Mission Transition! Sliding Tripod Headstand Flow! Try this sliding Tripod Headstand flow with a mini loop stretch band on your elbows (optional) and a blanket or towel for your feet. You can use socks for your feet, but I like the way it feels when I use my feet to stretch the blanket apart as I slide in and out of the head stand and upward facing dog. You could also squeeze a block between your feet as you do this flow. It is interesting to have something outside of your body for your feet (an
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Mission Transition! Sliding Tripod Headstand Flow! Try this sliding T…
32.7K viewsApr 5, 2023
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Block Spacemaker for shoulders, hips, and spine! This simple multiplanar spinal movement builds on one of last weeks posts that used the blocks for a groin and shoulder amazing stretch. Here we play with more spinal movement. The front foot is lifted on a block to help assist more of a hip flexor stretch, and the long block behind the head is amazing for the shoulders. The multiplanar movement for the spine makes this extra special! Regress this by using the block on its shorter facet. This was
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Block Spacemaker for shoulders, hips, and spine! This simple multi…
3.2K views4 months ago
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Friday Front Splits Slides! We are Sliding into the weekend with these front split slides. There are great ways to regress these (make them more accessible) and I have posted those versions in the past. You can add yoga blocks for your hands, and refrain from going close the floor OR you can do this as an upright gliding lunge. There is no need to do a full front split. For those who want to progress this you can try varying your tempo, removing your hands on the way down and up (which might mea
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Friday Front Splits Slides! We are Sliding into the weekend with thes…
8.2K viewsMay 31, 2024
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Simple Standing Balance w/Band This is a great warm up, and you can keep your leg low or take it as high as you like. Keep tension on the band so that you can feel how the relationship of your arms and torso potentially impact the movement. The contact and resistance of the band helps us better feel our shoulder blades and their movements. Observe how your shoulder blades spread and protract as you take your arms forward against the resistance of the band and how they retract or come close toget
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Simple Standing Balance w/Band This is a great warm up, and you c…
12.2K viewsJan 6, 2023
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Saturday Sarvangasana Play! This is a great back body booster! Salamaba Sarvangasana (Shoulderstand) and its variations are some of my favorite yoga poses. It can be such a calming inversion for the nervous system. Here we are using a yoga block as a back body booster. I am also using a lift (blankets or a foam pad) under my shoulders so that I can get higher up onto the top of my shoulders and more fully expand my ribs and chest. This is a simple but very special use of the block. If you have a
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Saturday Sarvangasana Play! This is a great back body booster! Sala…
2.3K views3 months ago
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Friday Full Wheel Play Day! I love how this variation of full wheel makes my shoulders, ribs, spine and side body feel. Full disclosure: I love full wheel in any form, but this variation is a great warmup for larger range of motion backbends or a great cool down from them. It can be regressed by placing the hands high on a wall, or on a bolster against a wall, or by going only partially through the circle and reversing. It can be progressed in really fun ways too, but I will save that for anothe
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Friday Full Wheel Play Day! I love how this variation of full wheel ma…
41.4K viewsMar 7, 2025
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Soft Landing: Soft Spiral Split Slides. Eccentric training for the hamstrings, hip flexors and adductors. Here we are only doing the eccentric (lengthening) phase of the split slider, and we are adding a soft spiral motion so that this front split turns into a bit of a side split (for the back leg). This can be done with a bell (kettlebell or dumbbell) in the top arm, which is a really great way to progress the movement. You can regress it by adding a bolster under your hips so that you do not h
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Soft Landing: Soft Spiral Split Slides. Eccentric training for the h…
10.9K views8 months ago
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Let’s leap into the New Year like Hanuman! It’s Friday and these Front Splits Slides are (fire emoji) in the best way. This video shows the final set, but our first set was without the bell (taking support and using the hands on the assent, if nesessary). For those who have been practicing these, and were ready for the challenge, we went down and up without the bell, then added it in the arm of the front leg, then the back leg, then finally above the head. This was part of our New Year’s Eve Ban
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Let’s leap into the New Year like Hanuman! It’s Friday and these Fr…
8.5K views2 months ago
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Saturday Stretch w/ strength, awareness & control. This has been a fun experiment. The addition of the weights in this Kapinjalasana variation makes me slow down and perceive all the moments that make up this movement. I am moving slowly and learning to control and decelerate as the weights feel like they accelerate the movement of my limbs. I have been exploring using wrist and ankle weights in various poses and movements like slow controlled joint circles and even in my backbends, especially s
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Saturday Stretch w/ strength, awareness & control. This has be…
11.8K viewsFeb 10, 2024
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Hips, Shoulders, Core and More! Grab a chair and try this combo for your inner legs, outer hips, core and shoulders. It is great for cultivating dynamic stability and mobility and the integration of your limbs and trunk in all three planes of motion. Regress the Copenhagen Plank (the first movement) by placing your knee on the chair as opposed to the foot (shorter lever). The second one can be regressed by placing your hand on the chair as opposed to the floor. The third can be regress by keepin
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Hips, Shoulders, Core and More! Grab a chair and try this combo fo…
294.9K views9 months ago
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Wednesday Full Wheel play w/Chair! This is a great way to play with your full wheel and explore dropping back and coming up with control. If you explore this, pay attention to how you are shifting your weight from your hands and feet to only your feet. Are you dropping or alighting? How might your eyes help you? Are you breathing in a way that allows you to speak as you move? How might you cultivate calm in the midst of intensity? How might we move from effort to effortlessness? This was part of
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Wednesday Full Wheel play w/Chair! This is a great way to play with yo…
26.3K viewsJun 5, 2024
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Hip Flexor Strength-at-Length. Here we are in a supported Eka Pada Viparita Dandasana pose (supported single leg inverted staff) which can be done off of a bench, coffee table, or with two chairs as I am using here. I have a bolster on top of the chairs to create more height. This can be done without the externally applied load, or with an ankle weight or two. I like the kettle bell because it gives me more resistance. Use a weight of some kind and progress that weight (and the range of motion)
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Hip Flexor Strength-at-Length. Here we are in a supported Eka Pada Vi…
5.4K views9 months ago
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Happy Friday Everyone! This side bend/ inner leg stretch is assisted by a chair. Here we are exploring elevating one leg, then the other, and observing how this changes the emphasis of the stretch in Parivrtta Upavista Konasana. You can regress this by sitting up on a bolster, block or some blankets and using a belt for your foot. This was part of a recent Move, Breathe, Play LIVE (and recorded) class on The Playground where we explored lower body and spine mobility through a series of movements
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Happy Friday Everyone! This side bend/ inner leg stretch is assiste…
55.1K viewsJan 31, 2025
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More Backbends w/ a Chair. Here we are exploring how to take a classic supported quad and hip flexor stretch into a backbend variation called Eka Pada Rajakapotasana 2. This builds on last Wednesdays Full Wheel with The Chair post where we explored using the chair for standing drop backs. Here we are focusing on how to rotate the shoulder as your arm moves from an extended and externally rotated position, along with spinal rotation and extension into the over-head flexed position which is what w
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More Backbends w/ a Chair. Here we are exploring how to take a cla…
11.9K viewsJun 12, 2024
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Sound On! This is one of my favorite songs. Landslide by Fleetwood Mac. We did this flow in our Mother’s Day class (it is in the On-Demand Library) and when I decided to have us try it with this song some of our people found their own tears flowing along with the movements of their body. Tears of love and appreciation for their Moms, maybe for being a Mom, for “sailing through the changin’ ocean tides, and handling the seasons of our lives.” I know the lyrics are a tad different, but you get the
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Sound On! This is one of my favorite songs. Landslide by Fleet…
7.6K views10 months ago
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More Full Wheel Play! This builds on last week’s Full Wheel Around the World. Here we are traveling our wheel and mixing in a little side kick through type movement. If the full wheel variation feels like too much then regress this by keeping your fingers pointing straight forward in the all fours or quadruped position and move through a bent knee Purvotanasana to the side kick through. That variation will take your shoulders from flexion to extension and back again, vs asking for full overhead
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More Full Wheel Play! This builds on last week’s Full Wheel Around …
24.3K viewsApr 3, 2024
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It’s May 1st and it’s my Birthday! This is 63 and me. And let me tell you, I am just getting started (😂). Yes, more yoga content coming shortly, but this is what I am doing today doing day because birthdays require dancing, and for me, that means fast fun dancing! As we age (and we are all getting older) moving with some speed and springiness, exploring strength work and power (strength with speed) is KEY. Do things that challenge your brain, as well as your body. You don’t have to dance like t
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It’s May 1st and it’s my Birthday! This is 63 and me. And let me tell …
97.4K views10 months ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound on!!! YES! I love ABBA. And these beautiful beings! This was the last day of our workshop in Italy. We were tired, but the music and the movement had us going for it. This little Abba thing was a spontaneous addition to the day’s curriculum. They had already learned a whole new dance to Queen, and worked with bands but then I had this crazy idea....(😈) I love how they said yes to all the invitations to move in new ways, breathe, play, dance, and try new things. We moved qui
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Sunday Funday! Sound on!!! YES! I love ABBA. And these beautiful b…
70.1K views6 months ago
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A little mid-week whimsy to counter the craziness that is happening in the world at present. Try this semi-supported Half Moon Bow variation. Singing is optional. This was part of a recent class where we moved to the theme song of the Titanic. I posted about it on March 26. This pose came after our rocking version of My Heart Will Go On, so the song was still echoing in my mind. Use a little padding for the front of your hip. And if you need more height add an extra blanket or use a taller chair
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A little mid-week whimsy to counter the craziness that is happening in …
6.1K views11 months ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! Another great song. Feel It Still by Portugal. The Man. This dance is easy, as we repeat a pattern from side to side a few times before varying and building upon it. You can kick or twist as much or as little as you like. If you dance the full song reverse the pattern so that your twist kick phrase is done on both sides. We explored different tempos of music, but the group liked this song the best! This was part of a recent Bands, Bells and Beyond LIVE (and recorded) cla
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! Another great song. Feel It Still by Portuga…
799.6K viewsMar 3, 2024
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Happy Friday! It’s Bond. James Bond. We are using a light to moderate weight bell and moving it quickly in a playful multiplanar way. Frontal, transverse, and sagittal plane movements done to this fun music is a great way to get your heart rate up and move your arms, legs, and spine. This was part of a recent bands, Bells and Beyond LIVE (and recorded) class on The Playground. It was a mix of bodyweight and bell resisted movements (some amazing stuff for the hips in that class) along with a few
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Happy Friday! It’s Bond. James Bond. We are using a light to mod…
2.1K views1 month ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound On!!! It’s Elvis and his Blue Suede Shoes! The dance we are doing is the first part of a dance called Trickeration by the late great Norma Miller. Our teacher @bughthere Nathan @92nyswings was teaching it to us to slightly slower blues song, then said let’s try it to Blue Suede Shoes! And we did. I love this dance, this teacher, this class and this group of people. We love to PLAY! Never Stop Learning! Never Stop Playing!! Never Stop Dancing!!! For more smart, playful yoga a
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Sunday Funday! Sound On!!! It’s Elvis and his Blue Suede Shoes! T…
142.9K views11 months ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! Le Jazz Hot from the musical Victor Victoria. This clip is from John Leggio’s @jlchoreo fabulous Theatre Jazz class @stepsonbroadway. You all know how much I love this class and teacher!!! So grateful. Never Stop Learning! Never Stop Playing!! Never Stop Dancing!!! For more smart, playful yoga and movement visit The Playground, a huge and varied On Demand video library of classes, including Live Classes: theplayground.carrieowerko.com #neverstopdancing #ageless #dance #t
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! Le Jazz Hot from the musical Victor Victor…
8.3K views2 months ago
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Sunday Funday Dance! Sound On! It is the late great Cab Calloway and if you do not know who he is, I recommend looking him up!!! He is amazing to watch as well as listen to. This is a very cheerful song, and though I was a tad tired at the end of this long weekend of fast dancing, I was also having loads of fun. This clip is from the Rafal Pustelny @rafaloffthelog workshop @ysbdnyc back in Feb. Rafal will be at it again today (YAY!) and if you want to play with this style of dance, then come to
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Sunday Funday Dance! Sound On! It is the late great Cab Calloway an…
57.8K views11 months ago
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A Little Tap Dance. Sound on. It is an amazing version of It Don’t Mean A Thing. My heart feels heavy and my mind distraught. I am grateful for this music sung by the late great Nina Simone, for @yukari_ikegaya Yukari’s energizing choreography and for the healing power of dance. Movement is medicine my friends. Never Stop Learning! Never Stop Playing!! Never Stop Dancing!!! For more smart, playful yoga and movement visit The Playground, a huge and varied On Demand video library of classes, inclu
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A Little Tap Dance. Sound on. It is an amazing version of It Don’t Me…
5.4K views1 month ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! It’s Chuck Berry, You Never Can Tell. This is a fun little line dance that combines different social dance steps from the swing era. No need to touch the floor in The Madison, but we threw it in because...why not drop it low and fast once in while. This was part of a recent Move, Breathe, Play LIVE (and recorded) class on The Playground. We started on our mats with a twisty hip and spine focuses mobility warmup, then learned this to three different songs and three differ
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! It’s Chuck Berry, You Never Can Tell. …
8.7K views7 months ago
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Marching into the Holiday weekend! Backbends are (for me) emotionally and physically uplifting mood boosters. Whether they are simple or more complex back extensions can help us feel uplifted, expansive and full of breath, energy and life. If these poses are not your thing, that is ok. Movement is like medicine and there are many ways to use movement to positively impact mood and energy levels. There is no need to do the more advanced variations as the benefits come regardless of the degree of d
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Marching into the Holiday weekend! Backbends are (for me) emotional…
7.3K views3 months ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! This clip is from a workshop of playful yoga and movement (with a few fun line dances 🤪) that I taught recently in Dublin. It was a Sunday Funday and our last class, and this is how we warmed our body/mind/spirit up for a session of circular fluid backbends. There is nothing quite like turning on a classic song that invokes the kind of sassy confidence that can only be called a STRUT. We strutted, we skipped around pillars, and danced back and forth across the floor to
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! This clip is from a workshop of playful …
29.2K viewsApr 14, 2024
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! There’s Rhythm in Harlem by Mills Blue Rhythm Band. A little Charleston routine of basic Vernacular Jazz steps. This style of dance has a constant bounce, a pulse that lifts gets your heart rate up, lifts your mood and gets you out of your head and into your body. Dance first, think later! This dance came in the later half of a recent Bands, Bells and Beyond LIVE (nd recorded) class on The Playground. We explored breath and balance with our bands and bells, exploring slo
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! There’s Rhythm in Harlem by Mills Blue R…
54.7K views7 months ago
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! It’s Chuck Berry’s Johnny B. Goode. This fun line dance is a high energy, easy to learn romp that will get your heart rate up and lift your mood. It was part of a recent Bands, Bells, & Beyond LIVE (and recorded) class on The Playground. We learned this in small sections, with band and bell work spliced in, then danced it our several times and cooled down with band assisted flexibilty work. Our members loved this class and dance. We LOVE to play! Never Stop Learning! Nev
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Sunday Funday! Sound On! It’s Chuck Berry’s Johnny B. Goode. …
8.2K views5 months ago
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