HATHA YOGA PROGRAMME

1. Centering (10 m)

Commentary

• Hello again, I'm Janet, filling in while Ian has his op
• Let me know if you have any health problems or physical difficulties
• Do only what feels right for you and your body
• We’re going to be working up to doing the sun salutation
• If anything is not clear, please ask

• Yoga relaxes the body to relax the mind
• Centre your awareness inside your body
• Lie back with your head resting on a small pad or pillow
• Bend your knees and place your feet flat on the floor in a comfortable position, feet about a hip’s width apart
• Let your knees fall in, resting on each other
• Start with your arms relaxed at your sides

• Breathe normally, just let it happen

• Take a deep breath in, then forcefully exhale making a HAA sound – repeat a few times
• Now, breathing normally, place you hands over the solar plexus with the fingertips just touching
• As you breathe in, notice how the abdomen rises and the fingertips separate
• As you breathe out, notice the abdomen fall and the fingertips come closer together
• Breathe normally like this for a while
• Next time you breathe out, after the abdomen has fallen, pull back the muscles still further so that the air is pushed out of the chest
• Repeat this a few times
• Notice how the breathing becomes slower and deeper as the body and mind settle down and relax

• Now take control of the breath, deepen your breathing, without straining
• Keeping the breathing slow and deep, make it continuous, in and out with no pauses (saturation breathing)
• Take three more breaths, then sit up

2. Limbers (10 minutes)

• Do one cycle as a practice and to let you see what we will be working towards – there are many variants

• Stand tall, feet together, hands in prayer position
• Breathe deeply, ending with out breath
• In raise arms straight above head, go into backward bend
• Out do standing forward bend, bring palms to floor
• In step back with right foot, head up
• Out raise hips and push into upward dog

• In lower hips and push up into cobra

• Out raise hips and push into upward dog
• In step forward with right foot, head up
• Out do standing forward bend, bring palms to floor
• In raise arms straight above head, go into backward bend
• Out stand tall, hands in prayer position
• Repeat to other side
• This is one complete cycle

• Stand tall arms at sides feet a few inches apart
• Close your eyes for a few minutes, observe the breathing and let the breath settle
• Now open your eyes, inhale, raise arms to horizontal, then exhale & lower x 3
• Inhale, raise arms to vertical, then exhale & lower x 3
• Inhale, raise arms above head and bend backwards, then exhale & lower x 3
• Inhale, raise arms above head and bend backwards, then exhale & lower, folding forwards from hips and bending knees to let hands touch floor x 3

• Stand tall in prayer position feet a few inches apart
• Let the breath settle again
• Push hands towards chest and down, so that forearms are horizontal, press palms together
• Inhale, raise arms above head and bend backwards, then exhale & lower, folding forwards from hips and bending knees to let hands touch floor, head pulled towards knees x 3

• Lie on your back as though you are doing Tadasana
• We’ll do some leg curls, slowly, so as to exercise the legs and hips
• Bend your right leg and point the toes as you breathe in, and bring the thigh onto the chest, keeping the left leg straight and ankle flexed (toes towards face)
• Place both hands on the right knee, clasp it and raise head towards knee as you breathe out
• Lower the head and hands as you breathe in
• Straighten the right leg and return it to the floor as you breathe out
• Repeat but bending both legs
• Repeat but bending the left leg
• Continue with the cycle – right-both-left
• Maintain breathing co-ordinated with movement – bend-in, clasp-out, unclasp-in, straighten-out
• This is a dynamic posture: the abdominal organs, especially the colon, are massaged when the knees are clasped
• The abdominal muscles are also strengthened
• Do three more cycles, then relax

• Come to a semi-supine posture, knees bent
• Place palms on thighs
• On an out-breath, slide palms up thighs, fingers beyond knees, raise head, push and hold
• Come down on an in-breath
• Repeat five times

• Sit up with your legs out straight in front of you, feet at right-angles to legs, toes pulled towards your face
• Keep the back straight. Imagine the vertebrae of the spine stacked one on top of the other
• Keep the abdomen firm, the chest out, the chin in
• Place the hands on the floor on either side of the hips, fingers pointing towards the legs
• Breathe slowly and deeply

• Bend the knees and cradle them with your arms, head on knees, balance on sitting bones (seed)
• Keeping back straight, on out breath, tilt trunk back, raise straight arms (palms facing) out to sides and raise straight legs, balancing on sitting bones (opening seed)
• Repeat 3 times
• Now repeat, raising arms to front and parallel (boat)

• Start in Dandasana
• Bend both legs back and place feet beside left hip, left foot over right, knees forward
• Place fingertips on floor beside hips
• Turn to the right, placing left fingertips beside right thigh and right fingertips beside right hip, trunk upright
• Turn left arm out and place palm under right outer thigh, fingers pointing in
• Swing right arm back and hold inside of left upper arm from behind
• Turn trunk to right and turn head to left
• Return to Dandasana
• Repeat to other side
• Massage the lower back and sides to relax muscles

• Sit back on your heels, close your eyes, rest your forehead on the floor, place your arms palms up on the floor beside your legs this is a relaxation posture
• Feel your shoulder blades relaxing, moving closer to floor
• Rest in this position, breathing freely

• Sit on your heels and put your forehead on the floor
• Exhaling, stretch your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to each other, palms on the floor and press your shoulders down close to the floor

• Inhaling, now push hips forwards and arch back and come up into supported cobra, raising the upper body
• Adjust hands if necessary so that legs are fully in contact with floor, hips down
• Return to Swan by bending knees, swinging hips back and bending back – seat may not rest on heels
• Alternate between Swan and Cobra twice more
• Take extra breaths in each position as needed

• Rest in Thunderbolt
• Do shoulder lifts and rotates
• Return to Child

• Sit on your heels and put your forehead on the floor
• Exhaling, stretch your arms straight out in front of you, parallel to each other, palms on the floor and press your shoulders down close to the floor

• Inhaling, raise head, trunk and hips into cat
• Exhaling, tuck toes under, then raise hips and straighten legs, pushing head and shoulders down towards floor, arms outstretched
• Inhaling, rise up on toes and raise seat further
• Exhaling, flatten feet, heels down
• Inhaling, return to cat
• Exhaling, return to Swan
• Alternate between Swan, Cat and Downward Dog twice more

• Rest in Thunderbolt
• Do head rotates
• Return to Child

• Start in Swan, exhaling
• Inhaling go into supported cobra
• Exhaling, tuck toes under and push up into downward dog
• Inhaling, uncurl toes, come onto knees and then go into supported cobra
• Alternate between Cobra (inhale) and Dog (exhale) three times
• End in Swan

• Sit on your heels in the thunderbolt
• Keep the back straight, head and eyes level
• If you can, your knees should be together, toes touching, with heels apart
• But if you are not comfortable sitting on your heels like this, you can put a pad behind your knees, or separate the knees, for the next few exercises
• Rest your palms on your thighs
• Relax and breathe for a few minutes

• Kneel sitting on heels with knees a hip width apart, let hands drop to sides
• Inhaling, slowly come to an upward kneeling position, keeping the back straight
• Exhale as you go down
• Go up and down slowly three times
• This strengthens and firms the muscles of the thighs

• Sit in thunderbolt
• Leaning forward, stretch back the left leg
• Then try to make the body upright
• Hold and breathe, feeling the stretch in the groin and the bend in the lumbar
• Repeat to the left

• Start from the upward kneeling position hands on hips with fingers and thumb pointing forwards, elbows back
• Put the right foot flat on the floor with knee at right angle
• Exhaling, lunge forwards, stretching back with the left leg and keeping the body upright
• Hold and breathe

• Repeat but on exhaling lean trunk forward over right thigh and place hands on floor on either side of right foot, head up

• Repeat but curl toes of back foot under, straighten both legs with head down, then bend front leg with head up

• Repeat but take weight onto hands and bring back leg forwards with foot on floor by other foot, straighten legs keeping hands on floor, head by knees
• Return back leg to kneeling on floor, head up

• Repeat kneeling on right knee, left foot flat on floor

• Sit in thunderbolt
• Massage scalp, neck, shoulders

• From Thunderbolt come to upward kneeling position
• Curl toes under and place hands on thighs
• Push up to standing

• Now let's do some cycles of the sun salutation

• Stand tall, feet together, hands in prayer position
• Breathe deeply, ending with out breath
• In raise arms straight above head, go into backward bend
• Out do standing forward bend, bring palms to floor
• In step back with right foot, head up
• Out raise hips and push into upward dog

• In lower hips and push up into cobra

• Out raise hips and push into upward dog
• In step forward with right foot, head up
• Out do standing forward bend, bring palms to floor
• In raise arms straight above head, go into backward bend
• Out stand tall, hands in prayer position
• Repeat to other side
• This is one complete cycle
• Continue for a few cycles

• Lie in Savasana

• Bend the left leg, knee out to the side, and place the foot against the inside of the leg at any point that is comfortable
• Inhaling, raise arms above the head
• Hold and breathe
• Exhaling, lower arms and leg

• Place left foot on top of right thigh, breathe freely
• Inhaling, raise arms above the head
• Hold and breathe
• Exhaling, lower arms and leg

• Repeat bending the left leg, then relax

• Lie back, bend knees over chest
• Hold knees and do squeeze curls
• Rock from side to side on lower back to massage the spine and back muscles
• Relax in corpse until breathing returns to normal

• We are going to sit in the easy posture and do some deep breathing, before relaxation
• This will help remove any excess lactic acid and urea that may have built up in the muscles
• If this is not removed, the muscle fibres tend to stick together – this is what causes stiffness
• Put on extra clothing so that you will be warm
• Sit in Dandasana
• Bend the legs and cross one shin over the other
• Rest the hands on the knees
• Keep the spine upright
• Be sure you are comfortable: if this posture is not comfortable for you, try sitting on your heels, or stay in Dandasana with your legs out straight

• Breathing is called Pranayama
• Prana = life force or vital energy, essential to life
• Yama = control
• Close your eyes
• Lengthen the back of your neck and let the chin drop a little
• Place the backs of the hands on the thighs
• Breathe normally, until fully recovered from postures

• Inhale slowly and deeply through both nostrils for a count of one
• Hold the breath for a count of four
• Exhale for a count of two

• Imagine the breath healing the body
• Concentrate on your breathing for a few minutes

• Lie on your back in Savasana, legs slightly apart, feet falling open, arms a little away from your sides, palms facing upwards, fingers loose, head centred, spine lengthened
• Or if you prefer, lie semi-supine, with your knees bent up
• Close your eyes

• Let your body settle into your mat, feel where you are in contact with the floor, supported by it
• Feel the weight of your body, allow gravity to help you relax, melting your body into the mat

• Relax and breathe normally

• Imagine now that you are lying in the open air
• The air is warm, there is a slight breeze
• Your body is lying on a soft but firm surface
• You are at the seaside, lying on the sand
• The sea is directly in front of you
• The waves move forwards and backwards on the sandy shore
• The waves rush towards you – then pause for a moment – before falling back
• You can see, hear, feel the spray, smell the sea, taste the salt as . . .
• Your whole body, mind experiences the waves as they . .

• Your body feels rested and relaxed
• Your mind feels revitalised and refreshed

• Now you are aware of your body lying on the soft but firm surface of your mat
• You are aware of this room and the people in it
• Take some deep breaths
• Begin to move your feet and your hands
• Stretch your arms above your head, stretch arms and legs in a star shape
• In your own time, roll onto your side, open your eyes, and push up into a sitting position

• Now become aware of the weight of your body lying on your mat, supported by the floor
• Become aware of this room and the other people in it
• Slowly begin to move and stretch
• When you are ready, roll over onto your side, open your eyes and sit up