A Lila Flow class opens the side body, chest, hamstrings, and hip flexors to create space in the body.

Move through lunges, warriors, twists, backbends, and leg balancing. This class includes a little bit of everything for a full-body experience. Close practice with a seated pranayam in Sama Vritti (four-part breathing) and meditation.

Style: Lila Flow

Duration: 30-minutes

Level: open

Props: 2 Blocks

Focus: side waist, chest, hamstring and hip flexor opening—a little bit of everything.

Location: Vancouver, BC

Music: Go with the Flow Spotify playlist

Opening Flow

Come up to stand at the top of your mat.

Extend your arms overhead and clasp your palms.

Flip the center of each palm skyward.

Take your feet a little wider of hip distance.

• Inhale and reach your hands toward the sky and clasp your palms
• Exhale and round your back with your hands clasped
• Inhale and come upright with your torso
• Exhale and clasp your hands at your back
• Inhale and take your shoulders on your back, lift your chest
• Exhale and bend your knees, bow forward and down
• Release your palms to the ground and roll up to stand
• Repeat two more cycles.

2x Sun Salutations – flow on your own or follow the cues

Tadasana (mountain pose)

Urdvha Hastasana (hands to sky)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Ardha Uttanasana (half lift)

Anjaneyasana (lunge) variation

• Inhale and reach your hands toward the sky and clasp your palms
• Exhale and get longer from hips to armpits
• Inhale and round your back with your hands clasped
• Exhale in this pose
• Holding the breath out, clasp your hands behind your back
• Inhale and puff up the front of the body
• Exhale and extend your clasped palms away from your back
• Take a couple of breaths in this shape

Adho mukha svanasana (down dog)

Phalakasana (plank pose)

Chaturanga

Bhujangasana (cobra pose)

Adho mukha svanasana (down dog)

Eka pada adho mukha svanasana (3-legged downward dog)

Parivrtta Ashtachandrasana (revolved lunge) variation

• Take one hand to the ground
• Reach the other palm up to the sky
• Inhale and roll your chest open
• Exhale and take your top hand to your bottom wrist
• Inhale and reach your top hand up to the sky
• Exhale and lower it to the ground
• Repeat several cycles

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Ardha Uttanasana (half lift)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Urdvha Hastasana (hands to sky)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Repeat the same sequence on the other leg.

Wave 1

Utkatasana (chair pose)

Urdvha Hastasana (hands to sky)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Ardha Uttanasana (half lift)

Anjaneyasana (lunge) variation

• Clasp your palms overhead
• Inhale and round your spine
• Exhale and stay in this pose
• Hold the breath out and clasp your hands at your back
• Inhale and puff up the front of the chest
• Exhale and lower your hands to the ground

Anjaneyasana (lunge) with the back knee off of the ground

• Clasp your palms overhead
• Inhale and round your spine as you bend your back knee towards the ground
• Exhale and stay in this pose
• Hold the breath out and clasp your hands at your back as you straighten the back leg.
• Inhale and puff up the front of the chest
• Exhale in this pose

Baddha Virabhadrasana (humble warrior pose)

• Keep hands clasped and reach them to the sky as you bow inside your front leg.
• Keep the back heel lifted away from the ground.
• Stay here and breathe.

Parsvottanasana (pyramid pose) variation

• Step your back leg forward so that it’s midway up your mat
• Keep the heel lifted high off of the ground
• Place your hands on your blocks on the highest hight
• Hug the inner thighs
• Draw your heart toward your toes
• Keep the legs long and engaged
• Keep the spine long from crown to tail, reaching to the front and back of your mat.

Tadasana Janu Hastasana (standing hand to knee pose)

Vrksasana (tree pose) variation

• Crisscross your hands and extend them over your head
• Inhale and reach the arms upwards
• Exhale and take the arms wide
• Crisscross your hands and repeat 3 cycles

Virabhadrasana II (warrior 2)

Viparita Virabhadrasana (peaceful warrior)

Adho mukha svanasana (down dog)

Phalakasana (plank pose)

Chaturanga

Bhujangasana (cobra pose) OR Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (upward dog)

Adho mukha svanasana (down dog)

Eka pada adho mukha svanasana (3-legged downward dog)

Parivrtta Ashtachandrasana (revolved lunge) variation

• Take one palm to the ground
• Take the opposite hand to the back of the head
• Take your shoulders on your back and breathe into the side body

Parivrtta Anjaneyasana (revolved thigh stretch)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Ardha Uttanasana (half lift)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Urdvha Hastasana (hands to sky)

Uttanasana (forward fold)

Repeat the same sequence on the other leg.

Cooling Series

Come to stand up on your shins in the middle of your mat and bring your hands to your heart.

• Inhale and sweep your arms overhead
• Exhale and reach longer through your side waist
• Inhale and round the spine, taking chin to chest
• Exhale and stay in this pose
• Retain the breath out and place your hands at your low back
• Inhale and puff up the front body

Ustrasana (camel pose)

• Keep hands at the lower spine and breathe into the front body.
• Option to take hands to heels OR stay as you are.

Come to sit on your heels or a block.

Marjaryasana/Bitilasana (cat/cows)

Marichyasana (seated spinal twist)

Come to a seat of your choice

Pranayama – 4 Part Breath

This style of pranayama involves an evenly-paced inhale and exhale with breath retention in between the inhalation and exhalation.

Also known as Box-Breath or Four-Square Breathing, this pranayama is a potent stress reliever as it creates pressure in the lungs and teaches the body to stay calm when under duress.

In Sanskrit, this technique is called Sama Vritti Pranayama. Sama means equal and vritti means rotation/flow.

Sama Vritti brings more awareness to the flow and distribution of Prana throughout the body. The four stages of Sama Vritti are:

1. Puraka (Inhalation)
2. Antar Kumbhaka (Retention after Inhalation)
3. Rechaka (Exhalation)
4. Bahya Kumbhaka (Retention after Exhalation)

How To Do Sama Vritti:

• Inhale for the count of four
• Hold at the top for the count of four
• Exhale for the count of four
• Hold at the bottom for the count of four

Seated meditation or savasana to close.