A Yoga Flow To Become Present & Drop The Worry: Breath & Focus

In times of uncertainty and change, our mind may really do a number on us if it goes unbridled like a wild horse, searching for answers and solutions.

The way we can find these intuitive answers is through cultivating a state of peace within ourselves where we stop worrying to try and figure things out and allow the answers to arrive.

Use this at home yoga flow to help you lower stress and become present. Notice how the yoga flow sequence is a practice in paying attention to the here and now where you tune into your body’s subtle energy.

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A Yoga Flow To Calm Worry and Become Present

Before you begin, sit in a cross-legged position with your eyes closed, and just focus on doing ujjayi breathing for one to three minutes.

This breath is done through the nose and you create a slight constriction in the back of the throat so that the flow of oxygen is slowed and it creates a soothing sound. Focus on taking longer deeper breaths and slowing the speed of your breathing.

This is the most important part of this yoga flow and you should maintain this slow deep breathing through your nose throughout the yoga sequence to achieve the best results for your emotional and physical state.

Child’s Pose

Sit on your heels and bring your knees slightly wider than your hips. Walk your hands forward so that your forehead comes to the ground and your arms reach straight forward with your palms facing down. Relax and feel your spine elongated in this position.

Bring your focus to the place where your forehead connects to the mat as you take three to five slow deep breaths in and out of your nose. Feel your hands connecting to the mat and where your knees touch the ground.

Become aware of the tops of your feet and toes on the ground. Walk your hands back bringing yourself back upright and come to hands and knees in a tabletop position.

Downward Facing Dog

From the tabletop position, tuck your toes and straighten your legs as you lift your hips and press your chest towards your thighs. Keep your hands shoulder-distance apart and your feet hip-distance apart as you take three to five breaths.

Your fingers should be spread to disperse the weight of your body from your wrist joints. Sink your heels towards the ground and relax your neck.

Standing Forward Fold

From downward-facing dog, walk your feet forward until they are straight up and down.

Grab the backs of your calf muscles and pull your nose towards your knees. Keep your neck relaxed so the weight of your head helps decompress the spine. Take three to five deep breaths through your nose in this position.

Chair Pose

From forward fold, bend your knees, and bring your arms straight next to your ears as you lift your torso.

Stay in a squatted position as if you’re sitting in a chair with arms reaching up as you take three to five deep breaths. Keep your stomach muscles engaged and pull your front ribs in.

Chair Twist

Remain in chair pose but bring your palms together in front of your chest. With the palms pressing together take the left elbow and place it outside of the right knee and make sure to twist using your stomach muscles instead of using your elbow for leverage.

Try to keep the spine lengthened as you take three to five breaths. Switch and do the twist on the other side bringing your right elbow outside of the left knee as you take three to five ujjayi breaths and then come back to center and straighten your legs.

Standing Wide-Legged Forward Fold

From a standing position, bring your feet about three feet apart and place your hands on your hips. Lean forward and place your hands on the ground. Relax your neck so aren’t holding your head up.

Walk your hands towards your legs to stretch the back of the legs. Take three to five slow deep breaths in and out of your nose and then bring your hands back to your hips and come back to standing very slowly as you inhale so that you don’t get a head rush and then bring your legs back together.

Low Crescent Lunge

From standing, with your hands on your hips, step your right leg back so you come into a lunge position and slowly lower the back knee and untuck your right foot’s toes. You may need to scoot your left foot forward to make sure your left knee isn’t passing your left ankle. This will protect your knee.

Bring your arms up in line with the ears and press your weight forward to stretch the front of your right hip, the hip flexor.

After three to five breaths bring your hands to the ground on either side of your left leg and step the right leg forward and the left leg back to do the pose on the other side.

Diamond Pose

Come to a seated position with your legs out in front of you. Bend your knees slightly so that you can bring the bottoms of your feet together and your legs create the shape of a diamond. Lean forward bringing your forehead towards your feet. Slide your hands under your knees with palms facing up.

Take three to five deep slow breaths as you relax into the pose letting gravity stretch your back and hips. Let your head hang heavy. Come back up to seated.

Plow Pose

Lay onto your back and lift your legs as if you’re going to stand on the ceiling and then lift your hips up so your feet come over your head and your toes come towards the ground or to the ground.

Do not turn your head side to side as you need to protect the cervical spine in the upper back where there is weight bearing down. Try to keep your spine straight up and scoot your shoulder blades toward each other to interlace your hands if possible.

Take three to five deep breaths as your chin connects to your chest and then slowly lower your back onto the ground one vertebrae at a time and then lower your legs.

Legs Up The Wall

Lay on your back with your legs resting straight up a wall. This will allow your feet to be drained of blood and allow blood to circulate more easily to your head. Relax with your arms out to the sides and close your eyes letting your natural breath happen for at least seven minutes.

Come out of the pose slowly to remain calm and notice how relaxed you are.

Closing

If you’re feeling anxious, put down the cell phone, and turn off the news. Stop working and just come into your body with this soothing and relaxing yoga flow. This flow is not advanced but the more you do it, the more you can learn about your body, muscles, energy, and center of gravity.

As you do it over time, you’ll notice how some days your mind wanders more than others and how you worry more once you get the routine down and stop being present. The practice of repeating the flow will give you great insights into how you are in other things you do in life in repetition that allow worry to flow into your day such as cooking, showering, brushing your teeth, driving to work, scrolling through social media, etc.

As we see what comes up while we practice, we are able to direct the mind back to the breath to find that state of peace and expand it by breathing even deeper. The breath is an amazing way to bring more prana into our energy field and to clear negative thoughts.

Prana, our life force energy, is what helps us feel optimistic, and the more we allow our energy to flow through the chakras by building strength and flexibility, the more harmonious we will feel as well.

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