09: Your Strongest Core Ever: 35-Min Yoga Challenge [ACTIVE RECOVERY]

Hey everybody. I'm Amy from Body Fit by Amy, and this is your yoga core flow workout. In this workout, we are going to get a yoga inspired flow for active recovery, flexibility and mobility. But we're also going to focus on working that core. Of course, I'm going to give you a lot of options to work to your level. So listen to your body. Are you ready? Let's do it. Start just by getting in a nice, good posture. So I want you to start. Feet slightly wider than shoulder width apart. And I want you to think about stacking your head, those ears right on top of the shoulders, shoulders on top of the rib cage, rib cage right over that pelvis, pelvis over the knees, over the ankles. So really just take a minute and check in with your body. Maybe one hand on the heart, one hand on the belly. Let your body clear your brain. Just be here with me today. Listen, I know I constantly have the to do list going on in my head. Just try to let all of that go and just be with me for the next few minutes. Showing up for your body, showing up for yourself, showing up for those that you love. And now just check in with your posture. A lot of times, a lot of what we do in life pulls us forward. So let's pull those shoulders back and then check and see where your rib cage is and your pelvis. Right. Those hip bones and those rib bones often work a little bit further back or here. It's really the key to getting that core firing together but also having that good posture. So making sure those are in alignment and then pulling that deep core in. And just take a few deep core breaths from here. So something we're going to talk about a lot is that deep core. So hands on your side, big inhale. I want you to expand all the way around. So think of your core as a canister. Inhale not just through the belly, but through the sides, through the back. And then on the exhale, we're going to bring everything in and up. So imagine you're zipping up a pair of pants. You're not sucking in, you're not going here, you're not rolling those shoulders forward or back. Everything is coming in through that deep core. So a few more from here. Inhale to expand, let that pelvic floor drop. Exhale to zip everything up. Feel that? Right? So getting that in, making sure that we're connecting with that breath, I'm going to be cueing you throughout. Let's get a few little rolls through the shoulders and we're going to start just with a little walk out. So big reach up. We're going to hinge it forward, and then I want you to walk out. So it's that little inchworm that we do, but we're going to take it here. If you need to, you can, of course, drop to those knees. And then we're going to walk it back. So we're just going to think of it as just a little warm up, especially through our core. Great mobility move. This inchworm is right, but feeling that core firing up and ready to go again. You don't have to go all the way out. You can take it to your knees or you can walk out just a little bit, right? Take it down through here. Walk it out and breathe. Walk it back. And one more. Walk it out if you can. I want you to hold this here, right? So starting strong, you can take the knees here. We're just going to take it child's pose, big stretch back, and then I want you to pop up to that plank. If that is not right for you, I just want you to take a child's pose. Really get the flexibility and the mobility out of it. And then I want you to pop up to all fours. But when you come to all fours, I want you to shift your weight just a bit to feel that core kick in. Sit back, child's pose, big stretch, pop up to plank. Take it back, sit back. Use your core to generate the movement. Get that stretch. And again, I'm going to remind you that this workout is what you need today. If you need more of that child's pose, you hang out there. If you want more of that core work, you take it up. You do you. This is your workout. One more time. Let's hold that child's pose. Right, right through here. Just kind of shift your weight side to side, stretch out those shoulders, let the head and neck drop. And then we're going to take it up through here. Let's just get a little reach under, sit the hips back. Reach that shoulder through, little stretch. And then let's do the same thing. Other side. We're gonna reach under here. Hips back, little stretch, little thread of the needle. So I'm going to give you the option to stay just right here, child's pose, to thread the needle or come up to a plank. We're gonna reach under, we're gonna reach up so you get a little more core right, then back to center. So you gotta balance here, reach under, then reach back to center. So two options. Child's pose, reach and back to all fours or you're rotating from that plank. Right? We often call that that T. Plank, T rotation. Totally up to you. But I want you to do that. Reach first and open through there. Reach under. Lots of core working here today. Let's get one more each side. Reach and up. Big stretch. Good mobility. We got reach and up right through here. One more time. Child's pose. Whoo. Stretch into that. Let's take it up to all fours. Cat cow. Right. Such a good mobility move. I want you to shift those hips forward. So the reason I'm cueing you on that is a lot of times we end up sitting back here, and people from these moves feel like they can't feel their core. You shift those hips a little bit in front, feel the difference in your core kicking in. So we're here. I want you to go cat cow. So rounding up at your own pace and then rounding through, you decide how much movement is good for you. I would love for you to inhale here. Let everything drop. Let that pelvic floor drop. Exhale, rounding up. And I want you to think about zipping up the core. Press those hands into the ground, pushing your shoulders away from your ears, lifting up through the hips and feel the core connect. Inhale. Let everything release. Again. Pelvic floor, through the belly, through the sides, through the back. Exhale. It's that deep core breath we did in the beginning. Again, lifting now you can keep it right there or on the exhale. I want you to lift with a little knee hover. You don't have to get super high. Just an inch or two off the ground. Drop it. Inhale, exhale. Little knee hover. Inhale to release. Exhale to contract with or without the knee. Other if it's better for you to keep those knees on the ground, that's okay, too. Inhale, exhale. One more option. You can keep the knees down. Regular cat cow connecting with the core or knee hover. Keep those knees up if you want. Inhale. Exhale. That's hard, right? Inhale. You still gotta release, but maintain that core control. Exhale. Let's just get one more inhale. And exhale. Stretch it back. Rest those wrists. How about a little pigeon pose? So we're going to bring that knee through. If this is not right for you, you can take it 90, 90 just like this or whatever version works for you to get your hips. A little hip opener, right? So you're getting a lot of stretch and then you know it. We're going to turn this into a core move. But let's find that stretch first. So wherever you need to be for you, whether that's here in pigeon, elbows down, hands up, if that feels a little better, or just that 90, 90, and just kind of open up that chest. You find a good position for you. Let's shift side to side. So I want this workout to be a mix of that flexibility, mobility that we love about yoga, but also, again, really working through the core, right? Whatever you need for that good hip stretch. You want to bring that leg up a little more, right? Few deep breaths into that, and then very carefully roll to the other side. So you can just switch your legs, or you can switch from that 90, 90, right? Again, you can be here, open up your chest. You can turn into it. What do you need in this moment for this stretch? Hip opener. We're gonna get back to that core in just a minute while we keep these hips working all the way through. Again, you can shift your weight, your 90, 90. You can just turn those shoulders. Get a little more of that. You can be pigeon here, pigeon here. Bring that foot up if you want. Sometimes I have to do it manually because I know it's hard to get into. So what we're going to add to this is we're going to switch pigeon to pigeon from a down dog. So if that is not right for you, you can go child's pose, or you can just do that 90, 90 hip stretch. Right, right through here. But if you want, watch me here, take that other foot back. We're going to press up to that down dog. We're gonna bring one leg through. We're gonna get the pigeon. We're gonna start with a little stretch, Then we'll keep that knee up to get a little extra core up to you. If you also just want to go child's pose and then get into it. But try with that down dog or 90 90, or just get key or hang out in that pigeon stretch, if that is better for you. Right through here. Let's press up, down dog. Find that good down dog, whatever it is for you. Now, I have a pretty tight lower back, lower lumbar spine. So I'm really trying to stretch you that lift those hips to the ceiling. Can you do a little petal? I'm gonna power into plank and then bring that knee through. Little pigeon stretch. Right. Right through here. You do what's best for you. We're gonna hold maybe 10 or so seconds, then I'm gonna push back in through. So you got to use upper, lower, and core back to that down dog and take it through whatever you need for you. But I want you to think that you're lifting from the core, right? So upper and lower working. But there's a string pulling my belly button through. Lift right through here. Right back down to pigeon. Yes. Stretch into that. Let's get one more with those pigeons and press back. May have to adjust those feet. I know. Feel that stretch and back to here. Hang out through here. All right, now we're going to take it down dog. We're going to bring that knee across. So watch me one time. I'm going to take it here. I'm going to drive that knee into this elbow, cross it back center, press it back up. If that is not right for you, you can just take it to a little bird dog and bring the knee in across here to here. But we're going to alternate. I'll give you the option to take it to that three legged dog as we go. Go ahead. Press up to that down dog. Right through here into that plank. Drive one knee to that same elbow, cross it to the opposite elbow, cross it back, back up to down dog. Take your time. Knee in, cross in and back up. You take your time. You don't have to go the same pace as me. Drive towards the elbow. You don't have to get all the way there and then cross and then back. You can press it up, right? Other leg up. Drive it in, take it across. So option for three legged dog. Up to you right here. Drive it in. Whatever this looks like for you is exactly where you want it to be. I know mine's not great either, but I shouldn't even say that. Mine is mine. My form looks different. It's because it's me, not you, right? Who you do you. One more each side. Take it up. Core, upper, lower. Strength, flexibility and mobility. And I don't know about you, but I feel my heart rate as well. Child's pose. Rest those wrists and let's actually take those hands back through here. Rest your head down. Breathe in to that. Woo. Let's go ahead and come up onto our feet. I want you to roll back and slowly roll it up. Take your time. We're going to finish, spend a few minutes up top. So find a comfortable position. Take your time. If you need a quick sip of water. I know sometimes we get in the floor flow and we don't take a time to get a sip. So if you want to sip, grab a sip and just return to that standing position. Roll those shoulders in again. Coming back to that Nice. Good posture. Get those feet out nice and wide. I want you to take your feet out even a little bit wider. Turn that foot in and take it out to that warrior right through here. And let's just shift forward, lean and do it over through here. And then drive it up just for that hip opener and that stretch. And then that upper body again, giving our wrists a little break down on the mat. And one more through here. I want you to turn your body here. Right, you're into here. Watch me a little bit of balance here. I'm going to go side knee. Take it down. Front knee, take it out. If you need balance on the wall, that works too. If you can balance here. That core is working hard. That lower body is working hard. We're getting strong. Intentional movement through our arms. Let's do it. Side, knee. Yes. Balance. Right. Front knee. Side knee. Right through here. Front knee. Big stretch. Side. Don't be afraid to grab that balance. Hopefully you're feeling feeling that core. And here, let's get four and in. Big reach. So this arm is moving. This arm is stationary side. Turn it in front. One more and front. Right through here. I want you to take it up. Can you balance right, Right through here. If you can't, that's okay. Just drop that toe down. Big reach. Front leg is working hard. Balance core is working hard. 3, 2, 1. I want you to drop that knee all the way down into that low lunge and stretch that hip flexor right all the way through. Lean into it if you want. Take it right up through here. We'll take way to stretch. That front leg is feeling it, right? I don't know if that's my other workout I did today. Lean back into here. Pull. Pull that toe towards you. And then I want you to extend it up. And very gently, just come into your version of a triangle. Whatever it is, I like to think of it similar to our windmills. Right through here. And watch me here. Using that oblique, using that deep core, using that back leg. Big stretch. Take it down. Don't worry if it doesn't look like your perfect yoga triangle. That's not what we're going for. We want to use our core lift. Connect with that core right at the top so we get the flexibility, the mobility down the front of that leg. This is training us for better windmills, right? One more and breathe. Take those toes out. Just do some little gentle right through here. Yes, I know. And breathe back to here. Take that toe out. Turn that toe in into that warrior. Breathe into that again. Doesn't have to look perfect. Mine doesn't. Take it down through here. Big stretch over. Yes, team. Big inhale. Pull. Push up through that leg. Open up to here. Take it down. Breathe and open up. Use your core. So I want you to think pushing through this leg, but also using that core to stabilize. Right? Take it over. Arms and legs. And one more. Take it here and breathe. Yes, team. Turning into it here again. Remember, I want you to find that good balance. Core is engaged. We're going to open up the hip. Turn it here. Turn in the hip. Bring it here. Do what's best for you. Try to keep that arm out if you need the wall or a chair for balance, but have that core do the work. Stabilize in that front leg. Arms out. Right through here. Here. Go. We. We go side. Right through here. And front, side. Little burn in here. Nice, strong arms. They're not just here, right? Intentional movement and contract in the core. You need that balance. Take it here. 4. Bring it in. Yes. 3. Yes. You got it. 2. One more. And here, I want you to take it down to that low lunge. If you can lean forward to stretch through that knee. I'm feeling my core. I hope you are too. Hand down if you want. Big reach up. Yes. Breathe and sit back. Right through here. Lean into that there. Again, we're not worried about what it looks like. We want to listen to our body, see what it feels like. Bring it up through here. Bringing your hands in. And again, we're coming into your version of a triangle, that whatever that is for you. So to me, it looks a little bit like that windmill opening up through here. Find that stretch. Big inhale. As we exhale, use those obliques, use that deep core. Push through that back leg and bring it up. Let's make it look a little more like a windmill right up to you. You can have that hand up or you can take it down if you want the chest opener. One more. Right through here. Right through there. Let's take those knees out. Little stretch. Might as well get this mobility while we're here, right? And then if you can very carefully get into that deep squat, little side to side. And then we're going to take it back down to all fours. Right through here. Let's bring those hands over, get a little wrist stretch. We're gonna take into a little bird dog. Then we're getting some things on our on the mat, guys. So right through here, Shift those hips forward again. If you want to feel that, bird dog, you want to reach it out, get that stretch if you're back through here, you'll feel a little more glutes. If you're here, shift your hips forward. You're going to get that core. So holding it here, really lengthen and then switch your legs. Core engage, reach and lengthen and switch your legs. Right through here. Just opposite arm, opposite leg. Starting with this. And here. Reach. And here. One more each side, reach. And here. Last one. And we're gonna hold it here. We're gonna reach. Take the hand down. We're gonna lift the knee, take it back. So this leg is staying up. Reach that opposite arm. If you need to drop the toe, lift the knee. But if you can, going to leave the leg up. So bird dog reach, Drop just the hand. Little single leg, knee hover, drop it down. Reach if you need to, drop that back, toe, little knee hover, take it down. Let's go. Two more. Try to keep that leg up if you can. And here, reach. Lift and sit back. Child's pose. Let's go. Same thing. Other side. Give your hands a little break. Did you feel that? Right. A lot of glute in the back as well, but we're going to take it here. Reach that arm out, reach that leg out. Hips are square, shoulders are square. Drop the hand, lift the knee, take it down and reach. Drop the hand, drop the toe if you need to lift down and reach. So if you can, you're keeping that leg up. It's very challenging to do that. Feels like too much pressure in your knees and your hips. You're still going to get the core when you drop that toe down. Because you're lifting from here. Let's get two more. Last one. And relax. Take it down onto your side. Right through here. Bottom leg down, top leg up. We're gonna flex little outer thighs, and then we're gonna reach. Watch me flex. Outer reach. We got obliques, we got outers. If you want to just do the side plank or just do the leg lift, that's okay, too. We got flex, reach. One more and reach. Relax. Bring it up. Stretch it right through here. We're going to stay on this side, hand down. I want to show you what we're doing first. So you get a little stretch, stretch through here. Watch me. We're going to take it up. I want you to cross those feet here. We're going to lift up into that high side plank. This is what we're going for. Little crunch, elbow to knee, and reach it up. If that is not right for you, I want you to keep the knee down. And bring it in through here. Right? You can keep the knee down if you can. You're going to cross those feet and you're going to come all the way up. So knee or touch toes, whatever feels good for you. Up on that hand. Big reach. Here we go. Sit into that crunch. The knees and the elbows. Reach it up. I know that's a lot on your shoulder. Upper body is working hard here. And reach. Remember, you have an option with that knee crunch. Do you feel this lower oblique. Right. So knees or toes? Let's get one more. And reach. Drop those knees. Right. Lots of upper. Lots of core. And then, of course, lots of flexibility. Take those arms out. A little stretch. Let's take it to that other side. We are almost done. So you got that lower leg, you got that elbow? We're gonna flex that foot. We're gonna reach it up. Join me here. Flex outer thighs. Reach. As that leg comes down, zip up those inner thighs too, Right? So we got outer thighs, inner reach up and reach. Two more. Yes. Last one. And reach. Relax. Bring those knees up. Little stretch. Same thing from here. We only have five. Knee down or toes. Remember, you're going to come up on that hand. If that bothers your shoulder, keep the knee down or just take it back down to a regular side plank. But we're going to cross those feet. Reach it up. Here we go. Into the knee. Power it up. Right core is working hard. You may have to adjust. Maybe you need to bring your feet in a little. That's okay. Again you can have the knee. Take it in. Power it up. Let's get one more. Yes. And relax. Stretch it over very carefully. Let's come down on to our back. Hug those knees in gentle roll side to side. How about that little happy baby pose? Either here or here. Open up the hips. Yes. Let's let those knees drop to the side. So arms out to the side. Look away. Starting with a little mobility. Open up the chest and shoulders. Open book. I want you to start just rolling the knees one and then the other foreign. I've got a microphone, so it's taking. I'm a little bit further up. And then if you want, you can add that upper. Lean into it. Reach knees. Arms to follow. Again, I don't want to lay on my microphone, so you probably have better mobility than me. One more each side. Yes. Open it up right through here. Hug those knees in right here. So I want you to take your feet up. Hands can go underneath your hips. Now, if this is not right for you, I want you to take it one leg at a time, if you can. We're going to take it Two point those toes. I want you to again, zip up the inner thighs along with that core. And we're just going to draw a little figure eight, right? Little corkscrew from Pilates. You can keep it really small. And again, if you need to do one leg at a time. If you want a little lift. Little lift right here. Lift and lift. Take it slow. You can make that corkscrew or that figure eight a little bit bigger. And if you're on one leg, switch your legs up to you. If you want to draw that 8 bigger. Feel that deep core. Yes. Breathe. We got 4, 3, 2, and 1. Hug those knees in again. A little happy baby pose. Gentle side to side. Right through here. All right, let's take one leg up. I want you to cross the elbow to the knee. If this is not right for you, keep your shoulder down. You're just going to do a little push. You'll just be right here if you can. Can you get elbow to knee if you can't? Can you push here and get that rotation? Watch me here. My hand is pushing against my leg. What? My leg is pushing against my hand. Start with just that. Then if you can, we're going to reach that other leg. Lift and lower for eight. Right through here. If you can't get the elbow all the way, take it here. If you need to, you can drop the shoulders. And if that's too much for your core, just do the push. You've got four. Breathe. Nice and tight. Three, two, one. I want you to switch your sides. So you're either here, just holding or you're here. Little lift, leg out or you're here. Let's lift eight. And doesn't really matter if your foot is flexed. Sometimes the flex, we get more of that stretch. Sometimes at the point we get more of that contraction. Do what feels best for you. Often I'm asked, don't forget about that. Push elbow into leg, leg, into leg. Often I'm asked which is better, and a lot of times that's a matter of preference. 2 and 1. Hug those knees in. Yes, team, breathe. Big stretch arms and legs. Ha. Right through here. I want you to open everything up if you can. We're going to do a little reach. Cross opposite. If the full one is not right for you, you can just lift and lower. You can do knee tap. Just get the stretch. I want the mobility and the flexibility. You can keep the shoulders down if you need to. We're Going up. And breathe. Big starfish. Use that deep core. Everything we talked about, right? Breathe. Four. Yes, team. Three, Two. Last one. Hug those knees in very gently. Roll to your side. Then roll to your tummy. Little baby cobra. So I want you to be here just to get that stretch right. Feel that core working hard. If that's not right for you, you can take it to child's pose or cat cow. Feel that stretch. Take those hands down by your side if you can. All the way up. Cobra. Up dog. Take your shoulders down, reach and reach all the way through. Yes. And take it down. I want you to bring those feet in if you can, grab them if you can't. I just want you to reach again to open up the shoulders, open up the hips and the hip flexors. If you want to lift from here, you can, but you do you. That's a hard one to get into. And one more time, come up. Start with that little modified cobra or baby cobra. Dog child's pose. One last time. Stretch. Come up. If you want a few little cat cows for your spine, go for it. That core works really hard. I hope you're feeling all of it. I hope you're feeling certainly that good little core burn. Your core working hard from the inside out. So many different directions. Come to a seated position. Our spine was designed to move. We have to do it carefully. Reach it over, let your head drop. But our body moves in all different directions. We want to train for that, right? And it all starts with our center. It all starts with our core. So I hope you feel like you got that good core strength, but also that you got some flexibility, some mobility, a little bit of strength, and a whole lot of mind, body, connection. Just take a minute. Hand on your heart, hand on your belly. Thank your body for showing up today. I'm so proud of you for being here. Thank you for showing up with me. I needed that. You guys know me. Yoga is not my favorite. I always feel good when I do it. I always do sort of a yoga inspired version. Maybe we move a little bit quicker. Maybe we don't do as many of the static holds or the crazy poses, but we all need that flexibility and that mobility and there are many ways to get it. So breathing, connecting. Feel your heart connect through the belly. Let's take a minute, hands up. And just take just a few seconds again to check in with your body to thank your body for being here for you. Tab your hands out to receive whatever it is you're meant to receive today. Let's get one big Deep breath in and out. You did it. That was your yes. Yoga core flow workout. Great job, everybody.