- Hello my sweet friends and welcome to your 31 Day Yoga Revolution. It's day 29, my lucky number, and today, (toenails tapping against floor) welcome Benji, we connect to our truth. Let's get started. (lively orchestral music) Alright, welcome. (toenails tapping against floor) And welcome. We're gonna start in a nice, comfortable seat. Sit up nice and tall. Find length through the spine. Today's practice is a short moving meditation. Well-earned and important. Today I ask you to deepen your breath and think of something that is true. What does that mean, Adriene? Well, close your eyes and just mediate on that. What is one thing that is true for me? And really, it can be anything. And then just notice where your thoughts went and what you landed on. That's it, that's the practice. See if you can think of something else that is true here, now, as you gently begin to deepen your breath and, again, find length up through the spine. Alright, so start to listen to the sound of your breath here. Just connecting to the power of our word and the power of thought here as we think about what is true. Often, we have thoughts about our bodies or about ourselves and others. (laughing) We'll start with the self. We have to be able to exercise the muscles that acknowledge whether it is true or not. So today's practice is soft and easy. We just take some time to connect to the power of our word. Remember the oh so powerful thought. I love the four agreements. I love that, be impeccable with your word. So when we move from a place of truth we're able to feel good but I also think this is where the do good in the world comes from. You know, being impeccable with your word and being honest about the way you feel. ♫ And the way you move through life ♫ Let's start to move. Left hand comes to the earth and we just reach the right fingertips up and over. Side body stretch. Soft and easy. Connect to your center. Lift your heart and take it to the other side. Inhale, come back to center. Stretch all the way up and overhead. Back to center and opposite side. Now come to center. Bring the hands to rest on the tops of the thighs, or the knees, or on your dog. And we're gonna start opening up through the throat area. So really kind of getting into this area of the body today as we consider what it means, what it looks like, what it feels like to speak our truth. Careful not to clench the back of the neck. We'll start by nodding the head and a great way to think about this is to draw a line with the nose rather than rocking out. Another time for that, we'll do that another day. So draw a line with the nose up and down. (exhaling) Opening up through the throat, of course, as you lift your chin. Then draw a line side to side, stretching sides neck. Activating the upper back body. Starting to find a nice conscious breath. Wonderful, then come back to center. Squeeze the shoulders up to the ears and then exhale, let it go. (exhaling) Squeeze the shoulders up to the ears. (inhaling) And exhale, let it go. (exhaling) One more time, squeeze and lift. (inhaling) And exhale out through the mouth. (exhaling loudly) Wonderful. Alright, take your left heel in, right foot comes in front of the left. We've been here before. Then I'll turn to the side here, I'm just gonna walk the fingertips out. 'Sup? And we've been here before and you're gonna focus on soft, easy movement here so you can come onto the forearms but you might walk to one side and then the other, stretching out the lower back and the right hip. Start to listen to the sound of your breath even more. And so we take this idea of fluid, soft, natural movement and then we apply it to a soft practice today, a more cooling practice. As to where yesterday we have the fluidity but in a more fire practice, so we balance it out. After a couple of breaths here go ahead and unravel. Swim the fingertips around. Fingers are gonna face in towards your body and then lift up through the armpit chest and we start to find this connect up through the spine. So we find the length but also we're engaging from the pelvic floor. We have this lower body, lower belly connect. Upper abdominals, solar plexus connect. Heart lift and now we move through the throat area. So here we go. Loop the shoulders. Your palms can come to the earth, too, if they reach. Draw the chin to the chest, so nice and slow here, chin to chest. Yeah? And then draw your throat back. Heart's lifting. Draw your throat back even more, even more, even more. Then chin down and back even more. And then slowly draw a line with your nose to look up. Great, we're on the fingertips, or the hands, we can stay here or slowly lift the hips up. Lifting your chin towards the sky, nose towards the sky, pressing into your foundation, opening up through the throat. Take a deep breath in. Find length through the crown. ♫ Hip crease is forward ♫ And then slow, and with control, we release. Awesome, take Thriller arms as a counter and then exhale. Right heel comes in, same little ditty on the other side. Left heel snuggles up to the right leg. Alright, taking it forward. Opening up through the lower back, the hip. Find soft, easy movement that feels good. Of all places ya gotta lay right here, right? Oh, it's okay. (exhaling) Soft, easy movement. And then when you're ready, roll it up. Swim the fingertips behind. Fingers face in towards your bod. Loop the shoulders. Lift up, lower belly, navel, heart. Then we'll slowly draw the throat back, chin back. And then when you're ready, nose up and back. Stay here or inhale in, exhale, press into the palms and lift the hips forward. Press into your knuckles, press into your fingerprints. Lift up through the armpit chest. ♫ Open that throat ♫ What do you wanna say this year? What is your truth? What needs to be unleashed? What needs to be cultivated, nurtured, strengthened? Take a deep breath in and then exhale, slowly release. Awesome, come back. Beautiful Thriller arms to counter here and then give yourself a big hug, right arm on top. (deep breathing) And then release. Cross it over. (deep breathing) Alright, one Downward Dog today and it's ♫ Right here, right now ♫ Take your time getting there. (deep breathing) I love it when whatever shirt you're wearing for yoga becomes like a little private love cave when you come into Downward Dog. It's the little things. Take a couple breaths here. (deep breathing) And then slowly release. (exhaling) Nice work. Cross the ankles, send the legs forward. All the way out, Dandasana. (shuffling) Benji. Fingertips to the mat, or palms to the mat. Alright, here we go. This is our last posture for the day so sit up nice and tall. Amazing, right? You can always do more if you want or save it for tomorrow. Alright, send the legs out long. Dandasana, here we go. Deep breath in. (inhaling) Long breath out. (exhaling) Then inhale, reach the arms up, bend the knees. And then exhale, drape your body forward. Pashimottanasana. I encourage you to bend the knees here. You can work to straighten the legs if you like from here with the belly on the tops of the thighs. Then tug the shoulders back, find integrity in the neck and then you can play here for a couple breaths. Chillin' out. Drawing the chin to the chest. (inhaling) Finding length in the back of the neck. (deep breathing) Listen to the sound of your breath and let this practice of listening to the sound of your breath be a practice of listening to your voice, your truth. At the very least today's a nice rest day to chill, recalibrate, remember why you're here, why you set out on this journey. But if you're willing, listen to the sound of your voice. This is your breath. The thing that keeps you alive, your heart pumping. (deep breathing) Blood flowin'. Alright, couple more breaths here. If you wanna find some soft, easy movement swaying side to side you can. If you're working to straighten the legs out really firm down through the thigh bones but keep length in the spine. Swell, take a deep breath in. (inhaling) And use your exhale to tuck the chin into the chest. Slowly roll up. Press the hands into the earth. And throat back, chin back, and head back as your heart lifts. Nose up towards the sky. Inhale in. (inhaling) And exhale to release. Come back to Sukhasana or come onto your back for the Corpse Pose. And then we're gonna do three sighs so this is your chant. If you wanna chant om you can. If you wanna chant hallelujah you can. If you wanna chant praise Jah you can. If you wanna chant Benji for president you totally can but what we're looking for is the little vibration. Okay, okay. Or a lot of vibration. So we'll inhale in deeply. (inhaling) And exhale to release. (exhaling) We're gonna do this three times. Inhale in. (inhaling) And then exhale out with any sort of sound or chant. It can just be ah. (exhaling loudly) (chuckling) Two more times. Hear the sound, just trust me. Join the practice, it's a practice. Inhale. (inhaling) Surprise yourself. (exhaling loudly) Just see what comes out. Last chance, here we go. Deep breath in. Scare the person next to you in the other room if there's anyone. (inhaling) And exhale, let it go. (exhaling loudly) It's crazy, sometimes I do that and it just doesn't even sound like me and then I'm like, "Oh, well, that is you." Connecting to movement, breath, and sound here on this journey as a way of uncovering our truth. Amazing. Draw the palms together wherever you are. Deep breath in. (deep breathing) Long breath out. (exhaling) To my truth, to your truth. See you tomorrow, day 30. Namaste. (lively orchestral music)