- Hello everyone and
welcome back to Center.

It is Day 17 and
it's time to move.

Let's get started.

(light music)

Okay, come on down to the
ground and I'm gonna recommend

you sit up on something today.

So I have a little blanket,
just a little lift, but you

can go crazy (chuckles) and
sit up on a couple blankets,

pillow, a block, something
that's a bit firm so you can

find length through the spine.

And if you don't have anything,
it's all good too, but just

wanna try to take care of

everyone practicing 
all around the world

(chuckles) best I can.

Thanks for showin' up today.

Go ahead and relax your
shoulders, lift your heart,

lengthen through 
the crown of your head

and just come into a 
little moment of dropping in.

Finding stillness
before we move today.

You can close your eyes or

soften your gaze down 
gently past your nose.

Just kind of bring
your attention inward here.

Take a moment to
notice how you feel.

These practices are really
designed to remind us that

everything is connected.

So while we'll be targeting,
kind of opening the shoulders,

the chest, the neck, 
the upper back body today,

continue to see the 
body as one moving part.

And you can play with
that as we continue to grow

the practice on this journey.

Drop the chin to the chest
and just allow the head to hang

here as you draw the 
shoulder blades back a bit,

maybe the elbows back a bit.

Start to
breathe a little deeper.

Inhaling perhaps for a longer,

fuller breath.

And exhaling.

Perhaps extending
the breath out as well.

Then keep the head 
where it is, heavy,

feeling this stretch 
in the back of the neck,

and draw the 
shoulders back a little more.

Elbows back a bit more.

And then just this last move
here is to see if you can

lift your chest,

lift, lift, lift,
lift up through the sternum,

kind of exaggerating that,
and you'll start to feel hopefully

some sensation in the mid-back.

Yes. And you can draw the navel

and the low abs in, feel that.

And we're working here,
and we're breathing here.

And we're rocking out our
whole self here with this

micro movement, 
this connection.

Lovely. Then you can relax 
the shoulders, let that go,

and lift the head,
perhaps open the eyes.

Nice. Okay, send the fingertips
out in front, palms face down.

You're gonna reach forward

as if you're reaching 
for something,

maybe the beloved,
like to hug.

And then pull it back, 
plug the shoulders in.

And then reach.

Shoulder blades spread apart.

And then plug 'em back in.

Shoulder blades draw together
and down the back body.

One more time, reach.

And then plugging it back in.

Now stay plugged in here
and lift the chest just like we

did before, and draw the low
abs up and in just like we did.

Right arm's gonna come
underneath the left arm.

They're gonna kiss or
connect at the elbows.

We come into this cool shape.

And then options for these
Eagle Arms or Garudasana arms,

you can wrap the palms all the
way around to press together,

and if you are able to do that,
give it some connection

here, so you're really
pressing the arms together,

they're not just hanging,
so the hands are active.

Or you can bring the
hands or the fingertips to the

shoulders if that's
a little bit better.

Third option is to stay
here in this cool shape.

So the elbows
are coming together.

Wherever you are, we're
gonna take a deep breath in and

lengthen through the side body.

And then on the exhale,
we're gonna start to move.

The left elbow is gonna go
in a circle, so we're doing a

clockwise circle

around slowly.

Breathing.

And this can start 
off kind of small,

but as you start to get into it,
you can start to grow this.

We're gonna do this several
times today, so no need to

make it super
big here to start.

Great, then we're gonna release.

You can relax 
the arms for a second

by drawing 
the fingertips down.

Maybe taking the head
for a little nod, yes and no.

Then we're gonna send the
fingertips out once again.

And this time left arm 
underneath the right.

Find your wrap, 
your version, your shape.

Draw the navel up and in.

Lift the chest, and here we go.

Now counterclockwise
circles with the right elbow.

And as this is a journey
focused on center,

just see if you can somehow,

and we're gonna 
work on this together,

connect this movement,

opening of 
the shoulders, the traps,

the shoulder blades, 
so mobile here, moving,

the scapula moving.

See if you can somehow connect
this gesture to your core.

What? And again, don't worry,
we'll work on it together.

Alright, release.

Take the fingertips down, 
take a deep breath in.

And a long breath out
to relax your shoulders.

Then inhale, just reach the
fingertips all the way up,

big breath, big stretch.

And exhale to come all the
way forward onto all fours.

Since we have a little padding
here, if you do, you can use

the padding for a
little cushion for the knees.

And some may have been like,
"I've been doing that, Adriene."

But if you haven't,
maybe you try it today.

Spread the fingertips 
really wide, like starfish,

really stretch the fingers.

Press into the tops of the feet.

Take a couple Cat-Cows, 
so just drop the belly,

open the chest, find that
opening through the front body.

And then, of course, when
you're ready, take it in the

opposite direction, finding
the opening in the back body.

Take it for a couple rounds
with the sound of your breath.

Nice.

Then curl the toes under, 
walk the hands back,

and then all the way up 
to the tops of the thighs,

so we get a nice 
stretch in the feet.

Lift the chest again,
relax the shoulders down.

Big breath in.

Big breath out.

Check it out, from center so
this part of the body is gonna

engage and lift you all
the way up to your knees.

This is why we have a
little padding here today.

If you need to double up on the
padding now that we're lifting

up on the knees, you can
always make those adjustments.

It's the really beautiful thing
about owning your practice.

Then we're gonna uncurl the
toes, press into the tops of

the feet, and then we'll send
the fingertips out in front.

Right arm is gonna go
underneath the left,

so left arm on top.

We'll find our wrap here today,
your version, your modification.

You can play around, of course.

Now, draw the navel in and up,

lengthen the 
tailbone down just a bit,

and we're gonna take it 
for a couple circles here.

Now, you can allow 
the pelvis to move here

to make the circles 
a little bit bigger.

You can play.

Or you can keep the
pelvis nice and stable.

Just play.

And then release.

Fingertips come down 
and then forward,

and we're gonna take 
it to the other side.

This time left arm under,
right arm on top.

Find that lift in the 
heart space, and then left,

excuse me, right elbow is
gonna go counterclockwise.

And again, you can
keep the pelvis stable.

If the shoulders are really
tight, that might be a good

option, just to keep in that
stability while you move here.

Or you can start to find a
little freedom within the form.

Again, I'm always 
trying to share options

for as many people as possible.

So, particularly in the second
half of the journey as we move

towards that, you'll want
to discern for yourself what

feels good, what feels safe
in your body, but hopefully you

feel like we have a nice
foundation building here, okay?

Release that,
fingertips go down.

We're gonna come all the
way forward onto all fours.

We're gonna send 
the right heel back,

keep the right toes 
on the ground,

left heel back, Plank Pose.

Just lighting
up the center here.

You can always lower to
the knees here if you like.

Press away from the yoga mat
to engage your core for three,

for two, and one.

Lower all the way to the belly.

Your blanket can stay there.
No problem.

Press into the
tops of the feet.

Inhale, lift the
chest for a little Cobra.

And then exhale to release.

Press back up to all fours.

You can walk the
knees back onto the blanket.

Alright, we're gonna take the
right knee up into a low lunge.

Adjust your blanket, 
maybe by bringing it

a little bit back if you need.

We're coming into a bit of a

low Crescent Lunge 
with the Eagle Arms.

So, squeeze the legs together.

Find your center and 
then come up with the

fingertips reaching forward.

Plug the shoulders back.
Breathe in.

Breathe out.
Take the left arm on top.

We'll find the wrap here.

And we're gonna take
it for three circles.

So, count 'em
out as you breathe.

Try to keep the low
body stable in your lunge.

If this is too tricky, you can
just come back to the knees,

both knees on the
ground and work here.

So, how can we connect
this gesture to the core?

Well, in this shape, 
it might be a little bit easier,

strangely enough, to
find that connection.

After three, we'll release,

bring the palms 
down to the earth,

and we're
just gonna switch.

Take it to the other side.

Nice and easy
coming back to all fours.

If you want to sneak in a
Downward Dog there, you can.

Alright, so, squeeze 
the inner thighs together

once you're set up.

Find the alignment of
front knee, front ankle.

And then again, from your abs,
essentially, connect and

that's where we're
gonna plug the shoulders back.

And kind of do this
zombie move as we lift up.

Alright, this time
right arm on top.

We find the wrap.
We lift the chest.

We squeeze the
thighs to the midline.

Your right glute should
feel really engaged here.

And then we're gonna 
take three slow circles

with the 
right elbow counterclockwise.

Lovely, then we'll release.

We'll plant the palms 
and then listen carefully,

you're gonna lift 
the back knee up and

you're gonna step 
that back foot up to

meet the front so
you're in Forward Fold

at the head of your mat.

Yippee, then relax here.

Bend your knees 
as much as you like

and allow the head to release.

You can clasp opposite elbow.

Find some soft, easy
movement that feels good here.

Listen to the sound of your
breath and ground through

all four corners of the feet.

Then bend your knees and slowly
begin to roll up to standing

nice and slow.

Come through Mountain Pose
and then right away we're gonna

inhale, reach the fingertips
all the way up to the sky.

And then exhale, check it out,
you're gonna start with your

chin coming down, hands come
behind the head, you can peek

at me if you need to, and then
we're gonna cascade down

from here all the
way down to Forward Fold.

Then roll up again.

Rag doll, bend your knees.

Support the low back by
drawing your low abs in.

And then we'll repeat, reaching
the arms all the way up.

Catch a wave here, breathe in.

And then exhale, 
start with the chin,

bend the elbows 
and we roll it down.

So a little body roll.

Rolling all the way up.

Connecting with the abs.

Reaching fingertips
all the way up to the sky.

Big breath, big stretch.

And then exhale, chin to chest,
bending at the elbows and

rolling it back down.

This time when you land,
let's go ahead and stay there.

Hi Benji.

Alright, right foot 
stays where it is.

We're gonna step the 
left foot back, left foot back.

Option to lower that 
left knee to the blanket,

just like we've done,

or this time we're
gonna come into high lunge.

So plug the shoulders back,
connect to your abs,

so important to 
protect the back here,

as we slowly 
rise up fingertips forward.

We're here.
We're pluggin' it back.

We're engaging low abs.

We got this lifting the chest.

If you get here and it's just
a little too wobbly today for

whatever reason, maybe you
didn't sleep much last night,

can come right back down
and work in that low lunge.

Alright, pull the right hip
crease back a bit here,

keep that front knee bent.

Left arm over the right.

We're gonna take
the elbows up this time.

Listen carefully, we're letting
go of the circle for now.

So inhale, lift the elbows up
and feel that deep stretch

in the front of
your left hip crease.

Continue to pull the
right hip crease back.

Inhale in, listen carefully,

draw the navel 
back to the spine.

Slowly, keep the legs 
where they are as you

round in the spine, 
drawing the elbows down and in.

Chin to chest.

Twice more.
Inhale, lift and lengthen.

Opening up through
the front body just like

we do in our spinal flexion.

This is like Cow Pose.

And then exhale,
contract navel to spine.

Slow and steady
wins the race here.

Really engaging the 
muscles of the core

as you round through the spine.

One more.
Inhale, squeeze and lift.

Again, feel free to lower 
that back knee any time.

And exhale, how can we 
really connect this gesture

to the core muscles?

How can it kind of
radiate from there?

Lovely, then
unravel the elbows.

Inhale, reach for the sky.

And then exhale, 
melt it all the way back down

to a nice low lunge.

Step the right foot back,

inhale to look 
forward just a bit.

Exhale, squeeze the elbows,
slowly lower belly to Cobra or

Chaturanga to
Upward Facing Dog.

Press into the tops 
of the feet, breathe in.

As you breathe out, make your
way to Downward Facing Dog.

Claw through the fingertips.

Breathe in.

Breathe out.

Again, inhale in deeply.

And exhale completely.

And one more time, 
big breath in.

And long breath out.

Nice. Step the left foot up now.

Back knee is lowered 
or lifted, your choice.

From here, especially if
you're in the high lunge,

knee lifted, hug the low ribs in.

Lift up from the pelvic floor.

Engage, recruit all the abs
here as we send the fingertips

forward, plug the shoulders
back and lift the heart.

If the back foot, back hip
is feeling a little tight,

you can bend your right knee.

It's a little bit,
requires more effort.

But you can bend your 
right knee to kind of feel where

your pelvis wants to go, 
where it feels stable

and then you can start 
to straighten it from there.

Alright, this time
right elbow on top.

We got this.
Inhale, lift elbows to the sky.

Keep that deep
bend in your front knee.

As you exhale,
round everything in.

Hold on to your core.

Two more.
Inhale, slow.

So if you try to do this really
fast, you're kind of gonna

miss the point of today. (laughs)

So can we

really allow this gesture

to come from the core?

And you almost 
have to rely on that

if the back knee is lifted.

Great, after three, inhale,

reach the arms all 
the way up to the sky.

And then exhale,
bring it all the way down.

Step the left foot back,

belly to Cobra or 
Chaturanga to Upward Facing Dog.

Find a little vinyasa
that feels good for you today.

And we'll meet back
in Downward Facing Dog.

Three final breaths here before
we come back to the earth.

Inhale in deeply.

Perhaps a cleansing breath.

Inhale in.

Exhale.

And on this next one, just try
to find a little movement in

the spine, whatever that
means to you as you breathe in.

And as you breathe out.

Lovely, slowly
lower to the knees.

Child's Pose.

Rest your head,
rest your heart.

Inhale lots of love in.

And exhale, lots of love out.

If you'd like to stay here

to close out practice today,

please do.

If you'd like to transition to
your back, doing the core roll

down with me, we're
gonna slowly inhale, rise up.

Make our way to a seat,
sending the legs to one side.

Squeeze the legs together,
point the toes.

Send the fingertips forward,
inhale in.

Exhale, navel draws back and

we slowly find that 
C-curve as we roll down.

One vertebra at a time.

Feet and legs stay heavy here.

And then eventually,

we relax the 
weight of the chest

and the shoulders on the earth.

Now you can take your blanket,

bring it to the 
head as a pillow,

whether you're on
your back or in Child's Pose.

And then everyone, let's take
three final breaths in here

for today's practice.

Inhale, close your eyes, 
maybe breathe in.

And breathe out.

Breathe in.

And breathe out.

And one last
centering breath here.

Inhale, lots of love in.

And exhale, lots of love out.

Option to bring
the palms together

right up to the forehead.

And you can whisper a little
thank you to yourself here.

I am grateful.

Look forward to seeing
you tomorrow for Day 18.

Don't miss it.

'Til then, take good care.

(light music)