Moved from Within: The potential for movement arises in response to containment. As we push up into boundary, tone builds in our body. This inner motion precedes outer movement. In this practice we explore what it feels like to be moved from within, venturing into a varied asana practice that flows from the ground into lunges, half moon, tree variations, and offers the opportunity for inversions if you like. Closes with a deep rest and chanting.
Embodied Voice: A variety of movement explorations to support free expression of our voice. A great practice to ground and settle agitated energy, and often helpful in processing stagnation/frustration. We move and sound and then rest into quiet, before closing with some chanting together.
Movement Snack - Foot Flow: A 25 minute flow practice with a focus on waking up and moving from our feet. Short and sweet, we start with some foot activations and then get straight into a balancing flow before bringing it down to the ground for a nice long stretch out of the font of the legs and a little inversion to close.
Slowly open into movement: This practice starts with a grounding awareness practice and stillness, slowly opens into micro movements and then sneaks into a flow that will get you warm, strengthen your legs, and challenge your balance, with a yummy dose of backbends, twists and stretchy lunges in between.
Rest & Digest: A practice gently supporting digestion. We move in a way that supports down regulation of the nervous system and brings about gentle movement to the gut tube. Could be helpful in the digestion of food, experience, emotions… we move and flow slowly, rest in our breath, and have a little meditation to close.
Holding the Paradox: A brief meditation exploring the underlying ground of our awareness as it holds all of the fluctuations of our experience. We use a specific hand gesture as a tangible doorway into this concept and nourish ourselves in presence for a few moments before moving into the rest of our day.
Tend to the Soil: This practice tends to the soil of our being. We slow down, ground, and tend to our feet, and the ground of our awareness. A wonderful practice to gather energy and turn inward after the outwardness of summer, but could be used any time of year that you would like to slow down, tune in, and take stock. We explore though meditation, movement, chanting and journalling. (Note: This was a live Monthly Gathering, and I have my baby with me for parts of the practice so you can hear some of her snuffles at times.)
Restorative somatic flow: A restorative practice that includes gentle somatic movement explorations and meditative awareness practice. 45 minutes of floor based slow flow starting with supported childs pose before moving into a variety of movements through the whole body and closing with rest for as long as you like. Props: You will need a bolster or firm pillow, ideally two blocks and a blanket or two.
Build strength with Babe: A practice for days when you feel you have energy and want to build some strength. This practice could be done with babe next to you, and for some portions baby could be in arms. We release through shoulders and wrists, move through springy lunges, squats, warrior two and twists before returning to the ground for a rest and an awareness practice to fill your cup weather you are in savasana, feeding or tending to baby’s needs.
Sneak to Peak: A guided creative flow that starts on the ground but sneaks into a peak sequence rather swiftly, giving you a whole body dynamic practice in 35 minutes. Explorative core work, balances, delicious wiggles to release through upper back and side body, and an opportunity to invert if you want it before closing with a forward fold, a rest, and sound. Enjoy!
Upper Body - Activate and Release: An hour dedicated to activating, releasing and re-sensitising through our hands, wrists, arms and shoulders. A nourishing practice that offers the fascia of the upper body a variety of movement flavours - tractioning, loading, playing with weight bearing and springiness and will get your heart rate up in moments to refresh and invigorate. Finishes with a delicious half plough exploration to find space through the upper back and side body.
Strong & Springy: A varied, whole body movement practice with a focus on cultivating springy strength. We start with a brief breath awareness practice, tune up through the hands and wrists and then get to a strong flow that incorporates side plank variations, twisted arm balances, hand stand hops and other movement patterns that will get your heart rate up, challenge your balance and build strength. We close with plough variations, bridge, and seated forward folds. A good one for when you need to move in a steady yet dynamic way.
The Gita and On Connection: A comparative study of the ancient wisdom of the Gita with a modern piece of writing called On Connection by Kae Tempest. I love it when a piece of new writing pulls on threads that have been explored thousands of years previously and feel the modern text massively supports the message of the ancient in this case. We specifically look at the instructions given by both texts in response to the question: so how do I remember? How do I re-sensitise? What is the first step? I highly recommend On Connection, it is beautiful.
The Gita - the manifestations of existence: This talk explores the way in which the Gita explains the interrelatedness of all things. Krishna (or existence itself) is attempting to describe all aspects of manifest reality and in the end confesses - ‘actually there is just no end’. This offers us another perspective on the idea of the macrocosm being held within the microcosm, and of self similar patterns repeating on every scale from microscopic to cosmic.
The Gita - Krishna as Existence: In this talk we discuss one thing that completely changed my understanding of the Gita. We explore what the character Krishna represents and how this reading gives us a clear way to practically apply the teachings of the Gita to our lives. We look at verse 34, chapter 9.
The Gita - Seeing the same Self in everyone and everything: In this talk we talk about practice as a process of sensory reanimation, or resensitisation so that we might be fully present in our lives. A helpful talk for if you are ever wondering - what am I even doing?! Why am I practicing? What’s the point? We explore verse 29, chapter 6.
Twisty Spiral Flow: A fun and creative spirally flow that works with twists in a playful way. Woven into the spiral flow we explore backbends and find spacious strength through the side body in preparation for half moon and side plank variations. Specific breath awareness explorations to find fluidity internally that translates into smooth movement articulation. Closes with a relaxation that you are invited to stay in as long as you like.
