Autumn Equinox Flow

 🍁Hey Beautiful Souls!

Happy Autumn Equinox!! The leaves may or may not be changing where you live, maybe due to lack of rain, or or too much heat, but they'll be changing soon if not already! This season is so FULL of beautiful, shifting energy! This is the season where Summer stands up, bids farewell, meets Fall with a kiss, and Fall takes the seat! We shift from the sun-filled, yang, highly energetic summer activities, and begin to turn inward, and slow down, welcoming in this yin, cool, feminine energy. We welcome in the balance with a warm embrace. We find balance in this day, the Fall Equinox, experiencing equal lengths of light and dark, sun and moon, activity and rest. If we have no balance, we begin to suffer. Too much of anything can make us unwell. And so, we find health, and vitality in the balance!

🍂During the Autumn Equinox we look at what we may have been working toward all year, through spring and summer, and today, we begin to harvest and reap what we've been sowing. We allow ourselves to let go of anything heavy, releasing this burden from our shoulders, and from the mind, sending it all into the breeze, allow the wind to carry it all far away, no longer needed for us to carry. Air is the element of freedom. We gain clarity in this stillness, in this slower season. We remove any obstacles that have kept us from believing in ourselves, from pursuing our deepest desires. We've been manifesting new beginnings, change, and new paths! And here, in this harvest season, we allow those to come into fruition and come to life! Our habits and our patterns become illuminated, and we experience a great awakening!

🍁I found this quote and I loved these words for our Fall Equinox!!

"Dear Autumn, your presence speaks to my soul, and I can not wait for our next conversation. Awaken in me a sense of peace, clarity, and fulfillment. May I allow myself to let go of all that is heavy, so that I may see the beauty that lies right in front of me."

As the temperature lowers, breezes begin to swirl around us, gathering fallen leaves, we enter this cool, windy, airy season of Autumn. The ancient Greeks used two words for AIR: aer meant the dim lower atmosphere, and aether meant the bright upper atmosphere above the clouds. The ancient Chinese concept of Qi, or chi is believed to be close to that of air. Qi is believed to be part of every living thing that exists, as a kind of spiritual energy, or energy flow, similar to the Indian prana, life force energy, and breath, pranayama. 

🍁During the Fall season, the air element also coincides with Vata energy!

Ayurveda medicine is an alternative medicine system with historical roots in the Indian subcontinent. It is heavily practiced throughout India, Nepal, Bangladesh, Pakistan and Sri Lanka, and is becoming more widespread in other countries, and in the west. Ayurveda therapies have varied and evolved over more than two millennia.Therapies include herbal medicines, special diets, meditation, yoga, massage, and oils. 

In Ayurvedic medicine, there are three doshas, or three elemental energies found both in nature and in the body: vāta, pitta and kapha. Balance of the doshas results in optimal health, while imbalance can lead to illness and poor health. 

🍂The Vata Dosha is the Ayurvedic mind-body element associated with air and space. It’s light, cool, and dry in nature, and it governs all movement and processes in your mind and body—including processes like blood flow, elimination, breathing, and the movement of thoughts in your mind. 

🌾 If you have a predominantly Vata constitution, the qualities of Vata dosha (light, cool, dry, quick) will be noticeably expressed in your mind and body. Your body is probably naturally thin and slender. Your hands and feet may tend to get cold easily, and your skin is cool and dry to the touch (especially in your extremities). Your sleep may sometimes be a bit elusive, or easily disturbed.

Intellectually, you have an agile mind that moves quickly—though you may be prone to forget things just as easily as you learn them! Your emotions are likely fluid as well. People with strong Vata tendencies are creative, dynamic, whirlwind types who often find themselves rushed or in a hurry.

Vata in BalanceVata Out of Balance• energetic and vivacious• tired and/or fatigued• learns easily• lack of focus or forgetful• clear and alert mind• spaced out or scattered• falls asleep easily at bedtime• difficulty falling asleep• balanced digestion and elimination• occasional constipation, gas, wind• good circulation and even body temperature• can feel cold physically• poor circulation - cold hands and feet• feelings of anxiousness or worry

🍁Click the link below to take the Dosha Quiz to see which dosha best fits who you are! 

Dosha Quiz

🍂We began our Fall Equinox in a Deer pose, bringing our right shin to the top of our mat, left shin to the left long side of our mat, and melt forward over the right knee, grounding our right cheek to a stack of blocks, grounding into the earthy asana. We found our pranayama practice, our 3 part breath, deep inhales in through the nose into the root, sacrum, solar plexus, and a long slow exhale through the mouth. Each round we move up into the chest, filling the lungs, expanding the ribs, on the third round, up to the crown, and each round our exhale becomes slower, longer, activating our parasympathetic nervous system. I always see deer out in the forest as the temperature decreases, hues of orange, red, and yellow bathing the limbs and forest floor. We brought our knees through center, palms ground behind us, to windshield wipe the knees left to right, and then finding our Deer pose on the left side. 

We celebrated the Fall Equinox in our Deer pose, eyes closed as we began our Bonfire Meditation! With the eyes closed, we envision the dark night's sky, stars illuminating above, silhouettes of pines and cedar trees surround us, we see a bonfire glowing orange before us, wooden logs stacked within a stone circle, our friends & family circled around us, smiles widened across beautiful faces. We notice what we hear around us, the crackling of the fire, the hoot of an owl, laughter and chatting between our circle of friends. We notice what we smell, burning wood, smoke rising to the sky, pine of the trees, earthy soil beneath us, maybe the scent of a warm mug of chai tea, espresso, or hot chocolate. (I sprayed a blend above us in studio, notes of Palo Santo, cedar wood, and white sage.) We notice what we taste, perhaps a sip of that warm held beverage between our hands, or a bite of pumpkin muffin, or roasted marshmallow alone or between chocolate and graham crackers, a delicious s'more. Finally, we notice what we feel against the skin, the warmth of the fire, the cool, crisp night air, a soft sweater or blanket around us, that warm mug between the hands. We flutter the eyes open, coming back into the studio, feeling our mat beneath us, serving as our anchor, our home, shedding the layers that daily life can accumulate, as we return home to our true selves, feeling lighter, finding balance, and freedom. 

🍁We brought our left knee forward to meet the right, and windshield wiped the knees left to right, inhaling, floating the knees and hands, Navasana, Boat pose, exhale lower and hover, 3 times, and arriving on our backs, inhale extend the hands overhead, toes reaching forward, full body stretch, exhaled and hugged the knees into the chest, finding a rock side to side, massaging the low back, a lumbar massage. We extended once more, and reached the arms and legs to the right upper and lower corners of the mat into our Crescent Moon sideband, honoring our sun, masculine, active, movement, warm side, melting the shoulders and the hips, grounding to the earth, finding safety here. We floated through center, and extended our Crescent Moon to the left side, honoring our moon, slow, yin, cool, rested, feminine side. We extended through center, hugged the knees into the chest, and found a supine twist to the right and to the left, smoothing out the shoulder blades along the earth. We hugged the knees in through center, and rock 'n rolled along our spine two or three times into a comfortable seat, crossing the legs, or finding a Half Lotus, or even Fire Logs!

🍂We anchored the sit bones, spine lengthened to the crown, crown to the sky. We formed our Anjali mudra with the hands to send gratitude to the lungs, keepers of the air element. We released our mudra and rubbed the palms together to create some heat, some healing energy, and cupped the hands to the eyes, sending healing energy to the soul. We floated the hands up to the crown, sending healing energy to the mind, calming the chatter, the constant activity. Sometimes the mind gets stuck in the past, ruminating over things that have been, or the mind travels too far forward into the future with worry, but it is here, in this moment, that the body is always present. We bring the left hand to the forehead, and  the right hand to the base of the skull, stimulation to the vagus nerve, we tell the brain that the body is safe here. Hands float to the heart, we set an intention for our class, for our day, our week ahead. We released it, reaching the hands to the sky and to the right for a twist, peeling the right shoulder back to open the chest 5% more. We arched the right hand to the sky and toward the left knee to open the side body, and then brought it to the left knee, crossing the arms, arching the back and dripping the chin. We twisted to the other side, and then came through center, planted the fingers behind us, opened the chest, arching the spine into a backbend, and then walked the hands forward into a fold. We unraveled the legs and melted the hips back into a child’s pose, walking the hands to the right, center, and left. 

🍁We slowly rolled the spine, arching the back, brushing the fingertips along the mat toward the knees, the chin dripping toward the chest, until our glutes met the heels, and then the spine waving long, crown reaching to the sky, the shoulders melting back, and the spine concaves, the arms extend out to the sides, and up, palms together, to the heart, and melting forward, walking the fingertips into a forward fold. We repeated this spinal wave in Childs pose 2 more times, delighting in this spinal awakening of the body. We walked the hands back toward the knees, knees then met, as we sat onto the heels into our hero pose. We inhaled, brought the hands to the back of the head, opened the chest with a deep inhale, elbows reaching out, exhaling we curled the back and cradled the head, forearms toward each other or meeting. Two more times in our cradle head breath, and then extending the fingers to the sky, and melting one hand down, the other arching over for sidebands on each side, another backbend, and then we melted forward into our puppy, into our forearms, knees under the hips, tail to the sky, grounding to the earth in this airy season.

🍂Our cat cow flow followed as we warmed up the spine, adding in organic movement, hips swaying side to side, or rolling forward and back into Childs pose waving back and forward into our table top. We moved to our breath, our own pace, making our cat cow our own. Inhale reach the gaze and right toes to the sky, bending at the knee, into our Fox, exhale knee to nose, inhale 2 more times, on the third, left hand reaches for the right foot, holding our Fox tail. Release the right foot to the back of our mat, left knee up into the chest, curl the back, chin drips, left shin down, right leg floats, 2 more times, on the third, right leg crosses over the left, out side the mat, gaze follows over the left shoulder. Gaze floats through center, right knee tucks in behind the left, hands walk to the right, hips melt back, Crossed Leg Childs pose. Inhale we roll forward, hands ground top of the mat, as we unravel right leg out to the right side, extending long, melt the hips back, 1-leg Childs pose. Inhale we roll forward, right knee in to meet the left, a round of cat cow, then we honored the left side of our Fox warm up! We flowed through downward dog- plank waves, pranam knees chest chin, into a low cobra, and up into our downward dog. We floated to the top of our mats to meet in Tadasana, our mountain pose. We felt the grounding energy from the earth pull at the soles of our feet from the toes to the arches to the heels, like roots of a tree pulling us into he soil, anchoring us. This energy circled around the legs, to the pelvis, the hips, around each vertebrae of the spine to the shoulders as they melt down from the ears. The crown reaching for the heavens, we are stable, rooted, and anchored. 

🍁Our Tadasana flowed into our fun Fall vinyasa flow forming crescent moons, palms together overhead, Sidebend to the right, through center to the right, through center, with control, hands to heart float down into a Toe Squat, open the arms out, right hand toward the earth, thumb meets index finger, left hand same mudra floats to the sky, arms in a diagonal line, and then switching arms opposite sides, Flying Owl. This flow will be hands free! Try your best to not touch down the fingers or hands until completely needed! Hands to heart center, lift up and step the left foot back, Cresent Warrior, twist to the right, elbow hooks the knee, deep inhale in, exhale pivot and melt to the left foot, Skandasana, inhale to the right foot, Crescent Warrior twist, exhale left foot Skandanasana, inhale right foot, Crescent Warrior twist, plant the back foot, we rise Warrior I, hands overhead, shoulders melt, inhale cactus the arms, find a bind behind the back, interlaced fingers or Reverse Namaste, inhale we lift, heart open, exhale humble in, leaning forward toward the knee, bind to the sky, inhale life, exhale humble, 3 times, then float forward, Warrior 3 square hips to the earth, left leg floats, still binding the hands, inhale strong through the right leg, horizontal line of energy from the crown to the left heel, exhale left foot taps down to the right of our mat, inhale lift, exhale curtsy tap, 3 times, left foot steps back, we lift with our bind, Warrior I, exhale humble in, melting into our WideLeg fold, bind to the sky, bend into the right knee, melt the chest toward the right thigh, through center, to the left, center, we inhale rising up 5-pointed Star, exhale Goddess, deep bend in the knees, cactus the arms. Palms to heart center, inhale into the right foot, left foot meets the right leg into our Tree, growing our branches, exhale step the left foot, Exalt your Warrior, inhale into your tree, exhale float through center. Inhale into the left foot, into your Tree, exhale step the right foot back, Exalted Warrior, inhale forward into your tree, exhale through center, Goddess, inhale extend 5-pointed Star, arms out to a T, left toes turn back of the mat, reach the left hand forward, hinging from the hips, left hand down toward the earth, floating at the shin, right hand to the sky, Trikonasana, Triangle, our symbol of change and transformation into this new season. Right hand melts down, we can touch the earth now, left hand reaches up, Twisted Lunge. Left hand down, right leg floats into our Half Moon, right hand high, right foot steps back, we rise Warrior I, hands lift, palms together, interlace the fingers, index fingers to the sky, like we're holding a sword, inhale high, exhale humble in, hands reach back toward right toes, like we're slicing through everything we no longer need to carry with us into the new season. Inhale lift, exhale slice, 3 times, melting to the right foot, Skandasana, hands to heart center, inhale we lift to the left foot, Crescent warrior twist, elbow hooks the knee we twist to the left, exhale to the right foot Skandasana, inhale crescent twist, exhale Skandasana. Walk the hands top mat, frame the right foot, right hand floats up, Twisted Lunge, right hand down, right foot sweeps thru center and up, 3 limb downward dog, exhale knee to chest, inhale lift, bend the knee open the hip, maybe flip into Wild Thing, thru center, exhale knee to chest, thread the right foot through to the left, Fallen Star, left hand to the sky, right knee to chest, exhale right shin down, hips melt, left toes peel to the back of our mat, inhale we lift, tented fingers to the outside edges of the mat, exhale we melt into our Pigeon, elbows to the sky, inhale lift, exhale melt, 3 waves, right leg unravels to the sky, roll forward into your Plank, maybe right leg floats, moving through your flow, Downward Dog, forward fold top of the mat, meet in Tadasana, to honor the left side!

🍂Our Somatic practice gives us tools to regulate our nervous system, to stimulate the vagus nerve that begins at the base of the brain and runs down the neck, and throughout the body touching every organ system, communicating between body and brain! 80% of these messages are from the body to the brain! We agitated emotions stuck in the body, to help them release, and to serve as a reset button. I usually alternate between these tools each week! We rubbed the palms together to create some healing heat, and we brought the fingertips to the crown, massaging the fingertips all over the crown and behind the ears, even the base of the skull. We moved into the temples, massaging circles here, relieving migraines, we dripped the fingers to the jaw, the hinge where we open and close the jaw, the perfect release for jaw clenchers like myself, and maybe you too. We pulled down on the ear lobes, pulled the middle of the ears out to the sides, up to the top of the ears pulling toward the sky. With one hand to the base of the skull, pressing into the vagus nerve, the other hand brought the index and middle fingers to the hairline at the forehead and began rolling the fingers down the forehead, between the eyebrows, down the bridge of the nose to the tip, repeating 3 times, and switching out the hands. We brought our fingertips to the base of the skull, pressing into our vagus nerve, and melted the fingertips toward the ears, along the jawline, and down the front of the neck to the collarbone. We repeated this 2 more times, releasing tightness in the throat. We tapped into the collarbone, with slow rythmic taps, all fingers in unison, into one of our acupressure points in the body. We brought this tapping to the sternum, center of the chest. We slowly tapped here, either with the fingertips or Bilateral Butterfly taps using cupped hands over one another on the chest, activating both hemispheres of the brain, continuing as we inhaled, paused to bring the hands to the heart, stacked on top of one another, and as we exhaled we audibly hummed a "LAM" sound connecting to our Root Chakra, perfect grounding seed mantra in this breezy season, so we don't get swept away. Our bee breath🐝! If you hold tension here in the chest, this is a nice release! Humming is a somatic release, also good for respiratory infection season to break things up in the lungs, and humming has shown to reduce anxiety better than sleep! We crossed the arms at the chest, and squeezed into opposite shoulders, down to the biceps and triceps, and into the forearms. We brought the hands to the shoulders again for a squeeze, and swiped the hands down the arms, chest, abdomen, low back, and legs, making sure anything still tethered to the body is fully released. On the way up, we formed fists, pounding into the body, until in Tadasana, swaying the arms left to right, ending in Tadasana. We noticed the effects, feeling heat, cool, tingling, maybe even a yawn, all signs we've moved closer toward regulation in the nervous system. The goal is not to simply feel calm, it is to use these tools off of our mat to better cope with stressors and triggers, sitting with these difficult emotions, for longer periods, allowing ourselves to FEEL, rather than run from them or mask them with unhealthy things. We can help ourselves come out of a state where we feel stuck or stagnant in a fight or flight or freeze state. We need these states at certain times of our lives, for survival, but we don't want to live there. We can pendulate in and out as needed using these important tools. We released everything from last year, last month, yesterday, that we need to let go of, swipe it away, let yourself be free of it, so we don't carry this heaviness any longer! Allow it to melt down your back! Let it drift into the breeze, the water, no longer needed in this moment! We found lightness, balance, and freedom!

🍁Our final flow began in Tadasana, palms to the heart, melting down into our Toe Squat, twisting to the right, elbow hooks the knee, option for Side Crow, thru center, twisting to the left, holding or Side Crow, thru center. Left foot steps back, Crescent Warrior twist to the right, elbow hooks the knee, palms thru center, left knee down, Low Lunge, palms overhead and behind the head, melt the hips down, palms come down, tip the hips back, Quarter Split, melt the heart, inhale forward, heel toe the right foot out, Dragon, twisting open to the right or melting down into the forearms. Inhale lift off the left knee, step the left foot up behind the right foot so the left shin grounds, pivot to the right of our mat, right knee is stacked over left, Cowface, anchor the sit bones, tall spine, crown to the sky, inhale hands lift, exhale into a fold, inhale we lift up, unravel the right leg out to the back of our mat, left foot tucks into the right thigh, side bend, right hand to right foot, left hand overhead, cartwheel the hands around, left hand down top of the mat, hips lift, Rainbow Arch, right hand overhead. Right hand down, both hands top of the mat, right foot back of the mat, left foot sweeps thru center and up, exhale knee to chest, step the left forward, Crescent warrior twist elbow hooks the knee, to honor the left side!

🍂 After our Rainbow Arch on the left side, we ground the hips, pivot to the back of our mat, Straddle pose, V-shape extend the legs, inhale we lift, exhale we fold forward. Inhale help the knees inhale, plant the feet, palms behind us, fingers toward the heels, inhale lift the hips, Reverse Table, rocking forward and back or side to side. Exhale lower the hips down, inhale lift the feet and palms, Navasana, Boat pose, inhale lift, exhale lower hover down, inhale lift, exhale lower hover, 3 times, then grounding to the mat, reconnecting to the soil beneath us, back to the Earth.

🍁We lengthened long, hugged the knees into the chest, extended the arms and legs out into our Star, coiled inward into a cow face, right over left, hugged the thighs together and reached for shins gently pulling the knees toward the chest. This lengthens the IT band, and helps to soften where the sciatic nerve travels, releasing any pain we may have there. We released our shins, planted the bottom foot for a supine twist! We honored the opposite side! We lengthened long, hugged the knees in, lengthened long again, and formed our Crescent Moons once more, honoring our Sun, warm, active right side, and our Moon, cool, yin, restful, left side, coming full circle in our practice, embracing the balance. We made time to come into any final poses we needed before our final rest, such as legs up the wall, bridge, plow or wheel, or coming into Savasana early! 

🍂We made it to our PEAK POSE: Savasana! Together, we completed a full body cleanse! We found meditative peace, a calming of the mind, opened our Vishuddha, found insight into ourselves, found our voice, we experienced growth, fearlessness, release, and freedom. Yoga helps us shed what we no longer need, so we may see our most purest selves! We connect to divinity! To slow down means to heal! That is why savasana is the peak pose, the most important pose, the goal, the pinnacle. To find peace. In the stillness! We surrender. We discover ourselves again without the layers, the armor, the walls. They all come down, revealing our divine self.

 🍁I loved creating our Fall Equinox + Vagus Nerve Healing playlist! Listen here!! 

https://open.spotify.com/playlist/4WKLg30nVA0W93fNeqlOs0?si=70sgZ_qERcubSpsgTNTKbw&pi=u-hPNW7G9VTOSs

🌳🍎 It's finally time for all the yummy Fall treats!! We recently visited our local apple orchard and Finn filled our bag to the brim! So I made some delicious apple turnovers with cinnamon, clove, nutmeg, brown sugar and topped with caramel! YUMMMMMM!! Here’s the recipe!! 
 

🍏 APPLE TURNOVER Recipe!🍏

https://thelightpouredinyoga.com/blogs/news/falling-for-these-apple-turnovers

 🍃Come practice with me on Fridays for a gentle flow at 11:30, and on Somatic Sundays for a warm flow at 10:00am!🫶🏻 ✨🌿