Latest / Ten-Minute Mornings / 10-Min Morning Flow + Alternate Nostril Breathing to Reset Your Energy
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: 10 minutes to ground, energize, open, and flow into your day, whatever it might hold. Hello, friends. Welcome to your daily flow 10 minute mornings practice. My name is James. This is Max. And be sure you've practiced all the way till the end, because we'll wrap up the day with a little bit of guided breath work, pranayama. So let's begin by standing at the top of the mat. Ground down through your feet. Feel like you're gently pulling the mat apart and then give your shoulders a nice shrug up and back. That pressing down helps engage the legs, lengthen the body. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale, float the arms. Exhale, bow forward like a swan dive. Bring your hands to your shins, lengthen your spine. Bow deep. Root down, rise up as you inhale, hands meet overhead. Exhale, hands to your side. And now flip the arms, just warming up the spine, getting started little by little. Big bow forward. Hands to your shin. Think about peeling your chest into your thighs as you fold. Then press down to rise up, inhale. Exhale, hands to the sides. We'll go on this time. Inhale, floats the arms. Exhale, bow deeply. Inhale, lengthen. This time step back to your plank, top of a pushup. 10 fingers spread wide, external rotation of the shoulders, quadriceps engaged. Pull your heart forward, inhale. Exhale, lower your knees, your chest and your chin. Press down through the abdomen, lift the heart. Downward facing dog talk, the toes, hips high to sky. Take a moment here. Be present with your breath. Feel a sense of the fingertips pressing forward, but the shoulders integrated into the back body, heels yearn for the mat. A little gentle lift to the kneecaps, heart traveling back to the thighs. Inhale, exhale, bend your knees. And as you inhale, big step forward all the way to the top of the mat. Hands to shins, long spine. Bow deeply. Press down, rise up as you inhale. Mountain pose. We'll dial it up just a little bit. Inhale, close the arms. Exhale, bow. Inhale, lengthen. Exhale, step back to your plank. Inhale, pause. This time, pull the heart forward as you bend the elbows in half, hug the elbows to the ribs, then roll over your toes. Lift your heart, upward facing dog. Downward facing dog. Roll over those toes again. About five breaths. So this is Sun Salutation A, Surya Namaskara A. And all of this started, this whole daily flow thing started because one of my teachers years ago said, there's no reason why everyone can't do three sun salutations every morning. And here we are, look forward, step to the top of your mat, big step. Inhale, long spine. Exhale, bow deeply. Breast down, rise up as you inhale. Exhale, mountain pose. One more round, a little more dialed up, and then we'll add on. Inhale, float C arms. Exhale, bow. Remember, you can always take that version where you step back, or this time as you plant your palms, bend your knees, think about bringing your knees to your chest as you float back to your Chaturanga. And your upward facing dog. And your downward facing dog. About five breaths. Inhaling. Exhaling. Traditional is five breaths. I don't know if it's a hard and fast rule. As long as you're consistent and you're present with whatever breathing you're doing, bend your knees, look forward, step or float to the top of your mat. Long spine. Bow deeply. Root to rise, inhale. Mountain pose, exhale. Sit into your chair, bend the knees deeply, float the arms. Biceps alongside the ears, look up. Tuck the tailbone, carve out the belly, inhale. Exhale, hands to the floor. Inhale, lengthen. Exhale, make your way to down dog. Maybe through your Chaturanga. Maybe you float, maybe you step. Energize into the left foot in order to step the right foot forward. Rise up to your warrior one. So this is starting off like sunbeam, but we're not gonna stay in sunbeam. Keep that left shoulder blade wrapping under. Bend the right knee deeply. Inhale. Exhale, Warrior II. Peaceful Warrior. I'm wrapping my left hand behind in order to more ⁓ deeply open up the left shoulder and lengthen the low back. Breathe here. And then straighten the right leg, make it reverse triangle. And now triangle pose. Left hip back, right arm forward. Maybe keeping that half bind. Look up over your left shoulder. Exhale, Warrior II. Inhale, and then exhale, cartwheel the left hand down beside the right foot, low revolved lunge. And then bring the right hand down to frame. Energize the right leg pyramid pose. Feel like you're pushing the floor forward with the ball mound of the right foot, plugging the right femur into the right hip socket. Inhale. Exhale, re-bend the right knee, and then step back to your plank. Maybe float the right foot, three point chaturanga. Upward facing. Downward Facing Dog. Find your footing, find your breath, bring your attention to the energy in the right leg and then use the right foot to step the left foot forward. Warrior one, rise up. Wrap that right shoulder blade under, square the heart. Look up. Exhale, warrior two. Peaceful warrior, right hand might rep behind. And again, I'm using that. to help rotate open the right shoulder and lengthen the low back. Breathe here and then straighten the left leg. Keep energizing the left waist. Triangle pose, forward, forward, forward and then bow or release it, I suppose. Look up, inhaling. Exhale, re-bend the left knee, Warrior II. On your next exhale, right hand to the floor, left arm high to sky, let the right heel peel up, low revolved lunge. And then sweep that left arm forward, hands come to frame the left foot, energizing the ball, mount to the left foot, spiral the right heel down, pyramid pose. Couple of breaths here. Should feel nice. If it doesn't, if it feels like a strain, then shorten your stance, the right foot in, or put your hands up on something like a yoga block. Inhale. Exhale, re-bend that left knee. Inhale, float the left foot back and then lower halfway. facing dog. Downward facing dog. Inhale. Exhale, bend the knees, look forward, step or float to the top of your mat. Long spine. Bow deeply. Root to rise. Mountain Pose. Come to sit. So as promised, we're gonna end today with a little bit of pranayama, nadi shodhana, alternate nostril breathing. This does a lot, it balances the energy. It's also really good in allergy season as long as you're not super congested. If you just feel a little ⁓ sinus-y like do, this is a really good one to practice. So using the index and middle fingers of your right hand right at the top of the nose. So now my right thumb is on the right nostril. my ring finger can come to the left nostril. Start by exhaling everything out. I'm going to close the right nostril with the thumb, inhale through the left. Hold with both fingers, release the thumb, exhale through the right. Pause, inhale through the right. Close. Exhale through the left. Inhale through the left. Close. Exhale through the right. Inhale through the right. Close. Exhale through the left. Inhale through the left. Close. Exhale through the right. And now right. Close. Exhale left. close. Close. Exhale, right. Release, return to your normal breath. Feel free to practice for longer if you'd like. But for now, my time is up. Gathering hands to heart center, the light that is in me bows to honors and is very grateful for the light that is in you. Namaste.