- Hey everyone, and 
welcome to Yoga with Adriene.

I'm Adriene, and 
this is my pal Benji

and today we have a special
"Yoga for Swimmers" practice.

So, this is a great sequence for

avid swimmers or 
amateur swimmers, like me.

Benji is a avid swimmer, 
he's professional so

that's why I had 
him come here today.

Alright, hop 
into somethin' comfy

and let's get started.

(light guitar music)

Alright, pals, let's 
begin in Tabletop Position.

Take your time 
getting down on all fours

and spread your 
hands super wide.

Lots of awareness in 
the hands here to start.

We're gonna start with 
some gentle Spinal Flexions.

So drop the belly 
when you're ready and

use a big breath in to

slowly open, not just the 
chest but also the throat.

Think about opening 
the neck, the throat here.

And then, right here, 
we're gonna

wrap the shoulder 
blades around and

plug them behind the heart
center as we open the chest.

So, again, we're not 
allowing the upper back body

to round, 
but rather, we're really

exaggerating this 
wrapping of the shoulder blades,

the Scapula, in

as you continue to breathe here.

And then, when 
you're ready, we'll flip it.

Chin to chest, rounding through.

Just one of these today,

feeling that 
length in the lower body

as you lengthen 
the tailbone down.

Awesome.

Inhale, come to 
Tabletop Position,

so nice neutral spine again.

And then, drop the 
elbows where the hands are.

I'm gonna start to 
open up through the chest,

the shoulders even more.

So, really lift 
your tail towards the sky

and let that be what 
draws the knees back.

And then, as you're 
ready, you'll start to

sink the heart, the chest, 
towards the earth.

And if you're an avid 
swimmer, you might not

even get the 
forehead down all the way,

so no worries if not.

And if you're 
just here, playful

amateur swimmer, like me,

then you might 
get the forehead down.

The point is, 
wherever you are today just

enjoy this practice.
Let it be playful.

So, this is a sequence 
that's gonna support

the muscles of 
an avid swimmer or

a playful swimmer.

But most importantly, 
it just reminds us

to connect mind and 
body so we can stay healthy

and injury-free,
balanced, in alignment.

One more breath here,
in Heart to Earth Pose.

Press into your toes, 
claw through the fingertips.

And then you're gonna carve
a line all the way through,

come to Sphinx Pose.

Take your time, 
press into the pubic bone,

press into the tops of the feet.

And then just make 
sure that your elbows

are just right underneath 
your shoulders here.

And then we're gonna 
recreate that Cow pose

by plugging the shoulders
in and lifting the chest up.

So, couple of things 
tend to happen here.

A little clenching 
in the back of the neck,

we wanna keep 
the line of the spine

nice and open and free
so tuck the chin slightly.

And then in your own 
time, just take some soft,

easy movement. 
It can be very subtle,

opening up 
through the neck,

pressing into the elbows.

For some, you'll feel 
this in the arm muscles,

for others, you'll 
wanna start to stretch

through the pectorals by drawing

the shoulder blades together.

So just notice what's comin' up,

and then, start to 
deepen your breath, even more.

Then we're gonna 
stretch through the feet

and the ankles, tone 
the calves and the quads,

and light a 
little fire in the core.

So, we'll curl the toes under,

stretch the heels back, 
lift the kneecaps,

tone the quads, 
and when you're ready,

tuck the chin 
and lift the hips up.

And we're here for five,

lengthen through the 
back of the neck, four,

three, two, and one.

Beautiful.

Lower all the way back down.

And this time we're 
gonna release all the way,

so, heart to the 
ground and you're gonna

send your 
fingertips out left to right.

So, like a Texas "T" here.

Awesome, and go 
ahead and plant your

left palm down and 
draw your right elbow

up towards the sky, so you have

your right hand on the earth.

Then, we're gonna 
lift the right toes,

listen carefully, 
and nice and slow,

I'm gonna take 
my right toes over

towards the left 
side of my yoga mat.

And release my 
left ear to the ground.

Now, this'll be 
different for everyone,

maybe your toes touch, 
maybe your whole foot

is able to come back here.

Again, use your 
right fingertips,

right palms, on the 
earth for stability.

Now, breathe conscious, 
full breaths here.

See if you can 
still maintain awareness

in the neck, length in the neck.

Breathing deep, 
you can stay here,

or just one more 
little layer, one more

option would be to 
very mindfully reach

the right 
fingertips back to grab

the right ankle
and then you're gonna

kick your right 
ankle into your right hand.

And, always 
focusing on the sensation

over the shape, so if 
that's not for you today,

breathe deep,

and then, slowly we'll release.

Come back to center, 
take your time,

try to move from 
a place of control,

connect, and then 
take a deep breath

in in the middle.

And then we'll reset, 
both hands go out.

And when you're ready, 
slide the left hand in

and we'll bend the 
left knee, left toes

up towards the 
sky and we'll guide it

on over to the other side.

Take your time, nice and slow.

So, no clenching or 
pinching in the neck.

So keep the plumb 
line of the spine nice

and free and open 
so the energy can flow.

Releasing lots 
of love and breath,

to the chest, to the pectorals,

the shoulders.

Again, you can 
take a variation here,

reaching back and 
kicking the left foot

into the left hand.

But if you feel 
any uncomfortable pinch

or anything at all, 
information that's

telling you to back up off it,

I highly recommend 
you listen to your body.

Always, take a deep breath in

and exhale with control.

So stay connected to something,

whether it's your 
breath or your core

just have a little fun with it.

Come back to center, 
and try to think

of the body as one moving part.

Excellent for swimmers.

Slowly slide the hands 
in line with the ribcage

and just bring it back 
even half an inch more today.

And then, suck the 
elbows into the side body.

Press into your 
pubic bone, press into

the tops of the feet 
and we'll come up for

a little Bhujangasana.

Now, you don't 
have to press and muscle

your way up. 
In fact, we're wanting to

create stability 
and length in the

front body here, so

plug the shoulder blades in and

you don't have to muscle here.

Keep it really solid and stable,

tucking the chin into the chest.

Building strength 
mindfully, stability.

So that we can avoid 
injury and discomfort

when possible.

One more breath 
here, Bhujangasana

Cobra Pose, 
opening the chest really.

Plug the shoulder 
blades in and down,

down, down.

And then, slowly, 
with control, release.

Fabulous.

Curl the toes under.

Once again, lift the kneecaps,

tone the quads, come 
up into your power here.

Plank pose, big breath 
in as you press up.

Then as you breathe out, 
reach the heels back

and press away 
from your yoga mat.

Keep the plugging in 
of the shoulder blades,

here and the 
length in the neck.

And then we'll inhale, 
shift forward,

and then exhale.

So we're shifting 
forward on the toes,

deep breath in, exhale.

Lift the hips up high and back,

Downward Facing Dog.

Then take the hands 
as wide as the yoga mat,

kind of turn them out 
today for this variation.

So, you're 
really rooting into the

index finger and 
thumb and we're finding

that the elbow 
creases shine forward.

And we have this external 
rotation in the shoulders.

We open up through 
the neck, the front

of the chest here, 
breathing deep.

(deep breath)

Peddle it out a little bit here,

and hug the 
lower ribs in so that

you're not just 
dumping all your weight forward

but finding that 
connect to your core.

(deep breath)

Fabulous.

Then walk the 
hands back in alignment,

so index finger 
and middle finger are

pointing toward 
the front of your mat.

Then stay rooted in 
your index finger and thumb,

and just make your 
dog really long here.

So, walk the toes back.

Walk, walk, walk.

What's up creaky, old floor?

And then inhale, 
as if you're going

over an imaginary 
hurdle in the center

of your mat.

Lift the hip creases, 
lift the naval,

nice and toned 
through your core,

as you shift your 
weight all the way forward

into a nice long plank.

And then, continue to 
shift your weight forward

onto the toes and 
you're just gonna slowly

sink into an Upward Facing Dog.

And then, from 
here we're pressing away

from the yoga mat. 
We're pressing into

the tops of the feet, 
the hips are lifted,

and we're lifting 
up through the chest,

shoulder blades 
wrapping around, plugging in

to the center of the back body.

Take one more 
breath here, you got this.

Inhale, draw 
the naval in and up.

Just tone the 
belly a little bit.

And then, exhale, 
slowly lower the knees

and we're gonna walk 
the hands all the way

back to the knees and 
we're gonna curl the toes

under to stretch the 
feet and take a little

break off the arms.

Nice work.

Take a deep breath in, 
sit up nice and tall.

And then you're 
gonna take your left hand,

swing it around, 
and just reach it up

towards the center of your back.

Then, right hand's 
gonna reach towards the sky.

And we're 
breathing deep, and in order

to not just slay 
on the feet here,

give yourself a 
little lift, so you're not

dumping all your 
weight into your feet.

Right fingertips 
reaching up high.

And then we're gonna 
reach all the way forward.

So, forward, find 
that length and then

around and back and if 
the fingertips touch, great!

You can also 
use a strap or a tie

or a long sock here.

We're coming 
into Gomukhasana Arms,

so pull the right 
arm back, and just

a slight back bend here.

And if this is too 
much for your feet,

you can lift the hips,
press into the

tops of the feet 
and just work here.

Breathing deep, inhale in.

Exhale slowly, 
release both arms.

Be super mindful 
and we're gonna switch

to the other side.

So, right hand's 
gonna come around

so we're kinda 
pullin' double duty here.

Great for the 
feet and the wrists,

and there we're coming into
Cow Arms here, Gomukhasana.

So do one arm at a time,

when you're ready, left 
fingertips reach forward,

find that length, length, whoa!

(laughs)

And then, up and back.

Let the shoulder blade plug in

and then just reach back.

And we don't need 
to really muscle our

way into grabbing the bind.

I used to do that and now I know

how valuable it is to 
just sit with the sensation.

So pull, that 
left elbow up and back.

Maybe slight backbend.

You can always 
rise up, give the toes,

the feet, a break.

And then, when 
you're ready, release.

(sings angelic note)

Alright, come 
forward onto all fours.

If you are on the 
toes, uncurl them.

Press the toes into the earth,
little counter pose here.

And then, when you're ready,

we're gonna come 
to a nice tall plank

one more time.

So walk the hands out, 
send the toes out long.

And then see if you 
can create one piece

from the crown, 
to the tail, to the heels.

So the hips aren't up 
high or sinking down low

we're creating 
one nice long line

through the crown of the 
head, the tail, the heels.

Then press up, wrap 
the shoulder blades around,

inhale, guide your 
heart center forward.

Come onto the toes, 
and then slowly lower down

Chaturanga, and then 
Upward Facing Dog or Cobra,

Yogi's choice.

Open your heart, 
feel that nice stretch

through the upper 
back body, press away from

your yoga mat. Beautiful.

And exhale, 
release everything down,

come to your belly.

Awesome work.

So, we're gonna 
bring the feet together,

zip the legs together 
here for Shalabhasana,

Locust play, 
press into the pubic bone,

and we're going to, 
no pun intended,

swim the fingertips around,
interlace behind the tail.

Press into the tops of 
the feet here for starters,

and draw the 
knuckles towards the heels

loop the shoulders, 
wrap the shoulder blades

around, really plug 
them in towards each other

and down the back body.

As you inhale, 
lift your heart up.

And remember from 
Sphinx pose, tuck the chin,

open the chest.

Then you can stay here, palms

are reaching together, 
upper back body's rinsing out,

open heart, 
pectorals nice and open,

collarbone's nice and open.

You can stay here 
or you can start to

lift the legs, lots of 
energy through the toes,

tuck the chin 
slightly and breathe.

Let your breath woo 
you here, literally.

Feel the wave of the breath.

Take one more inhale, 
maybe lift the toes

a little higher, 
open the chest a little more.

And then exhale, 
release everything.

Awesome.

Hands come to the 
earth, we press all

the way up to Tabletop.

Take a second here 
to just bump the hips

left to right

and find nice audible breath.

Great work.

(relaxed breathing)

Then we're gonna walk the knees

closer to the wrists, 
cross the ankles

and you're 
gonna slide on through

to a nice cross-legged seat.

Head over heart, 
heart over pelvis.

Then when you're ready, inhale.

Sweep the right 
arm all the way up

and overhead and 
exhale right hand to left knee.

Swim the left 
fingertips behind, find

a big lift up through the chest.

And then, on an exhale, 
journey into the twist.

And really go for this.

Inhale, find lift, and

use the exhale to 
maybe draw the naval in

and twist a little more.

See if you can 
keep the shoulder blades

wrapping around the back 
body and the chest lifting.

(steady breathing)

And, slowly, we'll 
release back to center.

Other side, left 
fingertips reach up.

Find length, shoulder 
blade wraps and drops in

and then slowly, 
left hand to right knee.

Swim the right 
fingertips behind.

Big inhale, lift and lengthen

and exhale to gently twist.

Inhale to lift your heart.

And exhale to 
maybe turn your gaze,

towards your right shoulder

or beyond your right shoulder.

A little grace 
note here is you can

rotate the fingertips 
towards the back edge

of your mat so that 
you're elbow and shoulder,

can really plug in 
and you can lift up from

the armpit chest.

Inhale in deeply,

and one fierce 
exhale here, one more.

Fabuloso!

Come back to center.

Start to lift the corners
of the mouth, just slightly,

and appreciate 
your beautiful body.

And give thanks for 
this time that you've taken

to counteract 
your other practices.

Whether it's in the water,

or doing 
something else off the mat,

I think this is 
just a great reminder,

these practices, 
like "Yoga for Swimmers,"

just a great reminder 
for us to cultivate balance.

So, if we strengthen 
a set of muscles

or a way of being, then we also

need to make sure 
we're balancing out.

So that it's sustainable,

and so that we can feel good.

Carry those groceries 
when we're ninety, yes?

Draw the palms together,

we'll give 'em a 
little rub today.

And again, just 
take a moment here.

You might even 
close the eyes to just

blanket yourself in gratitude,

appreciate this time

you've taken for yourself

and for your body.

Alright, you rock and roll.

Have an amazing day!

Bring the thumbs 
up to the third eye,

sit up nice and tall, 
inhale in and

exhale we bow.

Namaste.

(light guitar music)