- Hello everyone and welcome to Yoga with Adriene.
I'm Adriene and this is Benji and today we have
an awesome practice for the spine.
So Yoga for Scoliosis it's a big request
and it's a really good one.
It's a great thing to bring people to the mat
so they can start to tend to the spine
and then work out from there.
So hop into something comfy and let's get started.
(light music)
Alright everyone let's begin seated.
If you have a blanket or a towel
or a block you might use it here today.
Just to lift the hips up so you can find length in the spine
which is the focus of our practice today.
So just start in a nice comfy seat.
Just tune into your breath.
Tune into where your body's at today.
Try to blanket yourself in a little bit of love.
Love, love, love.
And sit up nice and tall
without forcing or kind of jerking yourself around.
So just try to find a natural lift,
that would be a nice way of thinking of it,
up through the base of the pelvis
all the way to the crown.
And we'll begin by just noticing the breath,
noticing where you're at today
and accepting exactly that, exactly what you're feeling.
Accepting the body
as it is, your body.
And whatever your energy level is
just accepting exactly that.
And then trust me, trust yourself.
Trust that this time is valuable.
And I tip my hat to you for taking this time for yourself.
Alright, let's find what feels good.
Let's explore with the breath, big inhale, open your eyes.
Exhale, you're gonna send the legs out long.
Again lift the hips up high if you need to, pause the video.
Lift the hips up if it helps.
You sit up with that lift.
So if you're here you might consider
lifting the hips up high.
Okay for many years I would never not sit
without a blanket folded up pretty high.
So now I've built strength around my trunk
to sit up tall with ease, effortless on my own.
But it took a lot of practice
so feel free to lift the hips.
And then you're just going to point and flex the feet
really fast here nice and easy,
just a little wake up
and then go ahead and bring that right heel all the way in.
Then we're gonna take the left hand
and nice and easy bring it to the outer edge
of the right knee or right thigh
and your right fingertips are gonna come behind.
You're not gonna push yourself into a twist here
but rather think of the lift and the lightness
up through the spine and then just play.
Maybe you turn to look past your right shoulder, maybe not.
But don't compress, think of lift, think of lightness
and we're wanting to work all the muscles
of the back body here today,
not just oh squeeze and twist, squeeze and twist.
So keep it effortless. (laughing)
Try to find the ease.
And then check it out.
Keep your torso, or your body where it is
but just slowly turn to look past now your left shoulder
or look towards the front of your yoga mat
and then we're gonna nod.
So drop the chin to the chest,
feel that awesome stretch in the upper back body
and then look up, oh yeah
and then drop the chin and close your eyes,
go inward, find that yummy sensation
that happens when you close your eyes
and quit absorbing all the things around us
and we just go inside.
Awesome, then release that, bring the head up,
chin parallel to the earth.
We'll bring the right knee in, send it out long.
Bend the knees, dig into the heels,
inhale, reach up, exhale,
modified paschimottanasana.
So the knees are bent here for everyone.
You're just gonna drape your front body over the lower body
and then drop the weight of your head down with control
and just feel this massive stretch in the back body.
Relax your shoulders down,
in fact actively pull them away from the ears.
And then smell your knees.
Stay present with your breath.
If any sounds come out, mm or ah, let them.
This is precious valuable time
that could make or break your day.
Send you into a whole new chapter.
A way, a different way of seeing things,
you just never know so stay open.
You're gonna rise up nice and slow.
Then we'll bring the left heel in.
Sit up nice and tall, try to find that lift again
from the base of the spine, the pelvis
and then right hand will come now
to the outer edge of your right knee, right thigh
and then again careful not to go,
okay I know this posture, (wooshes), okay.
So we're working nice and slow mindfully, keep the lift
and from the lift see if you can move it
to look past your left shoulder
and if not maybe keep it nice and even to the side.
And then keep playing here.
Maybe it slowly makes its way up to the mid back.
To the thoracic and then maybe you'll look past
the shoulder, cervical spine but maybe not.
Breathing deep, finding the lift still.
Both my legs are nice and heavy and engaged.
They're not lazy bones but they're nice and engaged.
And then keep this in the body
and just slowly turn your nose, your gaze now
to the front of your mat past your right shoulder perhaps
and then here we go.
Keep the lift up in the heart, drop the chin.
Oh yeah, should feel it.
Pause here, close your eyes and go inward.
Yes and then keep the eyes closed,
you know what to do here, lift the chin,
and then drop the chin
and see if you can do it really really slow.
And this is your massage therapy.
And to really find a yummy stretch see if you
can bring your left elbow in towards your back body.
Lift up through the armpit chest.
Now we're dropping chin to chest
and then lifting chin to the sky.
So awesome.
Alright bring it back to center.
Unravel, release.
Dig the heels into the earth.
Maybe this time the legs straighten a little more,
but maybe not, maybe keep it nice and bent.
I'll fix my pants here.
And then inhale the reach up, find that lift upward
current of energy through the front body.
Downward, current through the back
and then we slowly drape the belly
over the tops of the thighs.
Keep reaching forward this time,
reaching forward, reaching forward,
reaching forward.
Then stay here reaching forward breathing deep.
It's like a superhero pose,
in fact go ahead and put your palms down, just superhero,
like nothing's gonna mess with you, you got this.
Tug the shoulders away from the ears actively
and then drap everything down, awesome.
Close your eyes.
Feel your breath literally move you here.
Feel the skin of the back body stretch as you breathe in.
Feel the lungs, chest, ribs, back body expand.
And then everything softens and gets heavy on the exhale.
Great, then tuck the chin into the chest.
Slowly roll it up.
Nice and easy, again wiggle the toes,
rotate the ankles, maybe shake them a little side to side.
And then we're gonna cross the ankles,
bring them in, cross them.
We're gonna just bring the little blankie
or towel if you had it to the side
and we're gonna come all the way through to all fours.
Stack the shoulders over the wrists,
hips right over the knees.
Inhale the drop the belly, open the chest.
And exhale the round through.
Inhale the open the chest, cow.
And exhale, cat, round through.
Now close your eyes and to the sound of your breath
do a couple more.
And then on your next inhale
come back to that nice even neutral spine.
You're gonna plant the left palm nice and firm
and reach the right fingertips forward.
Then curl the left toes under, send it back.
And we're just doing a little spinal balance here.
You can stay here or you can lift that left leg up
but it's optional.
Breathe here, tug the right shoulder back,
try to create an evenness through both the right
and the left side of the body.
Inhale and exhale.
And one more time.
Inhale, this time look forward, find length
and exhale the release, everything down.
Left fingertips reach forward.
Really claw through the right fingertips
so no pressure in that wrist.
You claw through the fingers
to take that pressure up off the wrist.
In fact lift your wrist on the right
and then put it down from there, yes beautiful.
I'm sure you got that right.
You're like "no."
let's just keep going. Here we go,
left fingertips forward, curl the toes under,
right heel reaches back.
So there's a couple yoga for wrist videos
that you can check out for that little ditty.
Then stay here lifting front body
up to meet the back body.
Spinal balance or to lift the right heel,
engage the right glute.
Breathe deep.
Press into the top of that back foot.
Again claw through the right fingertips,
one more breath, inhale, look forward.
Find length and exhale, release everything.
Bring the knees together, really together,
arches of the feet together.
Then paint your yoga mat.
Look forward, inhale, find length.
So open through the chest
and then exhale, Balasana.
Child's pose.
Allow the weight of the shoulders
to really round over here.
And instead of just being a posture
where you just kind of hang out and wait and take a break
really see if you can embody this posture
as a healing one for the spine.
So tuck your chin.
Give a little weight in your hips, your bum.
Be articulate through the fingertips
and the way you handle the skin of the face, the jaw.
Then return to the breath.
Then slowly reach the fingertips all the way back up.
And we'll come all the way to all fours.
We'll curl the toes under
and when you're ready take a deep breath in,
smile a little bit, life is good
and then exhale, lift the hips up high
for our first Downward Dog together, pedal it out here.
Lot's of awareness in the hands, they're nice and wide.
Upper arm bones rotating out.
Elbow creases towards the front of your mat.
Bend the knees generously,
breathe differently here.
The head is below your heart space here,
absolutely that's gonna effect your breath
so find the nuance of that.
Maybe turn the two big toes in slightly.
And then inhale to look forward
and exhale, ragdoll, step to the top,
just one foot and then the other.
Feet are hip with the part at least.
Nice and wide, and then bend your knees.
Bring the belly to the tops of the thighs and hang loose.
Then bring your hands to the tops of the feet
on your next inhale, halfway lift.
Find length.
And then exhale, fold.
Tuck the chin into the chest
and slowly roll it all the way up to Mountain.
Pressing into the feet
and as you stack your head over your heart
and your heart over your pelvis
really engage from the lower body all the way up
so feel your feet really pressing into the ground,
creating a nice strong base for the spine as you rise up.
Tadasana.
Bring the hands together at your heart.
Take a deep breath in.
And then exhale to relax the shoulders down.
Twice more like that, big inhale.
And exhale to release something,
anything that's been kinda weighing you down
and one more time, big inhale.
Release.
Awesome, inhale the reach for the sky.
Big flying V here, as we exhale bend the elbows back,
little back bend here,
you're gonna activate the upper back body,
engage the inner thighs and lift your chest up.
So not going crazy here but being really mindful.
Inhale, rise up, head over heart.
Exhale, big W with the elbows, lift your chest.
Great and then inhale, rise up.
And then one more time, big W, activate the upper back body,
squeeze it in, engage with the fingers, whoa.
And then inhale, reach up,
and then exhale to bring it all the way down.
Inhale the halfway then find that articulation
so don't rush, lengthen and then exhale, fold.
Plant the palms, step the right foot back.
Step the left foot back.
Little back strengthener. (laughing)
You can squeeze the right knee in towards the belly button.
Squeeze and lift and then bring it back out
and then bring the left knee into your navel
and squeeze and lift and then bring it back out.
And that's it, yay, lower the knees
and come all the way onto the belly.
Awesome.
Here we go, Cobra Pose.
Hands in line with the ribs.
Actively tug the hands back towards the heels,
squeeze the inner thighs,
sorry squeeze the elbows,
engage the thighs and then here we go,
rolling up, tucking the chin into the chest,
inhale, lift and exhale, lower.
Again inhale, lift.
When you rise up pull the hands back
so your heart draws forward
and then exhale the release and one more time find the ease.
And release, awesome.
Curl the toes under, lift up, come to all fours
and then all the way up to Downward Dog.
Inhale.
And exhale.
Great, inhale, lift the right leg up high.
Exhale, just nice and easy,
you're gonna step it all the way up.
We're gonna lower the back knee down
and inhale, open the chest forward.
Now you can stay nice and low here, nice and low.
Or we're gonna bring the palms together and rise up.
So if you're really new to the practice
just stay nice and low.
Otherwise we'll squeeze the inner thighs together,
bring the palms up.
And then if you're feeling good here
you can curl the back toes under,
keep them curled to get that extra arch stretch
or root down, I like to do this,
root down through the back foot
so I really that power lifting up.
Again that lift that we were playing with
in the beginning of this practice.
And once you feel like you have support
and you have the lift you're gonna inhale.
Reach the fingertips up high
and then exhale, big W here, lift your chest.
Inhale, reach up, strong legs.
Exhale, slowly bring the elbows in.
One more time, inhale, reach up.
And exhale, bring it in, beautiful.
Now inhale, reach up, palms come together
and we're gonna take it into a twist
so bring the left elbow all the way up and over.
Feel that big stretch through the left side body.
Then we'll come into a twist
and depending on your energy level you might stay here
or you might curl the toes under
and lift the back knee.
Now maintain that lift so we're not dumping our weight
into the body, into the foundation
but we're grounding, we're rooting up from that
which is touching the earth and really finding this lift
and it does require strength building
but that's why we're here.
Inhale, exhale, bring it all the way back.
Inhale the look forward, drive your heart center forward.
Exhale the plant the palms, step it back.
Inhale in, exhale, belly all the way down.
You can also do Chaturanga to Up Dog here,
but I'm practicing with Cobra today
so bring the hands firmly planted,
tug 'em back and inhale, rise up.
Exhale to release.
Curl the toes under.
Lift to all fours and then back up to your Downward Dog.
Inhale, lift the left leg up high nice and easy.
Press into both palms evenly.
Exhale, step it up.
Lower the back knee.
Now if you're, again if you're new to the practice
you can stay nice and low here going, "Oh my gosh,
"I'm so glad I made it this far through the video."
If you've been with me for a while,
with the community practicing
or you're feeling pretty good here
you'll just go to the next bus stop but they're all good.
So there's all different levels and they're all good.
Any time spent on your mat is so good.
âŤ So good, so good, so good, so good
If you can name that song down below you're my hero.
I'll sing it again so you know
âŤ So good, so good, so good, so good
Bring the palms together, lift the chest.
So find that root in the back foot if you haven't already
while I was singing.
Moving with your breath, so really be true to your breath,
inhale, reach up nice and slow
and then on your exhale squeeze everything in,
lift up from the pelvic floor a big W.
Inhale, reach for the sky.
Exhale.
Front knee over front ankle,
squeeze the left inner thigh in towards the mid line.
Inhale, reach up.
Exhale bring it in.
Let's just do one more, inhale and exhale, bring it in.
Activate the upper back body.
Sweet, inhale, reach for the sky, palms come together, Jai.
And then think up and over, so big stretch in the right
psoas, right hip, right side body should feel good
as you come into your twist.
So in time we'll want to work to get the sternum
and the thumbs kind of close to one another,
just a little goal post.
So that you're active in twist
and then again depending on your energy level
you might lift that back leg, inhale.
And exhale, and inhale.
And exhale to release, awesome work.
Come back to your nice little lunge.
Bring the right knee to the ground.
Inhale, open the chest
and then exhale, plant the palms.
And step it back.
So you can take an optional belly to Cobra here
or an optional Chaturanga to Up Dog.
We'll meet in Downward Dog.
You can just go straight there if you like.
Inhale in.
Then exhale release.
Then slow descend of the knees down.
Then you're gonna come all the way to the belly
and you're gonna walk your fingertips
all the way up in front.
And then really zip up the legs here,
so take your time to really feel the pubic bone
pressing into the earth, zip up the legs.
Inhaling and then exhale, lift everything,
bend the elbows, cactus arms.
Gaze straight down, squeeze and lift, squeeze and lift.
Breathing deep, lifting the elbows.
Then take one more breath here.
And then you're gonna slide your palms
as if they were sliding on a counter top,
like a marble counter top.
You're gonna slowly, really slow,
slide the hands all the way back into airplane arms.
And when you get there activate the upper back body
and slowly lift your heart a little more.
Drive it forward, heart forward, gaze a little bit forward
but nice and long in the back of the neck.
Toes and fingertips reaching back.
Crown reaching forward, we're here for one more breath.
Lift everything a little more.
And then release, come onto one ear
and just rock the hips a little side to side,
soften the glutes.
Take a deep breath in and then exhale,
turn onto the other ear starting to cool it off.
And then from here you're gonna lift the head,
the neck, the shoulders and you're just
gonna come to flip onto your back right here.
And when you come onto your back
pull the heels in,
knees up towards the sky and prep yourself for Bridge Pose.
Pressing into all four corners of the feet.
Begin to lift the hips up high nice and slow.
Walk the shoulder blades underneath your heart space,
squeezing your thighs together
and press the palms into the earth.
And lift the chest to the chin and the chin to the sky.
Send your shin bones forward and really hug the thighbones,
femur into socket here.
Deep breath in.
And long breath out to release.
Awesome work, hug both knees into the chest.
Rock gently side to side.
Then keep your right knee in, send your left leg out.
Inhale, exhale, Supine Twist.
Bend the right elbow, breath deep.
Try to keep your right shoulder on the earth.
Then bring it back to center
and take it on the other side.
Bring the left knee in, send the right leg out long.
Supine Twist.
Try to keep your left shoulder on the earth.
Then bring it back to center,
hug both knees into the chest, Happy Baby Pose.
So grab the outer edges of the feet
and then kick the feet into the hands
and pull the hands down gently
so shoulders really activates down.
Then lengthen your tailbone forward.
Ananda Balasana.
So blissful baby here.
So find movement that feels like that.
There's freedom within the form here.
You can give a little massage on the back body.
Balance out the left and the right side,
maybe extend the legs long.
Remember that it's all connected.
And for three more breath cycles,
find what feels good.
And then when you're ready
let everything spill out nice and long,
create a big X shape with your body.
So the arms can either go up and out
or gently at your sides.
But create a shape that feels relaxed
and a place where you can really surrender and be heavy.
This part is for the soul, the mind and the body.
Allowing the nutrients of your practice to really settle in.
Without you having to do anything.
Thank you so much for sharing your time
and your energy with me
and all the other beautiful people
practicing around the world.
It's an honor.
We'll bring the palms together,
bring them up to the third eye.
Take a big inhale.
And exhale to quietly whisper namaste.
(light music)