Lessons

Lesson Info

Wake Up The Core

Hey, guys, it's Kristin McGee. Welcome to my powerhouse yoga program. This class, we're going to focus on waking up the core. You don't need any props. Unless, of course, you need a blocker strapped for some of the stretches or standing postures. And so let's get started at the front of Theo. Okay, so let's get started. Nice, tall, comfortable seat. You might wanna rock side to side. Pull the buttocks flashback really anchor the sits bones and then try and move a little forward over your sits bones. You can gain access to the pelvic floor muscles, but bring your heart centre back in space and start to soften the ribs. It's the very first thing we're gonna do is called TV a breaths. And I did this a lot post pregnancy with my twins because I had a di asked assist or split in the abdominals. But this is so great for all yogis to really find that core strength. So your hands are you just gonna wrap around your ribs? You're gonna inhale a breath through the back body and then exhaled? Uh h...

uh huh huh huh huh ha ha. And imagine those ribs knitting in front and the abdominals really drawing together. Inhale, exhale, huh? Huh? Huh? Huh? Huh huh ha! Shoulders down the back. One more inhale. Exhale. Ha ha ha ha ha ha ha. Really feel that shaky Shake trauma of truth in the abdominals. Feel the lift of the pelvic floor. Close the eyes resting hands on the knees in hell. A deep full breath again through the back body and start around a couple about T short, sharp exhalations out the nose. Keep pumping the abs. Feel the energy bouncing off the underside of the brain. Get rid of any stale thoughts in the mind and really start to fire up the core muscles. X x x x x x x x Begin to slow it down. Exhale, exhale, exhale, Empty all the air out. Inhale to fill up. Lift the chest to the chin. Drop the chin to the chest. Keep hollowing out the lower abdominals. Keep floating the back ribs up off of the hips. Keep engaging the route lock pelvic floor muscles and when you can no longer hold the breath in, lift the chin. Released the locks. Exhale all the air out. Beautiful. Come forward on the hands and knees. Hands under shoulders, knees under hips. I want you to really press to the inside of the palm, some and forefinger, especially in how arch and look up to the ceiling. But in your cow pose here. Still, engage the lower abdominals. Exhale round and hollow out through the spine. Pull the belly button up. You inhale arch and open. Keep a little engagement in the core here. Don't let it all hang out. Exhaling round. Scooping the belly. Took the tailbone forward towards the nose in hell Arch and exhale round. Now stay really rounded. Bring your left knee a little closer to your right knee. Pull your right knee up to your nose from your abdominals and the next hell, extend the right leg back. Look forward on the mat. Inhale. Need to nose hollow it out. Exhale, extend and lengthen long energy through the back of the knee. Inhale. Need to nose exhale, extend and lengthen. Now stay here. Balance an imaginary teacup on the lower back and stretch the left arm forward. Draw the abdominals in and up, narrow the front bottom ribs. Pull the shoulders down away from the ears. Keep lifting the inner right thigh a little higher so that the hip stay level now bring the elbow to the knee, hollow it out again and exhale. Extend inhales a tap into that core power. Exhale, inhale. Exhale now take the arm out to the side. The leg forward and come back to center hugged the midline in how reach open, exhaling close, inhale, Reach open exhaling close. Place the left hand down, push the ball the right foot into the mat. Lengthen back through the heel and stretch the Achilles and then slide the left knee forward. A tiny but turned the right hill down and raised the right arm up. Curl the tail, but under soften the shoulders down away from the ears. Find your midline here, gathered the ribs together in front, lengthen through the underside of the left body and then take your right arm and circle it around a few times. Try and stay completely stable in the core and then reverse it and then come back to hands and knees. Flip that right heel around. Bring your left knee back to meet your right leg. Senior in a plank, shoulders down, away from the ears hollow out the belly and then just drop the right knee and lift and then the left knee. Don't let anything else move right and left, right and left, right and left, right and left to more right and left last one and left. Beautiful. Drop the knees, lower the chest, the chin slide through to a baby cobra. And here, just like in your sway back horse position or your cow. Keep lifting the abdominals in and up, even in your back bend and now exhale. Press up two hands and knees, hands under shoulders, knees under hips in hell arch and look up, exhaling round and hollow. Draw the right knee a little closer to the left, took the left knee to the nose and then extend that leg straight back. Lengthen in hell. Need to nose exhale, extend. Need to nose extended. Stay stretched the right arm forward. Feel the lengthen opposition from the right hand to the left toes. Narrow the front bottom ribs. Draw the belly button of the spine and then l Bettini inhale, exhale, lengthen, inhale. Exhale in him. Exhale now, open to the side, not easy and close and open and clothes and open and close. Now place the right hand down, pushed to the ball the left foot length and back through the heel. Maybe slide your right needle forward a tiny, but turn the left heel down. Open the left arm to the ceiling, curl the tailbone under soften the shoulders down away from the years. So when you pull the scapular down away from the years and you really gather the shoulder blades onto the back, you're engaged in the secondary powerhouse. And now take their left arm and start to circle it around. Try and keep still with everything else. Pelvic floor engaged, belly button to spine. And now reverse it. Circle around and then bring your left town around is if you're gonna come back to all fours again. Press your left heel, find half of a plank scooping the abs and then stretch the right leg back to meet the left. So now one straight line energy from heels to head. Gather in the ribs. This time, both knees drop and lift. Don't move anything else, though. Inhale, exhale and X four more and three and to and one excellent. Now slowly lower through chatter. Ranga keep your ribs engage. Don't let your belly button fall open as you go into upward dog bellybuttons spine lift and exhale back to downward facing dog. Beautiful. Shake it out. Clever. Out the lips spread through the toes. Now lift your sits bones up in back and notice how that kind of splay is open the front ribs. Keep the action of the sits bones, lifting up, pelvic floor engaged, but then hug the midline. Gather the front ribs together. Find your core in your downward facing dog. Really engaged The powerhouse here shoulders come up away from the years. Smash imaginary marshmallows under your poems. Tap into your breath and as you inhale, inflate the back body and as you exhale, narrow the front body. Another deep, full breath in and deep. Full breath out. Walk the feet up to the hands, fold over the legs. Take upside elbow. You can sway a little side to side. Keep scooping in the lower abdominals to float the chest over the thighs. Now the head yes and no floor out the lips and then release the hands and really scoop through the abdominals. Tuck your tailbone under and slowly round up to stand using the power house. Stack the vertebra one on top of another step to the front of the map. Big toast. Touch heels together. So here circle the shoulders down and back. Find the opening in the collarbones in the chest and then gather the ribs together. Find that lifted the pelvic floor. Fight in the lift of the lower abdominals. Float your arms up to keep the ribs soft. Really fight to draw the ribs down, away from the fingertips, reaching up shoulders away from the years breathing. Breathe out. Engaged the pelvic floor. Breathe in, breathe out, inhale and then exhale. Swan dive forward hands. Two feet. I mean, how lengthened Forward and excel Step the right foot back to a lunge. Pushed through that right. He'll, just like we did on all fours, is if someone's yanking a sock off your back ankle, step your left foot into a plank. One straight line of energy. Draw the belly button of the spying lower chattering. Don't let your shoulders around forward. Inhale the upward facing dog. Keep driving the belly button of the spying. Exhale to downward facing dog and breathe. Inhale and exhale in here. Exhale. Lift the sits bones. Draw the belly button to the spine. Inhale X. Here, press your thumb and forefingers in him. Exhale in hell, the right foot forward lunch. Exhale the left foot forward Fold in hell. Swan Dive up to stand and exhale the arms to the sides. Inhale the arms. Come up palms. Press belly button the spine. Exhale Swan Day forward hands, two feet forehead to shin's inhale. Lengthen here, especially hall about the lower abdominals. Exhale left foot back to a lunge. Press through that heals. Been the inner left side of the ceiling, right foot to plank. One straight line of energy. Lower down through chattering. If you need to do knees, chest chin, that's fine in hell. Upward facing dog or cobra, Exhale downward facing dog and breathe. Inhale and exhale in him. Exhale. Keep gathering in the front ribs together, deep breath in and deep breath out in how left it lunges forward. Exhale right foot forward fold. Inhale swan. Dive up to stand this time. Exhale swan, dive to the floor in a lengthen and look forward. Keep looking forward as you step or hot back. Lower down, lift up press back, inhale and exhale, so triangle wrinkle free in the ankles. Lift the front of the ankles. Lift the inner thighs. Notice How is you? Engage the inner thighs. It comes right up into the pelvic floor muscles right up through the lower abdominals, and then the chest starts to float forward. Crown of the head towards the fingertips is the shoulders. Lift up him back. Keep lifting the sits bones up and then slightly curl your tailbone under. Find that kiss of the pubic bone in the tailbone to engage the pelvic floor. Take a deep breath in Excel stepper. Hop forward. Inhale, lengthen, Excel. Fold in hell spawned Eva one more time. Exhale swan, Dive down. Inhale, lengthen flat back. Exhale, step or hot back. Lower down. Inhale lift upward facing dog and exhale press to downward facing dog. Great work. Shake it out over the lips. Notice how everything starts to warm up. Keep the connection of the abdominals. Keep drying in the front bottom ribs hollowing out underneath the belly button, tipping the sits bones up to the ceiling. Take a deep breath in and the next cell stepper hop forward in how lengthen, Exhale fold. Inhale Swan, Dave and exhale arms to the side. It's beautiful in hell. Bend the knees, sit back in an imaginary chair, lift the arms up, press the palms or keep the arms shoulder with the part. So here, especially, see if you can find that core engagement. Keep lifting and lengthening out of the lower back. Soften the shoulders down. Pull the rubes together in front. Zip up a tight pair of jeans. Keep gathering in the lower abdominals. Lift the pelvic floor, set a little deeper, and then swan dive forward. Hands two feet in how lengthen exhale step were hot back to lower lift upward dog Pressed to downward dog. Turn your left till down for a step. Your right foot forward used the court to step the foot up. Come into warrior one hips forward facing belly button to spine. Exhale lower down through chatter. Ranga in hell, Upward facing dog Exhale downward facing dog is your finishing your exhale. Turn your right heel down. Step your left foot forward trying to lift your hands even more. Core work in hell up. Exhale lower inhale to lift and exhale to press, breathe and and breathe out. Wag your tail if you need to keep drawing the shoulders up away from the ears. Trying hugged the armpits around the heart center at the same time. Spread the collarbones wide. Spend the inner elbows towards each other. Press the time and four fingers down. Take a deep breath in step or hop forward in how lengthen, exhale, fold. Bend the knees. Sit back. Batasuna. Straighten and release the arms. Some of study. He in hell. Awkward chair. Exhale forward. Fold in hell. Lengthen out. Exhale, lower down in hell. Upward dog belly button. It's fine. Exhale Downward dog turned the left heel down. Step the right foot forward. Use your core in hell up Warrior one. Exhale lower down. Keep the breath flowing. Inhale Lift up. Exhale. Press back turned the right heel down. Step the left foot forward and held up toward your one tailbone under. Exhale to lower in hell toe lift and exhale to stay. Shake it out clubber. The lips is you need to spread through the toes. Try not to get lazy in the core. Keep activating the powerhouse. Keep hollowing out the lower abdominals, keeping it in the front ribs together crown of the head, lengthening forward towards the fingertips. Deep full breath in exhale stepper hop forward, Inhale, lengthen, exhale, fold. Bend the knees. Sit back, Toscana. Straightening Released. Just one more time. Inhale awkward chair. Exhale forward. Fold in hell. Lengthen out. Exhale. Lower down in how left? Exhale Press Right foot warrior one. Use the full breath in hell all the way up. Exhale to lower. Keep scooping the abs in here, especially in chattering. Go pull the belly button of the spine in hell. Upward dog. Exhale downward dog, right? He'll turns down. Left foot steps up full. Inhale Warrior one. Exhale to lower in hell toe lift. Exhale the state Great work. Shake it out again over the lips. Now float your right leg in the air. Dogs split. Try and lift from the inner right thigh faster than the outer thigh. To keep the leg nice and parallel. Take all the bends out of the right knee. Stretch the toes from the fingertips to the toes length and use your core to lift the leg a little higher and then pull the need to the nose. Scoop it out and extend back in hell. Need to nose Exhale up and back in hell Me to nose exhale up in back. Step the right foot forward. Turn the left till down. Inhale the arms up to warrior one. Keep that left hip forward facing tailbone under belly button a spine. Backman in the upper body. See how much you can use your core to find the lift in the chest. Now straight in the front leg, Lace the hands behind you. Lift and open the chest and then bend the front. Me, Go forward here. How about your abdominals? Keep shrink. Wrapping the left thigh around the thigh bone. Pull the outer right hip back in space. Hollow out your abs so much that maybe you could touch your head right to the inside of the foot. Deep full breath in deep, full breath out now in How all the way up to stand. Hop your back foot a little closer. Use your abs. Here she bring your hands behind you in a prayer or or hold opposite elbow. You have to use the core to balance. Lift your chest and then keep scooping out, scooping out those lower abs as you come forward over your right leg. Think of twisting towards your right thigh, but keep your hips level. But in that imaginary teacup, balance it on your lower back. And the sound that the years like to hear most is the oceanic sound of the breath. So come back to your breath and then train. Breathe into the back body. Philip the diaphragm Philip the back lungs exhale. Narrow the front body, skew about the abdominals and inchworm the chest down the thigh. Now bend your front. Me, Look forward. Keep your hands where they are and we'll head out. Toe Warrior three. So here, especially in the ribs together, keep lengthening out to the back thigh. Breathe through the nose. Inhale, exhale, inhale. Exhale. One more breath in here. Exhale. Step your left foot to meet your right. Sit back in an imaginary chair, Lift your arms up. Palm's Press and Swan dive forward Hands defeat. Beautiful work in how Look forward Stepper Hop lower down, lift up and press back. Take a moment. Breathe in and breathe out. Bellybutton the spine. Flip your left leg in the air. Try and raise the inner left thigh faster than the outer thigh. Keep the hips parallel, narrow the hip rims right. Imagine you have a little seatbelt coming across the right hip to the left hip, so find your core. Scoop out the abs pulled in need of the nose. Exhale, extend in hell. Need to nose exhale. Extend in hell me to nose excel. Extend. Step the left foot through turn the right hill down. Lift the arms up the RBA. Just no one tailbone under belly. Button the spine back into the upper body. Now straighten the front leg. Lace the hands behind you, but try and swap the thumb that's on top. Break pattern and Halbert habits. Lift the chest and then bin the front mean come forward had inside the knee, arms reaching overhead. Press your inner right thigh up to the ceiling. Rain your outer left hip back in space. Hollow out the abs. Breathe through the nose. One more. Inhale and exhale in how all the way up to stand. Use your core here for stability. Him balance. Step the right foot a little closer. You can just do elbows up the back of pros too much. Otherwise, make that prayer, lift the chest, open the heart and then come forward. Keep pressing down the left big toe mound and then haul about those lower abs. Pull the belly button of the spine as you come over your front leg and breathe in him. Exhale, inhale. Exhale in how? Look forward. Step out. Toe Warrior three, float the right leg up. Soften the shoulders down. Lift the ribs up, away from the mat. Pull the belly button of the spine. Step the right foot. Next to the left. Come into Batasuna. Straighten! Release the arms to the sides. Excellent. Step open on your mat. We're gonna turn the right toes out to the right. Come into Trico Nocerina Here. I want you to really think of hollowing out the abs. Reach all the way out to the side and then come in to side triangle. Stack the left hip over the right. Look up to the left hand. Narrow yourself between two imaginary walls. Think of shortening the left side a tiny bit to lengthen the right side more. Keep finding the core breathing and breathe out in how to stand. Exhale Warrior. To adjust your stances, you need Teoh. So here. Don't let that left hip hike keep your hips level. Take your hands to your ribs. Float your backrooms up off your hips from that area. Find the scoop. Find the length through the torso. Pull the belly button of the spine. Sink the hips deep. Engage the pelvic floor. Look over the front hand, soften the shoulders, inhale reverse it and exhale. Come into an extended side angle top arm long overhead from the outer left foot through the left fingers. Keep lengthening and breathe. If you want to go towards a bind, you can right hand inside here, scooping the abs and create space to open into that back bend. And then in that bind, you can always work on straightening out the front leg if you'd like, And then we're gonna head out to half moon. So if you want to challenge your core and keep the bind, you can try and go to abound. Half moon. It's a lot of core, a lot of stability. You can also just go into a regular half moon flexi that back foot look up to the hand, breathe in the nose. Don't let your right toes turn in and then use your core to gently step back. Warrior two. Straighten out the front leg. Pivot the toes in. Come all the way to the left side into Trico Nassan, a left hand down, right arm up shoulders melt away from the years belly button to spying. Curl the tailbone under slightly inhale and exhale. So if you're between two imaginary walls, the right hand would press into the wall in front of it. Helps spin the chest to the ceiling in hell. Up to stand. Exhale Warrior to adjust your feet as you need to keep your hips level. Work the left knee open to the left. Poll. The belly button it's find float the back rubs up. Really find your core power. Think I'm knitting the front moves together. Scoop out the lower abs. Engaged the pelvic floor. Inhale to reverse it. Exhale extended side angle long reach of energy from the outer right foot through the fingers. Soften the shoulders, breathe through the nose. If you want to go into a deeper mind, you can open through the chest. Backman through the upper body. And don't forget about the court. So easy to let it go right. Pull the belly button of the spine. And then maybe you could work on straightening out that front leg in abound Triangle. You can also try bound half moon, which is really pretty tricky. It's almost easier to stay looking down at the floor, and then you could go into disarray regular half moon or to start in a regular half man yogis Choice. Flex to that back foot, Breathe through the nose, find your core, hollowing out the abs and then come all the way back into Warrior two straight in the left leg. Pivot the toes in here, hands pressed down back ribs, float up, belly button a spine, open the chest and then come all the way forward into straddle. Lengthen out to a flat back, scooping the abs and take the top of the head to the floor. Elbows pullback. Bellybutton draws in deep, full breath through the nose, deep full breath out. So here's a place where you can activate the court and you could work on tripod headstand using the inner thighs, the pelvic floor, the lower abs to lift the legs up, narrow the elbows. Find that secondary powerhouse I mentioned before scapula dress together, up away from the years. Hands pressed down. Float the back, rubs up. Lengthen out of your lower back. Use your legs, engage the thighs, reach the toes to the ceiling, and then you can start to bring the legs down. Slowly, carefully in hell. Look up. Exhale hands to hips. Come up to Stan. Step back to the front of the matter. Big toast. Touch heels together, some a steady he inhale. Bend the knees. Come back in awkward share pose. Scoop out the abs, and now we're going to start to lower all the way down. Keep drying the belly button of the spine. Have a seat. Float your legs up to boat. Beautiful. So Joseph ladies also studied a lot of yoga, and this is also similar to teaser. Pose, right, so the belly button is drawn in and up. Try and float the back ribs trained, Lengthen out through the legs. Keep breathing through the nose, and they were going to slowly start to roll down onto our backs. And when the shoulder blades hit the floor, I want you to catch your right knee and pull it into your chest. Keep your shoulders down away from your ears, elbows wide and then switch. Now think of your tailbone. Getting heavy. Narrow that front seatbelt. Pull the ribs together, and then switch and switch. Switch and switch, Switch and switch such and switch such switch. Switch switch. Now we're gonna do double leg stretch, so you hold both ankles. Reach the arms and legs away. Circle the arms around, then hugged the legs in reach. Circle. Pull off. Reach circle. Pull tailbone Heavy. Reach circle. Poll. Reach circle. Pull. Narrow the ribs. Reach circle. Pull three more. Reach, circle. Pull. Reach, circle. Pull. Reach, circle. Pull. Now you do a straight leg kick so it's pull. Pull, switch, pull. Pull, switch. Think of a little pull. Pull action. The higher you reach to the ankle, the harder it is for the abs. Keep shoulders down away from the years. Keep the tailbone heavy And then there are the ribs. Pull, pull, pull, Pull. Lengthen through the sides. Pull, Pull poeple poeple. Pope will try to some single leg kicks. Eight. Seven, six five for three to one. Now heels together. Toes turned out. Hands behind the head. Sink the tailbone near the ribs. Lower and lift the legs. Not much just a little bit from the pelvic floor. Three, four, five, six, seven and eight. Now bend your knees and finished with a crisscross twist to three for for six. Look to the back elbow. Seven eight, eight seven, six five. Keep the shoulder blades off the floor if you can. Three to one. Beautiful work. Lower down. Hug your knees into your chest. Just rock a little side to side. Take the hands on the knees and let the knees drop forward so the elbows are straight. Point the toes up into a tabletop. Stretch the arms up to the ceiling. This is the bug. We're gonna take the right arm back the left leg forward. Try not to let anything else move. Come center and then switch and center and switch center and switch. It's like rubbing your head and you're patting your head and rubbing your tummy. But really try and stay connected and strong here. Don't let anything else move, but the one on one leg. Keep dropping the tailbone. Keep drying the belly button of the spine. One more each side, kind of like we did on the all force in the beginning. Now hands to use again. Lift the head and neck up. Create a little bit of turbulence in the abs. Push the hands into the knees. Pull the news into the hands. Keep dropping the tailbone heavy. Keep breathing through the nose. Knees can stay bent, or you can extend your legs long. We're going to do the hundreds in hell. Pump the arms five times. Exhale at the mouth pump. If in him, Excel Inhale XL three in him. Exhale four. Exhale five. Almost there halfway. Sh Exhale six Exhale seven. Really pump those arms from the triceps. Back of the arms Excel H Tailbone Heavy XL nine. Belly button a spine Exhale 10. Release a head and neck and then lower the legs all the way down on the mat. Beautiful. Separate your feet about hip width. Stretch arms to the ceiling. Stretch arms back. Don't let your ribs splay open. Just we've been talking about this entire time. Keep knitting those front rooms together. Inhale round yourself up. Exhale, Reach past your toes. Belly button is following in hell. Lower down. Exhale the arms. Go back in hell to round up scoop, scoop, scoop, Exhale to reach in hell to lower Exhale arms back and hell up. Fight, fight, Fight for used the abs, Not the arms of the upper body Reach and how lower arms back one more time. Inhale. Try not to use momentum. Exhale now and I'll come up to sit nice and tall Kind of just like we began. Move forward over your sits bones, but then draw your ribs back in space Take your arms out in front of you. This is spine stretch forward, which is a lot like Don Dawson. A staff pose in yoga where we really want to find that connection. Lifting out the lower back stain forward on the sits bones, engage the pelvic floor. Think of your ribs floating up. Offer your hips is you round into yourself. Take the head towards the belly button and then come back up to sit tall, as tall as you can. Pull the ribs together. Pelvic for engaged in house scoop. Exhale round and how lift Sit tall. One more scoop and round and lift. Sit tall and then from this position, think of that scoop in lift and then come all the way forward over your legs into passion. Moten Asano. Soften the shoulders at the head and neck. Go breathe through the nose. It's a continual process to keep finding the strength of our core, the lift of our abdominals, the engagement of the pelvic floor muscles. It's like a little pilot light that we kind of light at the base of our spine and let it flicker up. And then we keep lengthening out of our lower back so we don't squash your kidneys and keep the battery packs nice and fluid, the energy alive when my favorite Pallotti's teachers always says shrinking is stinking, so we keep finding that lengthen our practice and then come on up, bring soles of feet together, knees apart about a can ascena. Same idea. See if you can lift up out your lower back. Draw the belly button of the spine. Come forward. Nice stretch for the lower back for the inner thighs and the hip flexors, which sometimes want to take over when we're practicing core work. Come on up. Gather the needs together one more time coming to your teaser or your boat. Lift and lengthen out of your lower back, soften the shoulders come all the way down to your back and then see if you can come all the way back up. Lower lower. Lower lift. Lift. Lift. Lower, lower, Lower. One more time. Lift, lift, lift, Stay holed, breathe. And this time, lower all the way down and just let your feet drop open to the sides and let your eyes close. Let your body melted to the floor. What your breath. Soften that everything. Surrender and start to wiggle fingers and toes and stretch the arms long overhead and lengthen out through. The legs can gather in the knees and world one side. Use your abs to rock yourself up to sit. Find that comfortable seat like we began. Close the eyes. Rest of hands on the knees. See if you can come forward over your sits bones. Find the lift of the pelvic floor. Spread the collarbones, lift the chest and then soften the ribs. Draw the belly amount of the spine. Lengthen tall out in the lower back. Take a deep full breath in, and then about forward sealing the practice. Give your abs a nice little rub, a little hug and nomis day