Estimated Time: 15-20 minutes

Seated Meditation

Start with a seated meditation, finding a comfortable sitting position, and allowing the mind to become more still.  As you remain physically still, try to let your attention rest in all of the sensory input you are getting from your physical body.  Some things may feel comfortable, some uncomfortable, and some not feel like anything at all.  Let all of those sensations be observed equally – neither judging nor trying to change them, just being aware that they are there.

Bitilasana – Cat/Cow

On hands and knees, with the hips directly over the knees, and wrists directly under the shoulders, let the belly sink towards the floor while lifting the chest and tail on an inhale.  On an exhale, round the back towards the ceiling, while dropping the tail and head.  The whole time, the hands, knees, and tops of the feet press into the floor.  Continue back and forth for 5-10 breaths.  Allow your attention to focus on the movement of the vertebrae of the spine, and the hinging at the hips and shoulders.

Bhujangasana – Cobra

Come to laying on the floor, forehead resting on the ground.  Take the legs out behind you, feet hip width apart, and wrists underneath the shoulders.  Before lifting to bhujangasana, press the top of the feet into the floor, tuck the tailbone back towards the heels (pubic bone presses into the floor), press the elbows in towards the sides of the ribs, and reach the head forward towards the front of the mat.  On an inhale, continue reaching forward through the crown of the head, and curl the chest forward and up, while keeping the tailbone curling the opposite direction (towards the heels).  The hands support the pose, but do not do all of the work to lift you off the floor – the muscles of the back should be doing that.

Release back to the floor on an exhale.  Repeat four more times.

Balasana – Child’s Pose

Counter the backbend by bringing the heels back over the hips into child’s pose, and relaxing there.  If you take the knees wide (almost as wide as the mat) and the toes together, you may find space for a little more stretch, especially if you take the arms over head.  The primary purpose of this pose, however, is to allow the body to rest and counter the lumbar compression that can happen in the previous pose, so stay in this pose as long as you need to in order to feel released from the previous pose.

Adho Mukha Svanasana to Plank Transition – Down Dog to Plank

Lifting the hips and tucking the toes, make your way to down dog, forming an upside down V.   As you press into the base of the fingers and the fingers, equally across the hand, lift up through the forearm, shoulder blades, and hips.  The abdominal muscles work to support the low back, but the hips lifting up and back help stretch out the abdominal muscles at the same time.  Keep the hips lifted, and press the thighs back behind you, releasing the heels down in the direction of the floor as comfortable.

When you find down dog established, shift the shoulders forward, until they are over the wrists.  Let the tail bone tuck down towards the heels, the belly button lifting up towards the spine so the hips don’t sink, and the chest reach forward, as though it were trying to come through the shoulders.

Go back and forth between these two poses, inhaling forward to plank, exhaling back to down dog, five or ten times, finding the balance between using the abdominal muscles and shoulders for support, and keeping plenty of length along the spine.

Navasana – Boat Pose

From down dog, come to the floor, and then to sitting.  Bending the knees, place the feet on the floor, hip width apart.  If you have a block handy, place it high up between the thighs near the groin (as high as it can go).  Take the hands behind the hips, leaning back 30-45degrees.

Using the abdomen, lift the head away from the tail, squeeze the inner thighs into the block, and eventually finding that you can support yourself in the lean, and bring the hands from behind the hips so they are in front of you, palms facing each other.  If you feel stable, begin to lift the knees up towards the ceiling, avoiding leaning back any farther than you already are.  If the heels lift off the floor, press through the balls of the toes to work the knees towards straight.

Wherever you stop, hold for three breaths, then release the pose, and the block, hugging the knees into the chest.  Repeat two more times before moving to the next pose.

Setu Bandha Sarvangasana – Bridge Pose

Come to lying on your back on the floor.  Bring the feet in, hip width apart, and directly under the knees.  Begin with the hands, palms down, a few inches outside of either hip.  Press down through the feet, hands, arms, and shoulders, and lift the hips towards the ceiling as you tuck the tailbone towards the knees to keep the low back long.  Hold the knees strongly hip width apart, neither letting them fall out to the side, or press in to each other.  If you want to go farther, interlace the fingers behind the back and roll onto the outside of each arm.  Press the hands down into the floor as you continue to lift the hips towards the ceiling, and the chest forward, towards the chin.

Supported Setu Bandha Sarvangasana – Supported Bridge Pose (OPTIONAL)

If you have a block handy while in the previous pose, you can place it directly underneath the sacrum (at any height setting), allowing the sacrum to rest on the block, the legs to go forward towards the front of the mat, and the arms to release out to the side.  It should feel comfortable, and like the abdomen is stretching top to bottom, and out to the sides.

Please DO NOT DO THIS POSE if you had any low back pain in the previous pose or this variation causes ANY discomfort.

To come out of the pose, bring the feet back under the knees, press into the feet to lift off the block, and bring the hips back down to the floor.

Apanasana – Knees to Chest

After coming down from bridge, bring the knees into the chest.  If it feels comfortable, you can rock from side to side, or up and back a bit.  Then grab the shin of each leg with the hands, and on an inhale, bring the knees up away from the chest, just as far as the arms can reach.  On an exhale, bring the knees back down into the chest, bending the elbows.  Repeat this very small, breath coordinated movement five to ten times, releasing the abdominal muscles and the low back.

The cliche advice “take a deep breath” really isn’t so cliche. The sympathetic nervous system (fight-or-flight) tends to go into a bit of overdrive during high stress times. The parasympathetic nervous system, the other side of the coin, works in balance with the sympathetic. And it’s a nice long exhale that helps kick the parasympathetic a bit more.

So, for a quick, very minor calming effect during the day when a stressful even hits, take a pause, and take 10 deep breaths. Savor the exhale all the more on each breath, letting a little stress go with each breath that goes out. Count each exhale as it takes as long as it wants to, and when you get to 10, there may be a hint less stress in the body.

Of course, it’s still up to you not to bring more in.