Level 1-2

Today we will continue to bear weight on your hands, so remember everything we learned yesterday during downward facing dog.

We start with plank pose, finding tadasana but with the hands on the floor. Moving into chaturanga, how to place your hands and shoulders to move in a safe and efficient way. Finishing with upward facing dog and noticing how every single movement from down dog up to here has prepared you for this posture.

Time for day 3 of Vinyasa Fundamentals where we are going to work on our standing postures. 

Beginning in a downward facing dog with a transition to warrior ll where we will work on our hip placement which sometimes feels so tricky to get. This is one of the most common postures in Vinyasa classes, therefore we're starting from the beginning how to think and how to simplify the movement. 

From here we will go into our High lunge trying to find tadasana while working efficiently with the legs and hips. We will open up our chest, straighten the arms and work with strong legs to find our tadasana.

Finishing the yoga class with warrior l and how to incorporate a bit of the last two poses to feel stable here. 

In today's yoga class we begin by working on transitions from our favorite downward facing dog to stepping onto the top of the mat. This can be a tricky part, but together we are going to work on different variations that will help you get into a flow of movement. 

Then we wrap it up with a quick flow sequence to put everything you have learned together, breathing, posture, and how to think during your practice. This is day four in Vinyasa Fundamentals, so this means that you start to get the basics. 

Remember that this is the beginning and everything will get easier with practice, practice, practice. 

A quick breakdown of headstand for you to get some tips on how to achieve this posture.

Move close to a wall if you need to and please be careful with your cervical spine. This posture not only requires time but also strength and patience. 

Kapalabhati means shining skull. One hypothesis is that it is cleansing for the frontal part of the brain. It is actually a Kriya rather than a pranayama and a prerequisite for Bhastrika.

It is a fundamental Hatha Yoga technique. Many benefits especially respiratory health, clearing mucus and activating of energy.

Contraindication, do not do this pranayama if you are pregnant or on your menstrual cycle.

Agni Sara is one of the Shat kriyas (six cleansing processes). It is the counteraction to Uddiyana Bandha Kriya or Nauli. Agni means fire - we are invigorating our digestive fire.

The stomach is expanded on an exhale with the breath held out. We are giving space to our internal organs allowing the free flow of substances and energy. Very beneficial for digestion and health of the digestive organs.

Contraindication, do not do this pranayama if you are pregnant or on your menstrual cycle.

We begin by finding relaxation. Pranayama works with our nervous system, and the first thing to do with that is finding some peace and calm in our mind and body.
 
The breath is the most vital part of our life, but very few of us connect with it consciously. This week we start to form a relationship with the breath.
 
You will work on diaphragmatic or belly breathing and on using a double length exhale.

The relaxation goes, and we begin to introduce our first classical pranayama techniques, Nadi Shodana and Brahmari.

Nadi Shodana (alternate nostril breathing)  - nerve cleansing - is effective at balancing the hemispheres of the brain, the sympathetic and parasympathetic nervous systems, and the major nadis (energy channels) in the body.

The class closes with Brahmari pranayama, very calming for the mind.

We try a preparation for Uddiyana Bandha Kriya. Uddiyana Bandha Kriya is a more intricate technique, this week we start to learn how to work it. 

Nadi Shodana and Brahmari are bringing our minds to a calmer, quieter place, balancing the nervous system and our energy channels.

We are preparing a solid foundation for the start of our pranayama practice.  

We are forming more of a complete practice. We are now practicing the two most important preparatory techniques together, Uddiyana Bandha Kriya and Agni Sara.  

With Uddiyana Bandha Kriya we were compressing and massaging our internal organs, then with Agni Sara, we are giving them space.

Our internal organs and digestive process are being nourished, and we are clearing our energetic pathways.  Sitali and Ujjayi take this further, they are two of the most foundational pranayama practices. Preparing the body for the channeling of prana.

Do not practice Uddiyana bandha kriya, Agni sara and Kapalabhati if you are pregnant or on your cycle.

We introduce the rest of the preparatory practices this week, Simha mudra, Jivha bandha, and Brahma mudra.

With these three new techniques, we are releasing tension from around the neck, jaw, face, eyes, and mouth. Areas which hold negative psychological stress.

We again calm our nervous system and help prepare the way for centralizing prana.

Do not practice Uddiyana bandha kriya, Agni sara and Kapalabhati if you are pregnant or on your cycle.

No new pranayamas this week, however lots of refining technique work. We change the focus and start to really put an emphasis on connecting with the Bandhas - Mula Bandha and Uddiyana Bandha(different to Uddiyana Bandha Kriya).

To grow in pranayama it is necessary to learn how to control and use these Bandhas for the directing of prana. Although it appears in pranayama we are working with our breath, we are actually working with our prana. The Bandhas are key for this.

The class starts with breathing on our back, trying to learn how to differentiate the different parts of the abdomen and how to find more subtle muscular control.

We then take this Bandha work to our seated posture. There will be instruction at the appropriate times when and how to engage the Bandhas.

This week goes back to a more traditional practice set up. We perform all of the preparatory techniques, and we do some of the classic foundational pranayamas.

The classes from here go into more of a self-practice format. The pranayamas are introduced with some instruction, but there is more time for silence and practicing. 

Well done you for coming this far, remember to look for the bandhas.

Do not practice Uddiyana bandha kriya, Agni sara and Kapalabhati if you are pregnant or on your cycle.

This is an exciting week, not only should you be feeling very good about yourself for completing the program, but you also get a new secret pranayama.  

Surya Bhedana - Sun channel activation - is introduced this week, it is the first pranayama we learn that is having more of an activating effect on Kundalini.

We also develop the technique in Kapalabhati, bringing in more Bandha control.