Spring Morning

movement & breath

Welcome the dawn with 15 minutes of guided awareness, gentle stretching, and soothing breath to awaken your mind and body for the potential of a new day.

With the spring season comes all the excitement and anticipation of another chance—new ways to grow and expand. But growth can be scary, frustrating… even painful. Honestly, spring can be kind of annoying. As can waking up.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM), the spring season is the time of the Liver and Gallbladder, the element Wood, and the energy of Wind—associated with feelings of frustration, anger, and overwhelm. The Liver, aka “the General,” holds the title of emotional regulator and life force manager. It’s a regenerative organ, connected to what’s known as the ethereal soul—the part of us that holds our dreams, our sense of direction, our ability to imagine and plan.

This practice is a way to connect to that part of you—before you do anything else. A moment to breathe, feel, and clear space for whatever wants to emerge. No need to get up. Just stay exactly where you are and begin again.

Begin quotation.
The Ethereal Soul — Hun — known as the dark, intuitive, and non-rational side of human nature, is responsible for our dreams and visions and is housed by the Liver. Hun is connected to the Liver’s role as the General who makes plans and influences our capacity for decision-making and finding a sense of direction. It stimulates the activities of the Mind by providing input such as intuition, creativity, ideas, and images. It is the source of our life’s dreams, imagination, vision, and creativity. It helps us plan for life with foresight and creativity, organize possibilities into patterns, and find direction.”

~ The Five Shen, Dr Jason Chong, Dantian Health

Class Sequence

Eye Tension Release

Rub your palms together to build heat energy. Cup them over your eyes. Seal out the light. Feel the warmth of your hands soften the edges of your eyes.

Humming Breath

Bhramari Pranayama (Bee’s/Humming Breath) stimulates your Vagus nerve with the gentle sound vibration of your own voice. You can simply cover your ears, or plug your thumbs into your ears and cover your eyes with your fingers. Inhale through your nose and hum as you exhale.

Equal Inhale/Exhale

Rest your right hand over your chest, left hand over your abdomen. Breath in for a count of 1 2 3 4 5. Breath out for 5 4 3 2 1. Count up and down your breath for a few 3-5 rounds, adjusting the count to support your breath capacity.

Diaphragm Release

Walk your fingers …

Knees to Chest

Walk your fingers …

Supported Spinal Twist

Walk your fingers …

Dead Bug Wrist/Ankle Joint Rotations & Shaking

Walk your fingers …

Floating Butterfly

Walk your fingers …

Sphinx

Walk your fingers …

Seated Sciatic Nerve Glide

Extend/bend knee

Ankle to Knee Stretch

Extend/bend knee