Recent Articles in Gentle

Duration: 26 minutes

Emphasis:  This sequence focuses on Seated Forward Bend (Paschimottanasana). Forward bends are known to help quieten the mind and the nervous system and will give you a good stretch to your back and the back of the legs.

Props needed: 2 blocks, a blanket and a belt or tie from a bathrobe.

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 1 hour 7 minutes

Emphasis:  A lovely long and relaxing class that takes you from twist to side bend to forward bend to backbend with a little segment of exercises for sacral stability too.

Props needed: 2 blankets (you may like to have a folded blanket to pad your mat to make it comfy) and 2 blocks or a bolster for some of the poses.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 21 minutes

Emphasis:  Move your whole body from top to toe whilst seated on a chair. This class is perfect if you're low on energy, feeling under the weather or nursing an injury and will help you to breathe better and release tension too.

Props needed: A chair (obviously! ;-) ) plus a block or book to put your feet on so, if your feet don't fully touch the ground, they can be flat on the floor and your knees can be level with your hips, plus you might like a blanket to sit on if your chair has a hard edge.

Mat direction: N/A.

Duration: 1 hr 19 minutes.

Emphasis:  Enjoy some slow and gentle sequences of kneeling, seated and supine stretches including Crescent Moon Pose (Anjaneyasana), Head to Knee Pose (Janu Sirsasana), Sage Twist Pose (Marichyasana III), Half Frog Pose (Ardha Mandukasana) and Wide Angle Seated Forward Bend (Upavista Konasana).

Props needed: 2 blocks or books, a yoga belt or tie from a bathrobe or similar and a blanket to kneel on and/or cover yourself in Savasana if required.

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 5 minutes

Emphasis:  A simple breathing practice to relax your body and quieten your mind. As you breathe in and out for a count of 5 you will also be helping to your lungs and your diaphragm to become more flexible and expansive.

Props needed: None needed.

Mat direction: N/A.

Duration: 27 minutes

Emphasis:  In this supine and seated class we'll move the hips through their range of movement with poses such as Supine Tree Pose (Supta Vrksasana), Side Reclining Leg Lift Pose, also known as Vishnu's Couch Pose (Anantasana), Sphynx Pose (Salamba Bhujangasana), Wide Angle Seated Forward Bend (Upavista Konasana) and both the seated and supine variations of Bound Angle Pose, also known as Cobblers Pose, (Baddha Konasana).

Props needed: A belt, strap or tie from a bathrobe plus a blanket for under your hips and for Savasana if required.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 12 minutes

Emphasis:  In this short and gentle sequence you'll be seated on a chair to stretch the front, back and sides of your body, take a twisting pose, bring mobility to your feet and ankles and take a variation of Chair Pose (Utkatasana).

Props needed: A chair.

Mat direction: n/a

Duration: 10 minutes

Emphasis:  In this next in the series of tutorials on modifying Sun Salutation to suit your needs, we swap the traditional lowering down to the ground via Knees Chest Chin Pose, aka Eight Limbed Pose, (Ashtanga Namaskara) followed by Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana) or 4 Limbed Staff Pose (Chaturanga Dandasana) followed by  Upward Facing Dog (Urdhva Mukha Svanasana) for a version that takes the weight off your wrists and onto your forearms, making it more accessible for those who have wrist and shoulder problems or just find the actions of lowering down too challenging. We then take Sphynx Pose (Salamba Bhujangasana) which is a gentler backbend than Cobra.

Props needed: Maybe a blanket to kneel on.

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 8 minutes

Emphasis:  In this variation of Surya Namaskar (the Sanskrit name for Sun Salutations), I show how you can progress to the next stage without having to lower down to the ground to take a backbend, or compromise your wrists and/or shoulders in Downward Facing Dog. Instead, we'll do Cat and Cow Pose and half variation of Downward Facing Dog that will help you keep the pressure off those tricky areas.

Props needed: A blanket to kneel on.

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 8 minutes

Emphasis:  In the next tutorial in this series on modifying Sun Salutations, we move to a standing variation that uses the chair for balance and support. This is a good option if you have knee issues that prevent you from kneeling on the floor, whilst still giving you all the different movements of a standard Sun Salutation. You'll be stretching and strengthening your body and increasing your mobility whilst honouring your limitations.

Props needed: A chair.

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 10 minutes

Emphasis:  In this tutorial we'll explore the very gentlest form of Sun Salutation, seated on a chair. Expect the same 'flow' of forward bends and backbends as a standard Sun Salutation but, if you have an injury or a health condition that limits you in some or all of the movements, this variation might be just the ticket for you to experience this sequence that moves all your major joints and muscles. 

Props needed: A chair.

Mat direction: Long edge of the mat facing the screen.

Duration: 1 hour 18 minutes

Emphasis:  A slow and steady class with sequences that include Balancing Cat Pose, also known as Balancing Table Pose, (Dandayamana Bharmanasana), Side Angle Pose (Utthita Parsvakonasana) and Warrior 2 Pose (Virabhadrasana II). We'll then practise Pose of Shiva (Tandavasana) which is a gentle balancing and side-stretching pose, before coming down to the floor for some seated twists and forward bends.

Props needed: A blanket, 2 blocks or books to put under your hands and a strap or tie.

Mat direction: Short edge of the mat facing the screen.