Yoga For Stability & Yoga Nidra

41:03

Yoga For Stability & Yoga Nidra

by Caroline Wirthle

Type

guided

Activity

Meditation

Suitable for

Everyone

This beginner yoga practice uses breath and movement to bring body and mind into harmony. You will explore foundational postures like Tree Pose, focusing on finding stability and activating an upward lift from the pelvic floor to support your alignment and balance. Each class starts with a quick yoga tip and trick to enhance your practice and keep you safe. You can use blocks during the practice and a pillow or blanket for the final relaxation. Every session concludes with an extended Savasana using Yoga Nidra techniques for deep physical and mental relaxation. This well-deserved stillness allows the benefits of your movement to settle while helping you reconnect with your inner self.

Yoga Nidra Centering Practice Full Body Awareness Yoga Stability Breathwork Relaxation Meditation Beginner Alignment Pelvic Floor Pelvic Floor Exercise Visualization Technique Mindful Breathing

Meet your Teacher

Caroline Wirthle

Bischofsmais, Germany

Meet your Teacher

Caroline Wirthle

Bischofsmais, Germany

Transcript

Hello and welcome to day number 21 of 30 days of yoga and yoga nidra. Today we'll focus on tree pose. And tree pose is not just a balance pose, It is of course one working on your intrinsic muscles, Your ankles, Your foot muscles, Your calf muscles, But it is also a hip workout working on the pelvic floor, Pelvic floor strength. Smartness and stability, But also hip and lower back stability. So this whole area is gaining a lot of health and resilience off the tree poses. So let's go! So we're starting standing at the front of our mat. Just easing into that standing pose, Feet hip width apart, Sinking into your feet. Slightly loosening up your knees and sit into your pelvis. This is our main focus today. Then have a deep breath in, Inhale. And exhale. So with your next inhale, Just lift your right heel off the floor. Right heel comes off the floor. Inhale, Arms up. Right heel up and exhale. That's it. Then left side, Left heel comes up. All right, This is going to get a little harder. Left heel down. Now try to get your toes off the ground and lower down. Nice. And we'll do that. Without shifting our hips. Left, Right or up or down. So try to keep your pelvis as if this was a bucket. Full of water. In the same stable position. Without spilling the water. All right, Let's pick the knee up a little higher. Maybe you can pick the knee up. You bite. Inhale lift the arms overhead. Exhale, Foot comes down. Oops. Stay stable. Left side. Maybe hip height? Alright, Maybe a little higher than the hips. If that is available to you. Exhale everything down. Inhale, Lift. Exhale, Let's do that just two more times. Big finale, Get the knee up as high as you can. And exhale, Lower. Last one, Left side. And there we go. Bend the knees, Folding forward into forward fold. Then walk it out on the spot. Hamstrings might be tight. And we will work on those hamstrings today. Then inhale, Lift halfway up, Table top, Lengthen the spine. That feels great. And then exhale hands down on the floor and step it back into plank pose just warming our core up a little pulling the navel in Tightening our core a little, Narrowing the hip point. So there the navel lifts. Automatically. And from that stable position, Push into your toes. Push the crown of the head forward and then slide the heels back. Nice. Push the crown of the head forward. Inhale. Exhale, Heels back. Hips stay in one line, Parallel. To the floor. Exhale. Let's do that two more times. I think our core is warming up and we need core muscles. For the tree poses. Last one, Inhale, Push forward. Exhale, Push back. How about knees down? Is that a good idea? And then on your next exhale, Chaturanga. Slowly lower the chest onto the floor. Inhale. Just a little cobra. Opening the front. Strengthening the back and then inhale push up, Exhale downward facing dog. How is down dog today? So we walk this out again. Little bit of hamstrings, Little bit of calves, How are the ankles doing? And look into the shoulder girdle. Push yourself back and up, Lengthen the spine, Pressing all hands, All two hands into the mat. Nice. So inhale, Come onto your toes. And exhale, Slide the heels back down. Nice. Inhale, Bend knees, Look forward. And then hop, Jump or walk. To the front of your mat. Big exhale into forward fold. Let the head go. Releasing the neck and inhale. Of way up. Exhale, Release. That feels so nice. Then bend the knees, Inhale. Exhale, Roll up. Into standing. You just stay where you are. I'm going to just turn so you can see what I'm doing as we go into the three poses. All right. Let's start really simply by lifting the leg and you can bring your foot down. Onto your shin. So let's move it up from here. Now your hips are pointing forward. Now open that knee to the side without moving your hips. Imagine Two. Big lights shining. To the front. And you want to keep them there. So now open that knee to the side. And check on your hips. Alright, So there will be a moment where you have to tighten the butt muscles. And from there, See if you can go. Just a little further by tightening your butt muscle just that much further. Without falling. So your hips stay. And that other hip does the same. Tries to rotate open. Just a little. So here's three posts. And just to make this a little harder, Big inhale, Open the arms in a V-shape. And try to enjoy. Bad tree pose. So we're working on the strength. As you can probably feel of the back of your hips. In the deep. Butt muscles. Very important for hip stability and lower back strength. So take another big inhale here. And then we release, Stepping back the right foot into lunge pose. As we release the hips. So take it really easy, You can lower the knee down if you want to and just stay here in low lunge. Knee on the floor or knee up. It's not getting much harder, Don't worry. So deep breath in, Deep breath out. And has the hips. Are loosening, We can step back into plank pose. Big inhale, Knees down. Exhale, Chaturanga. Inhale, Little cobra. Exhale, Release. Inhale, Roll over the knees, Pressing back into downward facing dog. Nice. Inhale, Lift onto toe mounts. And exhale, Release. And inhale, Bend knees, Look forward. And we join. The front of our mat. Nice. Inhale, Lift halfway. And exhale, Release. Our body is warming up, Our muscles are warming up. Inhale, Bent knees. Exhale. Roll up, Stay where you are. Other side, Lift the left knee. Mia. Just join your shins. With your left foot. And from here, Open that leg like a book. So remember your hips. Maybe you need to come back once you realize your hips are shifting. And just really slowly with a lot of focus in your hips. Open that left knee. It might feel totally different. The pen's on. Your hip mobility. Then once you feel that tightness in the back of your butt, Go just a little further. And hold it. Then move your attention to that other side. And see if you can open that side. To the left. Well, Open it. All right. Keep your balance, Keep those hip openings. And then lift the arms overhead. Lift your chest. Open your lungs, Let the air in while we are strengthening. Pelvis, Pelvic floor. And the lower back. One more deep inhale. And as you exhale, Step back into lunge, Your choice. If you want to lower the knee. Wherever you want to stay up. On your toes. That's up to you. So this should feel gentle, A bit of recovery. Bit of hip opening. Lots of mobility and strength. In the hips today. This is almost like a therapy session for the hips and you will feel it after the class, Probably at least for the rest of your day. That your back, Your lower back, Your hips, They feel so toned, So nice, So strong. So this is like therapy. Big inhale, Into plank, Exhale strong core. Then inhale, Lower knees. Press down, Chaturanga. Chest down first. Inhale, Lift. And exhale, Release. Inhale, Press up. Exhale. Downward facing dog. Inhale, Lift onto toe mount. And exhale, Press into the heels. Lengthening the spine just feels so good. Next inhale, Bend the knees, Look forward. And step, Jump, Hop, Or walk. Towards the front of your mat. Then inhale, Lifting halfway up and exhale, Forward fold. Inhale, Bend knees. Exhale. Roll up into standing. And there we are. Again, Stay right there. No need to move. Let's come back to the right leg. Lift the right leg up a little higher. No contact with the foot onto your leg. So this time we're just opening that leg a little bit to the side, Not as much as before. So here we are, Knee hip height or maybe a little higher. Or maybe. . . Still a little higher. So do whatever possible and from here we're turning that leg out. So that your lower leg kind of in front of you and your foot lifts just a little. Can you go a little further? Turn it. Turn it just a little more. And just a little more. Okay, Here we are. Keep it that way. Big inhale, Lift. Now open the chest. Open the sides. Let the air in. And we're almost forgetting our leg is in an awkward position, Right up in the air. Alright, Can you do one more inhale here? And one deep exhale. And let's step back into lunch. Big step back. And up to you if you want to release and have that knee on the ground, Go for it. Now, As we did yesterday in our slow moon flow, Listen in. To your body so your body will tell you Oh, I need a little stretching right there. Oh, Yeah. Or maybe here. That feels weird but interesting, So just do it. Listen in and see where you can do your body some good. Each yoga class is like a dialogue with your body. Where you have 101 conference call. With your body. All right. Enough talking. Step back into plank. Strengthen your core here, Just a little. Big exhale, Navel pulls in. Nice. Inhale, Knees come down. Exhale, Press down. Inhale, Lifting the chest up. Exhale, Lower down, Press up and back into down dog. Lengthen the spine, Then inhale. Lift onto the toe mounts. And as you exhale. Release. Into the heel. Then bend the knees, Look forward. Step hop jump let's come to the front inhale halfway up Exhale, Release down. Inhale, Bend knees and roll it up slowly into standing. You know what's coming. Stay right there. Left side. So pick the near. No contact with the foot. Do your shadow. What is. Now let's move that knee slightly out. Without moving the hips, Of course. And then lift that whoopah lift that knee up Maybe a little more. Maybe a little more. Can we do just that? A little more. That's great. Wonderful. From here we turn. Outward rotation in the hip. Without losing your balance. So we turn that wheel until we can almost use our heel As a scoop! So we can eat some soup with our heel, Almost. All right, Keep it there, Inhale, Arms up overhead, Lifting the chest, Stand very tall. Be so proud of yourself. You pressed play. You did it. You're doing it. And you're loving it! And just listening to your hips, They feel great. They call. Thank you. Thank you for this workout, I needed this. Do one more inhale. Exhale, Step back. And two. Lunch. And just as your body tells you. Do whatever you need with the knee. And also moving your hips maybe to the side. Side to side. Explore. The very is. Perceptions. In your hip. As you move around. Very nice. So we could stay here forever. But we have one last round to do. All right, We're trying a full tree pose now. Finale. All right, So step back into plank. Contracting the core. Big exhale, Navel pulls in. Hip points narrow, Then inhale lower down. Exhale. The chest touches the floor. Inhale, Lift. Exhale, Release. Inhale, Press up. And back into down the dark. Nice. Take a little moment here. To maybe walk it out, Those legs. Have worked a little, So you might feel it, Then inhale, Press it up into toe mounds, Exhale, Release back down, Big inhale, Bend knees, Look forward, Hop, Jump, Walk, Just enjoy coming back forward into forward fold. Then inhale halfway up. And exhale one more forward fold. Before we inhale bend knees and roll up. Into standing again. Stay here. Tree pose. Real tree pose. So we've prepped. Now take your right foot. To the inside of your left thigh. Now we're bringing this all together, We're having our hips Forward. And we're rotating the knee out. That's it. And now we're pressing one leg against the other. So that foot is pressing into the calf and that calf is holding against. Right pelvic floor action now if this is in it for you you want to avoid pressing against the knee but you can higher Your foot ideally pressing. The heel into your groin to the inside of your thigh. Depends a little what Trousers and pants you're wearing. Uh, If that's not available, Go to your ankle and cough. All right, Then. Pips forward. Me out. Remember that tight feeling in the butt? Increase it a little, Open the hips. We're really opening the hips here. And laugh. Press. What's against thigh? So a real action. If you want to squeeze something in between your foot and your thigh or your calf. All right, We're in such a great place, We're not falling. Big inhale. I'm in V-shape. Proud pose. And now lift your chest. And breathe. Perfect. Again, We're checking. Gips are pointing forward. Knee rotates out. And we're squeezing the foot against our thighs. Well, At least smile. And stay. All soft in our upper body, Aren't we? Last big inhale, You did it. Wonderful. Exhale, Step it back. Lunge. Pose. And wherever you want to put it, High or low. And because this is our finale, For those who want. . . We're gonna make this a high lunge. So we're flying the uh the arms up In the air, Lifting the chest. Making this. Allah speak. High lunch. Big inhale, Open. And exhale, Hands back down on the floor. Nice. Step it back into plank pose. I was about to say core pose. But that would be correct as well. Big exhale, Navel in. Then inhale, Knees come down. Exhale, Lower down. And inhale, Open the chest. Just as much as. Your body tells you to. Exhale, Release. Inhale, Lift up. Exhale, Pressing back into downward facing dog. Then inhale, Lift the heels. Exhale, Release, Make yourself comfortable. One more time. In downward facing dog. And then inhale, Bend knees, Look forward, Walk. To the front of your mat. Inhale, Halfway up. Exhale, Release down. Inhale, Bend knees. Exhale, Roll up. Into standing left side. You stay where you are. We're going to lift our left foot against our right cough. So this time we're on the side. And we are remembering. Bend our hips. Stay focused towards the front. Always. Now the knee opens to the side without turning the hips. I know you're getting tired, Just do that one more time. Feel the tightness in your butt. That's what we want to where we want to go. And lastly, Pressing foot and calf into each other. Wow so either do this here just stay where you are or grab your ankle lifting your leg all the way up to the inside of your thigh. I hear this is. . . Sliding a little. So open the hips. Tightness in your butt. Increase it a little further. While your hips stay forward. And now press the foot and the thigh together. It almost feels like you're squeezing your upper body out of your hips, Right? That's the pelvic floor action. Actually feels great. I'm just having a real big sensation here of my pelvic floor. Maybe you do too. All right, So squeeze it. Your upper body lifts. And then lifting the arms overhead. Wow. Feels actually great. Keep squeezing. So the hips open. Wooden car for squeezing. It's chest is lifting. And you're still breathing. Aren't we? Still breathing. Big inhale. And exhale, Step it back. Wow. That felt amazing. So tree pose. Has Many benefits. And its own little surprises. It's a great, Great, Great pose. All right, For both. Feel it. Let's lift the arms overhead. Rise into high lunge. So little more hip opening, Chest opening. Keep your arms relaxed. Let's have a big inhale here, Lifting the chest. Little father. And then exhale, Hands back down on the floor. And now step back into plank. Last time coming into core pose. Exhale, Navel pulls in tight. Inhale, Knees down. Press it down. And inhale, Lifting. Enter your version. Of a cobra, Exhale release, Inhale lift. And now exhale, Child. Open that knee, Those knees, Hip. Uh met with a part so that your upper body can easily lower in between your thighs. So you'll. Forehead reaches the ground. And we're gonna quiet and calm down here. And I will give you the freedom. You stay here doing. . . Final resting phase. Maybe you wanna stay here and child's pose and just enjoy. The hip opening and the spinal relaxation. Or maybe you wanna come. Into shavasana, Lying on your back. Or maybe halfway into the meditation. You feel like you want to change position and just feel free to do so. Then close your eyes. Take a deep breath in. And as you exhale, Let go of any tension left in your body. Another deep breath in. And on the exhale, Let go of all the parts of your body. You are lying down now. And your body is held. By the floor. Imagine yourself standing. At the edge of a dense forest. The air is filled with a wonderful fragrance. And the forest seems to. . . Invite you in. With each breath, You can smell the earth. Earthiness of the trees. And the freshness. Of the leaves. As you step into the forest now. You notice. The ground is soft. And inviting. You follow a narrow trail. That winds its way through the trees. The trail gradually climbs. And you feel the excitement of the journey ahead. The path becomes steeper. And you find yourself climbing. Of a rock. And navigating the twisted route. Of ancient trees. Your determination grows. As you know. Stand at the top of this climb. A breathtaking view. Awaits. You quicken your pace. Brushing leaves and branches away. As you continue to ascend. Now the forest begins to clear. And you find yourself standing. In front of a big massive rock. There's just this one more climb. And the view. Will stretch out in front of you. You summon all your strength. And make your way up that rock. As you reach the summit. The world seems to unfold. Before your eyes. You see the sun setting. Over a vast hilly landscape. Casting, Everything. In a warm. Red. Cue. The beauty of this moment. Is taking your breath away. You stand there. Fully present. And soak in the incredible view. You notice how far your eyes can see. Yet. How close all your familiar landmarks appear. In this moment you realize How small! Our beautiful planet truly is. And how delicate our atmosphere. The air we breathe. Allow yourself to be filled. With wonder. And gratitude. Of the earth beauty. And fragility. Take a moment. To appreciate thee. Interconnectedness. Of all life on this planet. As the sun continues to set. You know it's time to make your way back. You descend from that big rock. And as you re-enter the forest, You notice something remarkable. Every tree. Every rock and every root. Seems to have transformed. Into a beautiful work of art. Each step you take feels new. Like a dance with nature. A harmonious connection to the world around you. You are filled with joy. And the sense of being lifted. By the beauty that surrounds you. As you continue your journey. Through this enchanted forest. Your heart is light. And your spirit source. You are grateful. For this experience. You soak in. The magnificence of the forest. All of a sudden, Every step counts. Not just reaching the top. Now take a few moments to savor. This feeling of happiness. Connection. Being present. And as we return now to the present moment, Carry with you the sense of wonder and gratitude. For the beauty of the world around you. Remember that this connection to nature and the awareness of our small place in the universe. Can bring a sense of peace. And balance into the breath. Everyday life. Wherever you are. Whether still in child's pose or. Lying on your back. Slowly. Push yourself back up. And get your body back into the here and now and into this room. Come into. A seated position. Just to conclude the practice. So. . . We had a great Intense. Yep. Therapy session followed by Soothing. And comfy. Restful. Meditation for our minds. And make those benefits. Stay with you for the rest of the day, The night. The rest of your week. Then take one big inhale, Arms join overhead, Connecting the thumbs with the forehead. With your chin and with your heart center. Thank you so much for joining, For giving your body. This present, This gift of health and vitality and I'll see you all tomorrow.