00:00For this mindfulness stretching session, just follow along and listen to the
00:06sound of my voice. You might breathing through the nose and out through the mouth.
00:18Begin in hero pose where the legs make an M shape while in seated position. This
00:25stretches the thighs, knees and ankles. Lean forward to stretch your lower back
00:35and quads. Doing the exact pose doesn't matter as much as staying in the present
00:44with your own stretch in your own breath. Slowly walk your hands to the front of
00:51the mat for frog pose. Come back to a seated position. Tuck your left leg in
01:01and lean over your left thigh. Focus your mind on the stretch. Connect with your
01:09spine, groin and quad. Breathe into the stretch and exhale releasing any tension
01:17in the body. Gently lean forward in a rocking rhythm for a deep hamstring and
01:25hip stretch. As you unwrap your legs to switch sides, exhale to release any
01:35tension. Tuck your right leg in and lean to the right. If your mind wanders, just
01:45come back to the breath. I sometimes think of the brain as this busy web
01:52browser that keeps opening new search tabs with every passing thought. But are
02:01those dozens of old tabs even helping? Just for a moment, close the whole
02:09browser window and see what's left.
02:15Raise yourself back into tabletop. Take a moment to find a neutral spine, letting
02:28your body feel grounded. As you exhale, let's flow into cat pose where your
02:35spine rounds. Then inhale into cow pose, feeling that nice arch in your back. Go
02:46back and forth at your own pace, letting your breath guide you. Inhale for cow and
02:54exhale for cat.
03:02Stay with the feeling of engaging your core and flexing your spine.
03:13Walk your hands forward into a knee plank. Keep your core engaged and rock
03:19back and forth, stretching your shoulders and back.
03:25You might come into a full child's pose and breathe back to neutral.
03:35Lift up, stretching your left leg back into a pigeon pose variation. Pull your
03:46left foot forward in order to stretch your groin and left quad at the same
03:51time. Feel the sense of balance and poise in the stretch as you focus on your
04:01breathing.
04:06When you're ready, switch sides. Notice how much easier it is to engage the hips
04:15now that you're warmed up. Pull the right foot forward and find your sense of
04:21balance again.
04:28If you get lost in thought, come back to the sensations of breathing and stretching.
04:37When you're ready, come back to tabletop and back to neutral. Walk your hands to
04:46the top of the mat and push into downward dog. Engage your wrists and
04:53shoulders, pressing down into the mat. Breathe into the stabilizing muscles of
05:00your upper body. Walk out your heels to stretch your calves and hamstrings.
05:09Come back down to tabletop and into puppy pose. Almost done now.
05:17Feel your chest and shoulders opening up and releasing any tension in your upper
05:22body.
05:30When you're ready, come back to tabletop and we're going to finish with gentle
05:36barrel rolls. Make circular movements with your hips, imagining drawing circles
05:43with your tailbone. This helps release tension in the lumbar spine and hips,
05:50improves spinal mobility and promotes a sense of ease and relaxation in the body.
05:57As we come to the end of the session, connect with a feeling of gratitude for
06:04the body, for the mind and for how we've spent this few minutes in the present.
06:10Take a deep breath in through the nose and out through the mouth.
06:19Feeling grateful for every breath and taking that feeling with you into the
06:24rest of your day. Namaste.
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