Flow with the Breath: yoga for your joints and spine

12 min Beginner 14 poses voice-guided in the app subscription

Joints and spine moving to the rhythm of your breath

A short practice where almost every pose is done in motion: one direction on the inhale, the other on the exhale. The 14 movements take 12 minutes, starting on your feet with the neck and shoulders and ending on the floor with a short Savasana.

The level is beginner, and you can use it as a stand-alone session on an easy day or in place of a warm-up before yoga. In the app, this program comes with voice guidance and a timer in the subscription.

You can see the full order of movements right here on this page. With acute neck or lower back pain, dizziness, knee injuries or a lumbar disc herniation, some of the movements aren't right for you.

  1. Neck Warm-Up Neck Warm-Up 1
  2. Shoulder Rolls Shoulder Rolls 2
  3. Hip Circles Hip Circles 3
  4. Upward Salute Flow Upward Salute Flow 4
  5. Side Bend Flow Side Bend Flow 5
  6. Chair Flow Chair Flow 6
  7. Forward Fold Flow Forward Fold Flow 7
  8. Wrist Warm-Up Wrist Warm-Up 8
  9. Cat-Cow Cat-Cow 9
  10. Tabletop to Child's Pose Flow Tabletop to Child's Pose Flow 10
  11. Bridge Flow Bridge Flow 11
  12. Supine Twist Flow Supine Twist Flow 12
  13. Knees-to-Chest Pose Knees-to-Chest Pose 13
  14. Relaxation Pose Relaxation Pose 14

Why this order

First your joints wake up standing: Neck Warm-Up, Shoulder Rolls and Hip Circles. Upward Salute Flow and Side Bend Flow get the spine swaying, and Chair Flow and Forward Fold Flow bring in the legs. Before you put weight on your hands, your wrists get their own warm-up, then Cat-Cow and the Tabletop to Child's Pose Flow send a wave along your back.

On your back, Bridge Flow engages the glutes, Supine Twist Flow rotates the spine, and Knees-to-Chest releases the lower back. Savasana at the end lasts under two minutes, which is enough for your breath to settle.

Cautions

  • Acute neck pain (Neck Warm-Up)
  • Dizziness (Neck Warm-Up)
  • Acute lower back pain (Side Bend Flow)
  • Knee injuries (Chair Flow)
  • Flare-up of lower back problems (Chair Flow)
  • Lumbar disc herniation (Forward Fold Flow, Supine Twist Flow)
  • High blood pressure (Forward Fold Flow)
  • Acute wrist injuries (Wrist Warm-Up)
  • Acute back pain (Cat-Cow)
  • Wrist injuries — practice on your fists (Cat-Cow)
  • Knee injuries — place a blanket under your knees (Tabletop to Child's Pose Flow)
  • Neck injuries (Bridge Flow)
  • Flare-up of lower back pain (Bridge Flow)
  • Pregnancy (Supine Twist Flow)
  • Pregnancy from the second trimester onward — take your knees wider than your belly or skip the pose (Knees-to-Chest Pose)

This site is for general information and is not medical advice. If you have pain, an injury, a chronic condition, or are pregnant, check with a qualified professional before practicing.