- Howdy, everyone, welcome to Dedicate, your 30 day yoga journey. It's Day 25, where we notice what it feels like to be alive. Hop on the mat and let's get started. (bright music) Alrighty my friends, let's begin in Extended Child's Pose, we're gonna jump right in today. We have a quick practice, so we're gonna make the most of it. If Extended Child's Pose is not ideal for you, then you can start in Sukhasana. All right, so if you're choosing Sukhasana, sit up nice and tall, start to breathe deep. Benji, everybody. And if you're heading into Extended Child's Pose, begin to breathe deep. Way to show up. Today's session invites you to find what feels good, or another way of looking at it, today, Day 25 of our 30 day journey would be to invite yourself to follow the aliveness. What if we had a solid practice for following what makes us feel alive? My idea is that if we cultivate that on the yoga mat, we will be able to cultivate that off the yoga mat or we will be equipped with the tools to try. Let's rock and roll. Inhale, send your heart, your shoulders, over to the left. If you're on all fours, you can do this with the hands on the knees. Inhale, heart comes forward. Exhale, around and back. Inhale, smoothing the heart forward, moving with your breath. Exhaling, sending the navel to spine and the hip back. Now continue with your breath and consider today's theme. Use this glorious invitation to wake up the body. Check in with any parts that might feel a little tight, a little neglected, a little sore. And that doesn't just apply to of course your body parts, could be just your energy, your mood, anything at all. Continue to move with your breath, and if you haven't already, explore reversing your circle to move in the opposite direction. And then, if you feel like you find a place that feels good or you just wanna reside in, you might rock and roll there for a bit. If you find you wanna come all the way to Cobra to stretch out through the front body, you might come there for a bit. If you feel a little heavy, and it feels more awesome to just find stillness in Extended Child's Pose, follow it and do not decide where it ends. Take the same beautiful dance you've created already and make your way to Downward Dog in your own way, mindfully full of breath. I love the mantra follow the aliveness. Helps us to really stay present and awake with what we're doing each day. It also helps us create relationships that we want to be in, that we want to nurture and be present and available and alive in. But we won't worry about all that for now, we'll just focus on our practice now, here, within the four corners of our mat. So when you're ready, inhale, kick the right leg up high. Exhale, shift forward, knee to nose. Inhale, reach it up. Exhale, step it all the way up into a nice, low lunge. You'll lower your back knee, right hand's gonna come over to meet the left, and we're just gonna pause here, breathe. Breathing deep. Alright, from the center, nice and easy, you're gonna take your left toes and bring them over towards the right side of your mat. Now we're gonna draw the center back and then follow that, with the hands on the earth, walking all the way back towards the back edge of your mat. Walking all the way back, walking all the way back. Turning the right toes in, just like a warrior. Left hand on the earth, check it out, right fingertips to the sky. A little Gate Pose variation. Inhale in (clears throat) excuse me. My left knee's right underneath my left hip. Shoulders are stacked. Take a deep breathe in, then exhale. Send your fingertips out in front as if you were smoothing a surface. You're gonna take your right thumb and pull it all the way back, smoothing a surface, all the way towards the back edge of your mat. Feel that amazing stretch here, breathe deep. Let your breath move you here. Awesome, then again, from center. Follow this connection to your core, draw it in, and walk it all the way back. Hands on the earth, guiding the way, coming back to that little Lizard variation. Beautiful, then depending on your energy level today, stay here, enjoy, reside in the breath. Or curl the back toes under and lift it up, yogi's choice. Follow your awareness, listen to your body. Beautiful, beautiful, inhale in, exhale, bring the left knee back. We're gonna bring the right knee back, come to all fours, curl the toes under, peel the tailbone up high, Downward Dog. Big, cleansing breath here, I need it as well. Inhale in through the nose. Exhale out through the mouth. Say goodbye to the gunk, inhale in. Cleansing breath out through the mouth. Cool, inhale, lift the left leg up high. Exhale, shift it forward, knee to nose, get strong. Inhale, lift it up. Exhale, step it all the way up. Nice, low lunge, guide your left foot up there and then lower the right knee. When you're ready, bring the left hand over to meet the right. Pause, breathe here. We tend to rush, that's why I love the 30 days too, we can kind of take our time with certain things. We tend to rush, there's no rush, breathe. Follow your breath, notice where your thoughts go, particularly when we work with the hips like this. And when you're ready, anchor navel to spine, lift the right toes, take them over towards the left side of your mat. Then follow this line all the way back as you walk the hands out beyond the right edge of the mat and all the way back. We turn the left toes in, we bring the right hand to the earth, and when you're ready, left fingertips to the sky. Breathing deep. Neck nice and long. We're not collapsing, right ear to right shoulder. Inhale in again, exhale, send the left fingertips forward, right out in front, draw your shoulder into socket, and then smooth that surface as you take your fingertips all the way up past the crown of the head, left thumb pulling back. Feel it out. Inhale in. Exhale out. Inhale to grow a little bit brighter. Just embody the pose and then exhale. Navel to spine, hand comes to the earth, walk it all the way back to the front. Great work. When you get there, have a listen. Keep the knee lower or curl the toes and lift it. Breathing deep. A mindful practice where we integrate everything so valuable. So much better than rushing and just trying to kind of force results, so just trust the practice. You're doing great, inhale in. Exhale, lower the right knee to the earth. Bring the left knee to the earth. Walk the hands out wide. Inhale, let's just look forward. Drop the belly, open the chest. And then exhale, hey buddy! Downward Facing Dog, peel it up. Inhale in deeply. Exhale completely, find stillness here. When you're ready, find stillness, close your eyes. And notice what it feels like to be alive today. Bend your knees if you need to, but find a little moment of stillness. Beautiful, and on your next inhale lift the right leg up high. Exhale, step it all the way up. Nice, low lunge. Inhale for our Crescent Lunge. Exhale, follow the breath down. Inhale, open twist to your right. Follow the breath. Exhale, bring it down. Beautiful, pull the right hip crease back, flex your right toes towards your face. Inhale, look forward. Exhale, roll it all the way through and back to your lunge. Plant the palms, curl the back toes, lift the back knee, inhale in, exhale all the way to Downward Facing Dog. Here we go, follow the breath, inhale, lift the left leg up high. Exhale, step it all the way up. Lower your back knee, follow the breath. Inhale, fingertips reach up high. Exhale, fold it down. Right hand to earth, inhale, left fingertips to the sky. Open twist, exhale, bring it down, here we go. Pull the left hip crease back, flex your left toes towards your face. Inhale to find length, extend. Exhale to soften and bow, roll through. From here, plant the palms, bring the left knee to the earth, come back to Child's Pose Extended or Balasana, knees together, or a nice, comfortable seat of your choice. Take a deep breath in. Empty it out. Take a deep breath in. Empty it out. And on your next inhale, take a deep breath in and at the top of that breath pause and retain the breath. And then empty it all out. Gorgeous, tuck your chin. Slowly begin to roll it up. We'll meet in a nice, comfortable seat. Bring the palms together at your heart space when you arrive. And just have a quick moment of gratitude for yourself. Again, for showing up here on the mat. For cultivating a practice with integrity and with love and a willingness to learn, to follow the aliveness, to find what feels good. I often describe yoga practice as one, of many, but one way to help guide us to find our meaningful contribution to society, and that can be frustrating sometimes because you're like, "I don't know what to do or I don't know." And so today's practice just reminds us that you don't have to know. Just cultivate a practice of finding what feels good and continue to follow what makes you feel alive. And surround yourself by people who make you feel alive. Okay, love you! I can't wait to see you tomorrow. Let us know how you're feeling in the comments section down below, and from my heart to yours, Namaste. (bright music)