- Hey everyone and 
welcome to Yoga with Adriene.

I'm Adriene and today 
we have a special yoga

for actors practice.

This is really great for anyone.

I'll tell you why in the video.

Just an opportunity to 
connect to your whole body,

to your breath and to 
something big so you can serve

the world and have a 
voice with consciousness.

Let's get started.

(upbeat music)

Alrighty, my friends, 
let's begin standing feet

hip width apart.

We're gonna start 
with feet hip width apart

and the toes pointing 
forward to really connect

to the feet right away 
'cause we're gonna allow

this awareness of the 
feet to travel all the way up

through the body, 
slowly but surely

throughout this little practice

because this is how we 
honor and recognize the body

as a tool for 
storytelling as an actor,

as a performer but also 
in any aspect of your life

where you're getting 
up in front of people

and you're communicating.

Whether that is at work 
or in some sort of activism

or even communicating 
with your family.

Having this awareness 
of your full body

and the body language is awesome

and yoga's a 
great tool for that.

So, it's really not about
the yoga poses today or ever.

But especially today 
it's really about creating

an experience and cultivating
this full body awareness.

Toes pointing forward, 
feet hip width apart.

Then lift all 10 toes 
and feel all four corners

of your feet really root 
to the ground and then draw

some energy up through the legs.

You can release the toes down.

And then travel past 
the hips and then up through

all four sides of the torso.

And then all the way 
up through the crown.

Just notice 
where you're at today

and in my opinion, 
a smart actor,

smart performer,

always takes a 
moment to really just notice

where they are each day.

So you have to 
really show up as you are

so that you know 
what you need to do

to tell your story 
to transform and create

hopefully a real experience.

So kind of ignoring 
what's going on in your body

and in your real life 
is for me not very helpful.

Kind of checking in and going
okay this is where I'm at

today, showing up as I am.

It's kind of a 
great place to start.

When you're ready, 
let's connect to the breath.

Another very powerful tool.

As we squeeze the 
shoulders up to the ears

and take a deep breath in.

Then exhale, relax the
shoulders down, deep breath out.

It's very simple.

But we're using this 
little Vinyasa here to connect

and show up as we are.

Squeeze the 
shoulders up to the ears.

Squeeze, squeeze, 
squeeze, breathe in

and then exhale, 
let everything go.

Relax the shoulders down.

Keep this going really 
feel your feet as you squeeze

the shoulders up to the ears.

Squeeze and lift through 
all four sides of the torso

and then exhale, let it go.

Now keep this going to 
the rhythm of your own breath

and see if you can find
different flavors in each one.

One can be 
really soft and smooth.

One can begin to 
integrate the neck.

Maybe you shorten the 
tempo, squeeze the shoulders

up to the ears and then 
exhale, drop on the exhale.

Then do one more 
wherever you are.

Squeeze and lift, 
squeeze and lift.

Then exhale, release 
everything, beautiful.

Reach the fingertips around
to interlace behind your tail.

You're just gonna 
draw the knuckles down

and away here, so 
knuckles go down and away.

We open up through 
the chest and you can play

with whether you square 
off through the hands here,

to stretch the 
forearms or if you slowly begin

to bring the palms together.

Then as you're ready, 
inhale, lift your heart.

Exhale, draw your 
chin to your chest.

Beautiful, inhale, 
lift your heart, lift your chin,

open your throat.

Then exhale chin to chest.

One more time, inhale, 
lift your heart, lift your chin,

throat back, open, 
then exhale, chin to chest.

Fabulous, break free.

We're gonna reach the 
fingertips all the way forward

and then up and back 
and then just really drop

the shoulders down into socket,
just like you did before.

Take a nice, big, 
full body stretch here.

Feel your feet on the ground.

Think of the body 
as one moving part.

Then on the exhale, we're
gonna slowly tilt to one side,

any side you can grab the
opposite wrist, if you like.

Breathing deep, just 
feeling that side body stretch.

Inhale to come back up.

Exhale, sending it 
to the opposite side.

You can grab the opposite 
wrist if you like, stretch.

Then inhale back to center.

Exhale, hands to heart.

Keep lifting the 
sternum to the thumbs.

You're gonna 
close your eyes here

or come to a soft gaze.

You can look out 
just in front of you

and I'll use my voice to guide
you here in this next beat.

So really feel your 
hands together at your heart

and start to deepen your breath.

See if you can listen 
to a nice audible breath.

For any performer, but 
particularly for actors,

we really have to 
cultivate this relationship

to something real so 
that you can play real,

right?

My training in acting actually
comes from a very physical

form called Suzuki Viewpoints.

Both really invite us to 
connect to something real

and something 
that's really present.

You're gonna keep your 
hands at your heart here

and with the eyes closed, 
bring your awareness

to the space between 
your naval and your spine.

Oddly enough, we talk 
about the same thing in yoga.

In yoga we call 
it Uddiyana Bandha.

It's a slight drawing 
in of the navel, in and up,

we find this 
little lock or bandha here

and for today we'll 
just let it be an awareness.

An awareness in your 
center is what we'll call it.

Then slowly lift the 
sternum up to the thumbs,

even more, open your eyes, 
find one point to focus on

and from your center, so 
from the middle lifting up,

imagine there's like a
marionette cord right on

your center and it's just 
gonna slowly lift you up

and you're gonna come 
on to the tippy tip toes.

You're gonna press 
the feet, the toes down,

and draw the naval in and up.

If you need to take 
your hands up for balance,

you absolutely 
can but otherwise,

try to keep the palms together

and we're creating 
lots of length up and down

the spinal cord.

We're starting to breathe.

You can imagine 
these two little headlights

in front of the hip 
creases, not shining forward

but shining up so 
lengthen your tail bone down.

We're here for one 
more breath cycle, in,

tuck the chin 
slightly as you breathe out.

Then nice and slow, 
with control, lower it down,

with control, nice and slow.

Sweet, one more time, 
inhale from your center,

so practice drawing the naval
in and up and that's what

slowly lifts you up.

Hold on to your 
focal point, out in front.

We lift, lift, lift.

Again hip creases 
shining up towards the sky.

Finding length through 
the spine, deep breath in

and then exhale with 
control, slow release down.

Awesome, okay from here, we're
gonna take the feet wide now

and turn the toes out.

Heels are gonna be now a little
bit wider than your hips.

You don't have to go super wide,

but just a little bit 
wider than hip width apart.

Then again think of 
those headlights on the hips,

not going front 
but all the way up.

Whoa, yeah, all the way up,

so that the tail 
bone's lengthening down.

Hands come back to the 
heart, head over heart,

heart over pelvis.

So we're cultivating 
this full body awareness,

we're just warming up, 
shaking off the day

thus far as we can prepare 
for our work, for our craft.

We're also 
wanting to prep the body

to have lots of 
spaciousness for breath

so that we can speak, 
right, with a consciousness

and with a powerful voice.

Imagine you're leaning 
up against a wall here.

You're not gonna 
let the butt go out

or the heart go froward.

You're gonna keep 
the sternum lifted

and the tail 
bone lengthening down.

We're gonna inhale 
in and then exhale,

bend the knees and 
just slowly from the middle,

imagine this part, 
just moving down,

you're just gonna slide 
into a little Goddess Pose

or Horse Pose here.

But again make sure the pelvis
stays right underneath you

so you may not go 
as low, maybe in time

and then just make 
sure that the knees

aren't coming in, 
you're really gonna press

through all four corners of the 
feet and sit down nice and low.

Connect to your center.

We start to light a little fire,

a little aug-nee 
in the belly here.

You can press 
the palms together,

or if you need to take 
them out for more stability,

then do it but 
make it a choice, right.

(chuckles) Yeah.

So lean back a 
little more, breathe deep.

See if you can really 
calm the skin of the face.

Marry a little ease, 
a little grace.

One more breath 
here, you got this,

maybe sink a little lower.

And then with 
control, don't rush this,

even if your legs are burning,

as slow as you can go, rise up.

Awesome, keep your 
chin lifted, throat open,

without looking down, you're
gonna bring the feet together,

without looking down.

So my mentor is so wonderful,

but he used to 
always say, see feelingly.

This is for the actor.

You don't need to 
look with your eyes.

You don't need to point 
to things with your eyes.

You have eyes on 
the soles of your feet.

Bring the feet 
together without looking,

we're going to 
shift to one leg, any leg,

and you're just gonna 
interlace the fingertips

and catch one knee.

Squeeze up and in.

And then exhale, take it
back, nice quad stretch here.

Bring the opposite hand to
your heart and breathe deep.

Stay on that standing leg, 
squeeze that knee

up towards your chest.

Then take it back, quad stretch.

One more time, squeeze and lift.

Quad stretch.

Next time you're in the 
quad stretch, stay here.

You're gonna slowly flip the
hand to the arch of the foot

and just play here, 
squeezing into the midline,

a little dancer variation.

You can also go through 
a little Tree Pose here.

I want you to keep a nice,
calm, audible breath going here.

And again we're just 
organizing brain and body here

with the balancing pose.

Uniting the two 
which is gonna help us

when we work, when we play.

Take a couple of breaths 
playing here, dancer pose.

Then we'll slowly release,
you'll come back to center,

don't look down, see feelingly

eyes on the soles of your feet.

Get head over heart, 
heart over pelvis

and we'll do the same 
thing on the other side.

Nice and easy, you're 
gonna release the finger tips,

catch your knee 
and then take it back.

Nice quad stretch here, 
hand comes to the heart,

breathe, tuck your 
pelvis underneath you.

Stand up nice and tall.

Sweet, interlace the fingertips,

come through center, 
squeeze and lift.

Back to the quad stretch.

Squeeze inner 
thighs to the midline.

And squeeze and lift.

Quad stretch.

Excuse me, then 
squeeze and lift,

let's just do it one more time.

'Cause usually the 
second side is the one

we're not as stable on
and then as you're ready,

you'll flip that hand 
to the arch of the foot.

We'll just play with 
the little dancer pose.

Really not about 
the pose today or ever.

Just really organizing 
brain and body to unite.

You'll kick the foot out,

maybe take the 
opposite hand forward.

See if you can keep this 
awareness through the neck.

If you fall, it's kind of a
great check in as well, right?

So there are no mistakes, right?

As you're ready, release, 
squeeze that knee up again

and then let everything go.

Rotate the ankles, 
one and then the other.

And the wrists, 
one and then the other.

Let any stress or tension that
you've been carrying with you

go here so that you can 
create spaciousness to work.

I guess you may 
not be on a yoga mat,

so you don't need to come to
the top of the mat, never mind.

Never mind.

But without looking, 
we're going to bring

the feet together one more time.

Big inhale to reach for the sky,

think of this as one 
moving part, so press your feet

into the earth, reach 
your hands to the sky.

There's just like one 
moving part, not a bunch of

disjointed parts here, 
but one moving part.

Reach, reach, reach, 
really maximize the stretch

and then exhale, bring 
everything down Forward Fold,

all the way down to the earth.

Bend your knees generously.

Take a couple of breaths
here to shake the head loose,

maybe clasp the elbows, 
rock gently side to side.

Then release the arms, 
take a deep breath in,

then exhale out, then 
tuck the chin into the chest,

slowly roll it up as you roll
up, really feel your feet

pressing into the earth.

That's why you're 
rolling up because your feet

are pressing so firmly 
into the core of the earth

that you stack up through 
the spine because energy

is just reverberating 
up through your feet.

Your awareness of the 
full body is starting to expand

and you might even 
start to feel a little joy,

a little gratitude

or just become more 
present with what is.

Without looking, bring the
feet together, really together

and once again we'll 
inhale, reach for the sky.

Exhale, relax 
the shoulders down.

Then here we go.

Keep the heart lifted, 
draw the naval in and up,

try to move from your center.

We'll slowly begin to come
up onto the tippy tip toes,

you can hold on to your 
focal point out in front.

Squeeze the legs together
and then exhale, lower down.

Now consider your 
audience, so yoga's really about

your inner ecosystem 
but for today,

really close your 
eyes or soften your gaze

and see every finger tips so
there's either energy there

or softness as you lower down.

Then one more time, 
sending awareness through

every finger as you 
lift up and then lower down.

Then release the arms 
and feel the blood flow

opposite direction, amazing,
getting that healthy flow

of energy going.

Without looking down, 
widen the legs,

toes are gonna turn out once
again, hands come to the heart.

We inhale, lean back, 
exhale, bend the knees.

One last time, we 
come into this Goddess Pose

or this Horse Pose.

This time, you can take 
one fist, one had into a fist

and one hand over 
for a little resistance.

We're gonna get 
down nice and low, okay?

So get your center 
really underneath you,

your bum's gonna kind of hug
in towards the midline too.

We breathe deep.

Just notice what comes up

and we're gonna 
sink down even lower.

If you were practicing 
a monologue or a speech,

this is a really great 
place to practice your lines

because the body is actually
having a real experience.

Think upward, 
lift through the front,

think grounding 
through the back, we're here

for a couple more 
breaths, you got this.

Do not give up, stick with me,
lengthen through the crown.

Breathe deep.

Sink a little lower.

Sink a little lower, 
last time, you got this.

Now with control, slowly
rise up, press into the feet.

Feel that power of 
the foot to earth connection.

In yoga we call it Para Bandha.

Beautiful, and release the
arms when the legs straighten

and interlace them 
behind, this time opposite,

thumb on top so the weird one.

Again, we're connecting to the
brain in a different way now.

Then we open the chest.

Squaring through the wrists,

we're bringing 
the palms together.

Without looking, bring the
feet together, nice and slow,

don't look down.

Alright, last beat here.

So stand up nice and tall.

When you're ready, 
drop the chin to the chest.

Then here we go, lift the heart,

open the throat 
and lift the chin.

One more time, drop 
the chin to the chest,

feel that great 
stretching the back of the neck.

When you're ready, 
shoulders back, lift the heart,

open the throat 
and lift the chin.

Fabulous, break free.

Take a second here to just
open the mouth really wide.

And then close.

Using the breath, 
open the mouth really wide.

And exhale and close.

One more time, open, as big as
you can, as wide as you can.

And close, maybe 
little horsie lips here.

(blowing air)

Bring the palms together, 
thumbs to third eye.

Stand up nice and tall.

Repeat these 
mantras quietly to yourself.

I can.

I choose.

I will.

I love.

I create.

I thrive.

I enjoy.

Namaste.

(upbeat music)