Back Again
Legs, Hips, Glutes, Strength
After a long hiatus, we're back! This mini-flow is a fun base sequence for any vinyasa class. Read the cue descriptions to seamlessly move from one posture into the next.
Chair (Utkatasana)
Start from standing with your feet hips width apart. Sink your hips and send your weight back into your heels. Extend your arms straight out in front of you and flip your palms to face the sky. Find a slight tuck of your tailbone.
One Legged Mountain (Eka Pada Tadasana)
Using your right foot as your base, begin to stand into your right leg as you lift your left foot off of the floor. Bend your left knee at a 90 degree angle, and flex your left toes. Extend your arms straight over your head. Pick a gaze point that is steady.
From Eka Pada, start to slowly reach the arms forward and sweep your left leg straight back. Step your left toes lightly at the back of your mat, and bend your right knee. Your right foot is forward, with a 90 degree bend in the leg. Your shoulders are stacked over your hips. Your left thigh is strong and engaged. Your arms are up by your ears and your fingertips are energized. Ensure your hips are square to the front of the mat and pull your low ribs in towards one another.
High Crescent Lunge (Anjaneyasana)
Warrior II (Virabhadrasana II)
Move into warrior II by grounding your left heel into the mat at a 45 degree angle and opening the hips and the arms. You might need to elongate your stance. Ground the knife-edge side of your left foot into the mat, and maintain the deep bend in the front knee. Keep your arms straight and strong, extending straight out from your shoulders. Gaze is over the right middle-finger.
Keeping your feet as they are, start to straighten your front leg. Reach your front arm up and back, palm facing down. Feel a gentle stretch through your right side-body. Press down into the big toe of the right foot and back foot evenly. Extend energy all the way up to the right middle finger. Gaze towards the back foot.
Wide Legged Forward Bend (Prasarita Padottanasana)
From reverse triangle, start to sweep your top arm back, down and around to the ground. As you sweep the arm, allow the chest to follow, ending with the head and chest between the legs in your fold. As you do this, pivot your right toes to the side of the mat. Both feet should be parallel. If you need, take a halfway lift to adjust, then re-fold into your prasarita.
Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana)
With an inhale breath, lift up the chest halfway, placing fingers under shoulders. Start to pivot towards the top of your mat. Right toes face forward, lift onto the ball of the back foot, coming into a low lunge. Brace your hands on either side of your right foot. Extend the chest and head forward, so you have a flat spine. Hips are level with shoulders. Gaze slightly lifted.
Grounded Airplane (Virahbardrahsana III Variation)
Bring your fingertips forward, as you stand into your right leg and lift your left leg off the ground. Your chest is lifted and your left leg is parallel with the ground. Maintain a strong core here and engage both the standing leg and the lifted leg.
Shiva Squat
From your grounded airplane, begin to bend the standing leg. As you do, bend and tuck the left knee behind the right knee for shiva squat. You can hold here, or pulse in and out of the squat. Your fingers can stay on the ground or you can practice lifting them off the mat.
Standing Forward Fold (Uttanasana)
From your shiva squat, keep your knees soft, but gently unwind the legs and set your lift foot down, next to your right foot. Straighten the legs and drop your chest over your thighs to find your forward fold. Fingertips or hands are on the ground. Head can hang heavy or chin can be slightly tucked. Shift weight into the balls of your feet. Breathe deeply.
