19 Apr Flow of the month – yoga sequence for everybody
By Karin Baltisberger
What distinguishes a good yoga class from a bad one? From my own experience I can say that the lessons I prepare well are the best. I then take time to think about what I want to express with the lesson, on which physical or mental levels I want to work and which warm-up exercises are necessary to make the peak pose easier to perform.
I draw my flows with stick figures. There I can live out my creative side and leave aside my everyday life, which has a lot to do with complex problems and numbers.
You can find practically all my sequences on Instagram. Additionally I will publish a flow once a month here on the website and describe it a bit more detailed. If you always want to see the most current flow, then sign up for our newsletter. You can do that right here on this page in the side-bar. Name and e-mail address are enough.
The flow of the month April is the Sunrise Flow. Have fun practicing.
Sunrise Flow – yoga sequence for everybody
The Sunrise Flow is a beautiful sequence focusing on the inner hips and expression. It is about letting your inner self shine outwards. Therefore, at the beginning of the lesson, think about what you want to express, what do you want to say with this flow, what presses from inside out? That is your intention. If you set an intention at the beginning of a yoga sequence, you will notice that your practice will change. Yoga goes beyond the purely physical. The sequence is designed for 60 minutes.
We start in Supta Baddha Konasana, the reclined butterfly. Close your eyes and take your time to arrive at your mat. Breathe in to the center of your body, breathe out to all the extremities of your body. Down to the tips of your fingers and toes and the crown of your head. Repeat this a few times. Then come back to your intention again.
Slowly straighten up and come down to your knees. Tuck your toes under and sit back on your heels. If this stretches too much, you can put your hands in front of you on the mat. Stay here for ten breaths.
Put your toes back flat on the mat and come back to your hands and knees. Cat/Cow: Breathe in, lower your stomach to the floor, raise the sit bones to the ceiling, lift and open your chest. Exhale, pull your belly button inwards, round your spine, widen your shoulder blades. Repeat ten times.
Extend your right leg backwards and bend the knee. Circle your right leg in the hip joint and connect the exercise to your breathing. Keep the torso stable. Five times in one direction, five times in the other. Do the same on the left side.
Tuck your toes and push your hips up and back, come into Downward Facing Dog(Adho Mukha Svanasana). Bend one knee after the other. Slowly come to stillness. Inhale, look between your hands, exhale, bend your knees, hold the breath and step between your hands, come into a forward bend (Utanasana). Breathe in, extend your back, half bend forward (Ardha Utanasana). Exhale, bend over your legs (Utanasana). Breathe in, push your feet evenly into the floor, stretch your arms to the ceiling (Urdhva Hastasana), breathe out, bring your hands together in front of your heart and next to your body, Mountain pose (Tadasana).
We flow through the Sun Salutation C (Surya Namaskar C). Breathe in, stretch your arms to the ceiling, breathe out, bend over your legs. Breathe in, bring your right foot to the back of the mat and put your right knee down. Breathe in, reach your arms to the ceiling. Exhale , bring both hands around your front foot and step back to Downward Facing Dog. Breathe in, lift your heels up and ripple your spine forward into a high plank (phalakasana). Exhale, shift your weight forward, bring your knees, chest and chin to the ground at the same time, keeping your buttocks up. Breathe in, wrap yourself forward into a cobra (Bhujangasana). Exhale, push yourself back into a Downward Facing Dog. Stay for five breaths. Inhale, raise your right leg to the ceiling, exhale, put your right foot next to your right hand, bring your left knee to the floor. Breathe in, pull your arms to the ceiling. Exhale, bring both hands around the front foot and place the left foot next to the right (Utanasana). Breathe in, reach your arms up over the side (Urdhva Hastasana). Exhale, bring the hands in front of your heart and next to your body (Tadasana). Repeat this sequence, starting with the left leg.
From the mountain posture (Tadasana) we go into the targeted warm-up phase. Breathe in, reach the arms towards the ceiling (Urdhva Hastasana). Exhale, bend over your legs (Utanasana). Breathe in, extend your back from the tailbone to the crown of your head. Exhale out, bring your hands shoulder-wide to the mat and step back into a Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Breathe in, lift your right leg up in the air, keeping your hips parallel. Exhale, place your right foot between your hands and bring your back heel to the ground so that it is parallel to the short end of the mat. The front knee is bent and aligned above the ankle. Breathe in, straighten up and stretch your arms forward and back, Warrior 2 (Virabhadrasana 2). Stay here for five breaths. Breathe in, stretch your front leg and push your left hip back. Exhale, pull your right arm far forward and then lay it down on your shin or mat. Stay in Triangle Pose (Trikonasana) for five breaths. Breathe in, bend your front knee and place the fingertips of your right hand about ten centimeters before your right foot. Then run your fingertips a little to the right. Exhale, lift your back leg off the floor and extend your left arm to the ceiling. The lifted leg is at waist level. Stay in Half Moon Pose (Ardha Chandrasana) for five breaths. Breathe in, slowly lower your left leg again, breathe out, bring both hands around the front foot and come into a Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Stay here for five breaths or flow through a Vinyasa. You can also come into Child’s Pose (Balasana). Repeat the flow on the second side.
Let’s meet back in Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Breathe in, lift your right leg up, keeping your hips parallel. Exhale out, place your right foot between your hands and bring your back heel to the ground so that it is parallel to the short end of the mat. The front knee is bent and aligned above the ankle. Breathe in, straighten up and stretch your arms forward and back at the height of your shoulders, Warrior 2 (Virabhadrasana 2). Stay here for five breaths. Breathe in, bring your right hand to the outside of the right foot. Exhale out, pull your left arm forward over your head. Stay five breaths at an extended lateral angle (Utthita Parsvakonasana). Breathe in, bring both hands to the inside of the right foot, breathe out, walk your fingertips to the middle of your mat and also place your right foot parallel to the short end of the mat. Grasp the big toes with your index and middle fingers. Breathe in, lengthen your spine. Breathe out, bend deeper. Stay for five breaths in the wide-legged forward bend (Prasarita Padottanasana). Breathe in, straighten up. Exhale out, bend only the left knee, keep the right leg straight. Fold your hands in front of your chest and stay for five breaths. Inhale, rise up again, stretch both legs. Exhale, bend right knee, keep left leg straight. Stay for five breaths. Breathe in, bring both hands around right foot, bring left knee to the ground, bend. Stay in the Lizard Pose (Utthan Pristhasana) for five breaths. Breathe in, walk your right foot to the edge of the mat and point your toes 45 degrees to the right. Lift the inside of the foot off the floor. Exhale, bring your right hand on your knee and open your upper body gently to the right. Stay for five breaths. Breathe in, walk the foot back to the center. Exhale out, come into Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Stay here for five breaths or flow through a vinyasa. You can also come into Child’s Pose(Balasana). Repeat the flow on the second side.
We continue in Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Breathe in, look between your hands, breathe out, bend your knees, hold the breath and walk, step or jump between your hands, come into a forward bend (Utanasana). Breathe in, extend your back, half forward-fold (Ardha Utanasana). Exhale, bend over your legs (Utanasana). Breathe in, push your feet evenly into the floor, stretch your arms to the ceiling (Urdhva Hastasana), breathe out, fold your hands in front of your heart, next to your body.
Continue in the mountain posture. Breathe in, lift your right knee from the ground. Exhale, bring your ankle above your left knee. Place your hands on the bent knee and foot, applying gentle pressure. Bend your standing leg to intensify the stretch. Slowly come back and repeat the exercise on the other side.
We’ve arrived at the peak pose. It is the highlight of each class. We practice Utthita Hasta Padangustasana B. Breathe in, lift the right leg off the ground. Level 1: Grasp your right knee with your right hand. Level 2: Use a yoga belt and put it under your foot, stretch your leg out. Level 3: grab your big toe with your right index finger and middle finger and extend your leg. Find your balance and then open your right leg to your right side. Hold for five to ten breaths. Repeat the exercise on the left side.
We now come to the cool-down. Find Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Breathe in, pull your right leg up to the ceiling, breathe out, place your right knee behind your right wrist and your right foot behind your left wrist. Come on your forearms and stay in pigeon (Kapotasana) for ten breaths. Repeat the exercise on the second side.
Come into a seated position. Extend the right leg, bend the left leg and bring the foot to the right inner groins. Bend over the right leg, extend your back and slowly go deeper. You can hold your foot or use a yoga belt. After ten breaths lift up again, put your left hand on the floor behind you and lift your hips up. Stay for five breaths. Repeat the two exercises on the other side.
Lay your back flat on the floor, place your feet hip-wide. Breathe in and roll your vertebrae upwards, one bone at the time. Exhale, cross your hands behind your back and pull your shoulders closer together. Stay in Bridge Pose for ten breaths (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana). Slowly roll back down to the floor.
Stretch out both legs. Breathe in, pull the right knee towards you. Exhale out, place the right knee on the left side. Stretch out your arms and look to your left side. Keep 10 to 15 breaths in Supine Twist. Repeat the exercise on your left side.
Get ready for the final resting position (Shavasana). Stretch out your legs, arms beside your body, palms facing up. If you like, you can put a pillow under your knees. Close your eyes and return to normal breathing. Stay here for at least five minutes.
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