhale, find a long spine and then step back to your plank on the exhale. Set up your plank, wrap those elbows under, pull your heart forward, inhaling. Exhale, lower knees, chest and chin. Cobra pose. Facing dog. First down dog of the day for me too. So bend your knees, tilt that tailbone back. Feel like you're pulling weight back into your legs. Shake out your head, maybe even flutter your lips or sigh. Take another two breaths. Inhale. Exhale. Down dog is a nice example of opportunities to look for ease. Although it still takes a certain amount of energy just to participate, just to do it. Bend your knees and look forward. Step foot the right, step forward the left, flat back, bow deeply. Root to rise, inhaling. Exhale, fold forward. Find your flat back, lengthen your spine. Now we're coming to chair. Bend the knees, float the arms and wrap that tailbone under. Shift your weight back into your heels. Inhale. Exhale, hands frame the feet. Find your flat back. Step back. Left foot right. Exhale. Pause for your inhale. Exhale, knees, chest and chin. Facing the hook. Find your feet. Feel the anchor of the left foot. Energize into the left foot and then boldly step the right foot forward. Warrior one. You might have noticed we're just doing sun B. Wrap that left shoulder blade under, lift the heart. Inhale. Exhale. Hands come to frame the right foot. Step it back. Take your vinyasa. I'm gonna take chaturanga this time. You don't have to. Remember. These vinyasas are here mostly as a reset, as a coming back with something symmetrical and familiar. Step to the left foot all the way forward. Warrior one. Rise up. Warming up the shoulders, the legs, the core. Hands come down. And the reason I wanted to do sun salutations, take your vinyasa. is because you don't have to overthink them and you can just be present with where you need effort, where you can find ease, what you can breathe into without worrying about the next shape I'm gonna say. Let's call it two more breaths. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale, bend your knees, look forward, step or maybe float to the top of your mat. Bow deeply. Sit into your chair. Mountain. It's valuable, I think, when you don't know what's coming next and you have to be with it. But also it's valuable to let yourself find moving meditation. We'll do that sunbi one time, one breath, and one movement. Inhale to your chair. Exhale, bow. Inhale, prepare. Make your way to down dog. Breathe. ⁓ Right foot steps forward, Warrior One, rise up. Inhale. Exhale, Chaturanga. Follow your breath. Left footsteps forward, rise up. Take your time if it goes a little fast. You're right, it's a little fast. I didn't make it up, but it does move. That's one of the things I like about it. But we have five breaths in down dogs, so you have time to get here. If yours is a little slower, if you're following your breath and you need a little extra time to find the pose, just fine. Two more breaths. Inhaling. Exhaling. Inhaling. Exhale, bend the knees, look forward, step or float. Top of mat. Bow deeply. Chair pose. Mountain Bowers. Now we'll add on a little bit. Inhale to your chair. Exhale to fold. Inhale prepare. Grip the mat. Float back. All over your toe. Downward facing dog. Right foot steps forward. Warrior one. Inhale. Shift your weight to your right foot. Come all the way to balance on your right foot. Bring the left knee up with you. Figure four chair. If you really want to dial things up, take a prayer twist. Hook the left elbow to the sole of the left foot. Energize your palms. Rise up, float that left foot, step back warrior one, inhale, exhale, take your vinyasa or skip it. Either way, down dog is the destination. And then step the left foot forward, rise up, warrior one. Think about the ball mound of the left foot. I see people a lot when we do transitions like this push off the back foot. Just shift your weight. So this is where you can find a bit of ease placing your effort where it will serve. And then take that figure four chair. So there's a lot of effort in the standing leg. There's a lot of effort in the abdominals. There's a lot of effort in the concentration. Most of the effort is mental. And then maybe you take that prayer twist. Breathe. This is a grasshopper prep. Then come all the way up, float the right knee. Big step back. Warrior one. Inhale. Exhale. Hands frame the left foot. One of the things that makes yoga yoga is that the effort is as much mental as it is physical, oftentimes more so. Inhale, exhale, bend the knees, look forward, step float or hop, top of mat. Flat back. Bow deeply. Chair pose. Mountain pose. One more round. Inhale the chair. Exhale, fold. Follow your breath. Inhale, prepare. Exhale, chaturanga. Upward facing. Downward facing dog. Inhale, warrior one. Exhale, rise with the left foot. Sit into your chair. Maybe take a twist. And breathe. Rise up, float the knee. Warrior one, step back. Hands frame the right foot. Take your flow. It's not easy. It's not meant to be easy. It's just meant to need to require concentration. Big step forward to the left foot. Shift your weight, rise up. Sit into your figure four chair. Maybe the twist, but maybe that's asking too much. It is not. It's a little more challenging. And then rise up. Step the right foot back. Take your flow. Last one. Two more breaths, just slow and steady. Bend your knees, look forward, step or float, top of mat. Bow deeply. Chair pose. And mountain pose. You can stay here standing or have a seat if you'd like. As we take a moment, a little pause. You wanna come here? Max hasn't been with me a lot lately. He's been back in the bedroom. But today we're hanging out together. Yeah. Pose a Shavasana. Remember, the time of death is uncertain. Live well now. fifty three years old. And as you start to get a little older, this starts to feel more and more true. And frankly less and less scary for me. Maybe to you. But what is today? Live well... What are you putting off? What am I putting off? We take a step towards What is a relationship that needs healing? What is a regret we might have? What choice will we make? Where can we find ease? Where do we need a little effort? Light that is in me bows to honors and is very grateful for the light that is in you. Namaste.