Yoga On Demand – Recorded Yoga with Jessica

I introduced this recorded content as a response to the Coronavirus disruption in spring 2020, and keep it here for ongoing use and interest although it is not updated regularly.

Please be aware that you need to take responsibility for your own safety during online sessions, and sessions are offered without responsibility Recorded content does not take the place of working with an experienced Yoga Teacher or Yoga Therapist.

These are recorded and edited by myself from my own space, so please don’t expect a polished professionally filmed video. At the time of recording I had a knee injury so these are very much “real life yoga”.

Short Routines – Asana, Pranayama and Meditation
Short routines exploring Yoga postures, Breathing practices and Mediation
Longer Classes
Some longer classes for you to enjoy – Join me Weekly for Similar Classes.
Presentations (talk rather than practice)
Looking at the theory of some of the Yoga traditions, and using them therapeutically.
Visual Yin Yoga Guide
A visual guide to Yin Yoga and the main postures we use in class, with tips and suggestions for safety and adaptations
Yoga Therapy
How we can use Yoga Therapy for Health and Well-being – lean more about this in my Yoga Therapy area

Short Routines – Asana, Pranayama and Meditation

Neck and Shoulders Routine Seated – with introduction – 18 Minutes Seated
Edited version without introduction – 16 Minutes Seated
A Yin Yoga based asana (postures) routine for getting into neck and shoulders. I developed this myself when I started suffering from “cyclists shoulder” but its also great for release after too much desk time.

Joint Freeing Series (floor based)– 23 Minutes (or Chair Based – 21 minutes)
The Joint Freeing Series is a simple asana (postural) routine to bring systematic awareness and freedom to the main joints in the body. This is an ideal routine for aches and pains, or when the body feels a bit seized up.

I’m offering two versions here – a floor based one, from a Yoga mat, and a chair based adaptation for those who find working on the floor difficult.

Dirga Breath – ten minute practice with introduction – 14 Minutes Seated
Edited version without introduction– 11 Minutes Seated
Dirga breathing is characterised by a stepped three part inhale, and a long slow exhale. Its a calming breath that can also help to strengthen your breathing muscles and encourage focus.

Ujjai Breath (ten minute practice with introduction) – 14 Minutes Seated
Edited version without introduction – 11 Minutes Seated
Grounding Ujjai Breath (five minute practice with introduction) – 7 Minutes Seated
Ujjai is a form of resistance breathing that is deeply relaxing to the Nervous System and hence very calming.

The Grounding Ujjai breath practice takes this a little further, and is suitable for times when you are experiencing anxiety or overwhelm and need a “quick fix”.

Alternate Nostril Breathing (Nadi Shodhana) – 10 minute practice with introduction – 14 Minutes Seated
Edited version without introduction – 11 Minutes Seated
Psychic Alternate Nostril Breathing (5 minute practice with introduction) – 8 Minutes Seated
Alternate Nostril Breathing helps balance our nervous system between its Sympathetic and Parasympathetic actions, or if you prefer its Yin and Yang parts. Its a calming practice, that also helps to bring focus.

The Psychic Alternate Nostril Breathing practice is a variation of this which, as the name suggests, is performed psychically, which is useful if you are blocked up, or have an arm, wrist or shoulder injury.

Coherent Breathing (10 minute practice with introduction) – 15 Minutes Seated
Edited version without introduction – 11 Minutes Seated
Coherent Breathing Chimes – 10 Minutes audio to download and save and 20 minute audio to download and save
Coherent Breathing – also known as Resonant Breathing – is a wonderfully simply practice with immense benefit. It involves slowing your breath to a steady six seconds in, six seconds out, which brings your Nervous System into a state of “Resonance” or “Coherence”, this in term helps to build resilience psychologically and physiologically. If you only use one breathing practice, this is the one I would recommend.

Sitali Pranayama – a breathing practice for hot days and hot flushes – 9 minutes – seated
Sitali has the dual benefit of being both a calming and cooling breath. If the weather is hot, or you are experiencing excess heat from hot flushes or fever, this simple practice can help.

Chakra Meditation – 22 Minutes Seated
Esoteric traditions hold the Chakras as centre of Prana, vital life force energy, in our bodies. Working with them can help bring us to a state of balance and optimal energy. This is a simple no fuss meditation practice for the Chakras, which guides you through experiencing them in your own way.

Longer Classes

Evening Breathe and Yin Stretch – 41 Minutes
At the end of a long day, it can be pleasant to stretch and catch our breath. This forty minute routine is just for that.

Yin Yoga for Hips and Spine– 62 Minutes
Yin Yoga can be very useful to release tension in our hips and spine. This is a hour long class focusing on these areas.

Sample Yin Yoga Class from Zoom– 1 hour 20 minutes
A sample of the typical Yin Yoga classes I stream on Zoom. Join me Weekly for Similar Classes.

Presentations (talk rather than practice)

Introduction to Breathing and Pranayama – 12 Minutes
An introduction to Yoga Breathing Practices, known as Pranayama – why we use them, what we aim to achieve, selecting the right practice, and useful tips

Yoga, Our Nervous System and Coronavirus – 21 Minutes
Some thoughts on how we can use Yoga to help ourselves during the Coronavirus pandemic. It goes without saying if you have Coronavirus symptoms please get medical advice.

The Yoga Energy Body – Chakras, Koshas, Nadis and Prana – 28 minutes – and Chakra Meditation– 22 minutes
Some thoughts on understanding the Subtle Body of Wisdom traditions – whilst deviating from Western evidence based practice, nevertheless these approaches offer an alternative insight to our health and well-being.

The Thereputic use of Chakras – 10 Minutes
Some thoughts on how we may use our understanding of the Chakra system to improve our physical and emotional well-being.

The Thereputic use of Prana – 6 Minutes
Some thoughts on how we may use our understanding of the Prana – the life force in Yoga – to improve our physical and emotional well-being.

The Thereputic use of Koshas – 8 Minutes
Some thoughts on how we may use our understanding of the multi layered Kosha system to improve our physical and emotional well-being.

Visual Yin Yoga Guide

This is my guide to Yin Yoga postures, created to re-enforce the work we do in class, either in person or online.

The nature of Yin Yoga is it is experiential rather than directive, so this content is my interpretation rather than definitive – caveat emptor!

In these presentations I aim to cover various different ways into postures, typical props, and ways the poses may be adapted for individual need. I am very much of the view that “Every Body is a Yoga Body” and the relatively simple nature of Yin Yoga poses means there is a way in for everyone with care and creativity. Not all options are covered here, but I’ve tried to deal with the common ones.

Introducing Yin Yoga – 12 Minutes
What is Yin Yoga, and what are the fundamentals of this practice? There are sometimes considered to be three fundamentals of a Yin Yoga practice – coming into poses at an appropriate depth, for an appropriate time, and cultivating stillness. In this presentation I discuss the basics of Yin Yoga and these fundamentals.

Safety in Yin Yoga – 20 Minutes
Yin Yoga is, when taught well and practised with awareness, a safe practice. However it is important to protect ourselves from injury in Yin yoga – hips, spine, joints, sprains, and emotional injury such as overwhelm. In this presentation I discuss how to keep ourselves safe during our practice, physically and emotionally.

Using Props in Yin Yoga – 15 Minutes
The props we use in a yin practice – bolsters, blocks, bricks, ovals, wedges, blankets, can be confusing. In this presentation I try to demystify their purpose and use. Its important to be aware that use of props doesn’t mean your Yoga practice is not good enough or needs improving – props can help the beginner and experienced yogi, and all body types with or without injury.
You can buy most of the props from Yinspire

Sitting Well for Seated Postures – 6 Minutes
We use seated postures for breathing and mediation, as well as when we are working with areas like neck and shoulders – but how do we sit well for practice, and avoid injury and soreness?

Circling – 2 Minutes
A simple way to introduce movement to your body at the start of a yoga practice, wake up the spine, and to transition from sitting to moving.

Cat Cow and Balancing Cat – 5 Minutes
Cat Cow is a staple for warming and freeing our spine; balancing cat helps challenge our balance, focus, and strengthens our spine and related muscles.

Childs Pose & Wide Extended Knee Child (aka Frog) – 6 Minutes
A staple rest posture from the yoga tradition, but paradoxically quite uncomfortable for some people. Here we look at variations and modifications to get the most from this set of poses.

Deer – 3 Minutes
Deer is on the face of it a simple seated posture which combines both internal and external rotation of our hips, however in practice it can be difficult, and a challenge if there are knee or hip stories.

Dragon and Dragon Twist – 5 Minutes
Dragon is an energising lunge posture with much opportunity for exploring the paradox of strength and softening in the same posture. A good posture for opening and strengthening the hips and legs as well.

Forward Bends – Half Butterfly, Dragon Fly, Butterfly and Caterpillar – 11 Minutes
Forward bends help release our legs, hips and spine, and they are also calming for the mind. Care is needed to protect the spine – elongation, moving from the hips and not letting the head hang are important if we are to practice safely.

Happy Baby Pose – 3 Minutes
Happy Baby is a lovely supine release for the hips, but not comfortable for everyone. Here are the options to get into the pose and adapt it for your body.

Lateral Opening – Banana and Side Child – 3 Minutes
Opening the side of our body – the lateral aspect – helps free our ribs and waist, and in the case of banana our hips and legs as well (good for the IT Band area for runners and cyclists).

Savasana and Constructive Rest – 3 Minutes
The staple relaxation postures to start or end your practice, or for when life gets too much and release is needed.

Supine Yin Postures – Constructive Rest, Figure 4, Leg Lock, Leg Stretch – 9 Minutes
Supine postures feature strongly in Yin Yoga, starting with the absolute relaxation of Constructive Rest, and moving through other postures for our legs, lower spine and hips.

Twists in Yin Yoga – 7 Minutes
Twists are an important part of our yoga practice – helping to release the spine and shoulders, and clam the mind. Which twists do we use, and how to approach them safely?

Swan – 5 Minutes
Swan, known as Pigeon (or one legged king pigeon) in some traditions, is a versatile and multi faceted posture which works on our spine, legs and hips – but it can be a challenge for some people. Here are some thoughts on ways to approach the practice with care.

Shoelace – 5 Minutes
Shoelace helps release our hips, and if combined with coming forward can be stilling and calming. However it can be a difficult pose for some, so we look at variations and different ways in.

Supported Inversion, Supported Bridge and Legs up Wall – 5 Minutes
Supported inversions help clam our nervous system and are go to poses for times when things get on top of us.

Sphinx and Seal – 6 Minutes

These are the staple back bends of a Yin Yoga practice, opening the front of our body and releasing tension in the spine, at the same time being energising and expansive. They can be challenging to our shoulders, so we look at how to approach these safely.

Square Pose – 3 Minutes
A simple but deceptively challenging posture for our hips, sometimes known as Double Pigeon or Firelog. Many people will need a simple variation to enjoy this posture, which I cover in this presentation.