Hello, everyone. Tutu Mora here with The Y bringing you tools to feel well
in your body, mind and spirit. So, today we're gonna focus on those muscles that
can get a little tense from all the phone holding, all the looking down at the
phone. I know we're all guilty of this and that's okay, but that's why we're
here today: just to loosen a little bit of that up. So, all you'll need is a
thera-band, if you have it. If you do not, you can just bring with you a pair of
yoga pants or anything that's stretchy with a little bit of give to it. And then,
you'll also need a yoga mat. We'll be lying down on that in just a moment.
So, I'd invite you just to step back. You're gonna have your feet about parallel, sit-
bone distance apart here. And if you've got your thera-band or yoga pants with you,
you can just set that this side for a moment and we're gonna take a little scan of the
spine is feeling here by doing a roll down. So, I'll have you just gently
tuck the chin, and then articulating down as much as feels comfortable, so stopping
wherever you feel any tension or tightness and just observing where that
is in your body. So, maybe you can roll all the way down and touch the floor and
if you can't, that's okay. But, let's do that one more time. Again, just noticing
where you're holding that tension or tightness in your body.
And rolling all the way back up here. And so, you can go ahead and grab that pair
of yoga pants here, or your thera-band. And we're gonna take a moment just to
find our posture. So, I'm going to stand to the side so you can see me, and we're
going to stand with our throat kind of a little bit behind our heart space. And I
want you to imagine that your heart is on a little string up towards the
ceiling, so not out, rather up. So, find however that posture feels for you and
that alignment and then we're going to strengthen that posture with the
thera-band. So, finding your posture and we're just going to gently hold that
band out in front of us, elbows bent here. And we're going to open that band and
close the band. And so, we'll do that just a few more times here, opening and
closing, really allowing that posture to be maintained. So, as you open the band,
you don't want to flare out those ribs. Keeping that posture in alignment as you
open and close the band. And so, now, we're going to open the band, sending it up and
closing it here. We'll do that a couple more times, really allowing those
shoulders to stay down and away from the ears. We'll do that one more time and
then we'll expand on it. So, opening that band and sending those arms up.
And now, we're going to close the band. Opening it here, when we send it up now,
we're going to send that band behind the head. So, holding onto that posture,
keeping that throat behind the heart space. And then, bringing the arms down
again, closing the band. And we'll do that one more time, really letting that
posture stay and only bringing in the range of movement that you can keep your
posture in alignment here. And closing the band.
So, you can go ahead and set that aside now, and you can
lay down on your mat. So, I'm gonna stay standing here just so you can see the
way my shoulders and arms are moving and then you can do that as you're lying
down on the mat. So, as you're lying, just finding your knees bent, feet planted on
the mat, again, about hip-distance apart here. And we're mostly gonna be focusing
on the upper body. And so, we'll start with the left side here. I'll step back a
little bit. So, you're lying on the mat, so imagine that
I am, as well. So, you're looking at me from above and your arm is going to be
about a 90 degree angle here at your side. And so, taking a second just to let
that shoulder relax away from the ear, and we're going to just open that arm
out, again, keeping that shoulder down. And then, closing it here, back to your
midline. And then, slowly just opening it out, letting that bottom of your arm just
slide along the top of the mat there. So, let's do that two more times here.
Letting that shoulder sink, so you feel that stretch along the inside of of the arm
there. Last time. And so, the same side we're gonna open that arm out now, and
step to the side so you can see the length of my arm, we're gonna just open
that arm straight out. And while you're here, I want you to give a little reach to
all those fingertips, as if you're gonna shoot laser beams out the fingertips.
And then, keeping that shoulder down, you're gonna bring that thumb in towards your
armpit. So, bending the arm again. And as your thumb comes in towards your armpit,
you're going to give a little reach out through your shoulder tip. And then, again,
opening that arm out, reaching through those fingertips, closing it here, just
bending the elbow thumb back in towards the armpit, giving that little reach
through the elbow tip. And then, last time here, opening that arm out,
reaching through those fingertips. And then, thumb back in towards the armpit,
reaching through that elbow. And let's pause here for a big breath. So, breathing
as if that breath could swirl in around that whole shoulder area. So, just giving
a little bit more space. And on your exhale, letting that shoulder sink even
a little bit more. Find a little bit more reach through that elbow tip before you
bring back that 90 degree angle and close the arm. And then you can relax
that arm at your side, taking a moment just to feel the difference in between
those two shoulders and arms. And then, we'll take it to the other side. So, of
course, knowing that one, probably your dominant side, is going to be a little
tighter than the other. So, it'll be a slightly different experience on the
other side. Moving over to the right, let's bring that 90 degree angle in with
the arm by your side. And we'll start by just opening that arm out, keeping that
90 degree angle, letting that shoulder stay down and away from the ears, before
closing that back. And we'll take that two more times here, going as slow
as you need to. So, I welcome you just to listen to your body and feel into what
movement and what speed feels good for you. So, slow is always going to be a good
space for you to listen. And so, now, we're gonna open that arm out again,
and we're gonna just straighten the arm, giving yourself a moment to reach
through all those fingers as if you're shooting laser beams
out of those fingertips, making sure that shoulder stays down and away from the
ears before you bring that thumb in towards your armpit, reaching through
that elbow tip. And, again, opening the arm out, reaching through those fingertips, and
thumb back in towards the armpit, giving yourself that reach. And we'll take that
one more time, opening that straight arm, giving yourself a reach through all
those fingertips, playing around maybe with which fingertip feels like you'd get
the most stretch and maybe hanging out there for a little bit longer, before
then, bringing that thumb back in towards the armpit, reaching through the elbow tip, and let's
take a big breath. So, letting that breath, again, just swirl in and around the whole
shoulder, creating width and space, before then, bringing that arm back to 90 degree angle
and slowly closing that back toward your body. And then, you can let that arm rest,
as well, maybe taking a second and getting to tune in to both sides of the
body and seeing how they feel. And so, you can go ahead and stand back up again.
And we're just going to finish the way we started here. So, now that your arms are a
little bit looser, let's find our feet parallel, hip-distance apart again and
start that roll down by gently tucking the chin.
And rolling. And as far down
as feels comfortable, before you just slowly stack that all the way
back up, letting those shoulders relax. So, I hope that you found this supportive.
I hope that you're feeling a little bit looser and a little bit more free of
tension in your upper body. And I'll see you back here next time on The Y's
YouTube channel with more tools to feel well in your body, mind and spirit.
Take care.