🟣 Position 1

RELEASING ANCHOR

Leg Stretch  (Supine Knee-to-Chest & Hamstring Stretch)

🔹 Symbolic Name Meaning:“Releasing Anchor” evokes the image of letting go at the end of the day — both physically and mentally. One leg anchors you to the ground while the other gently releases accumulated tension. It’s a shift from doing to undoing, from holding to softening.

🔹 Core Intention:Decompress the hips, spine, and back of the legs. Create space in the body. Prepare for deep rest.

🔹 How to Practice:
🛏️ Version 1: Knee-to-Chest (Apanasana)

1. Lie flat on your back.
2. Extend one leg fully along the ground.
3. Draw the opposite knee toward your chest.
4. Interlace your fingers around the top of the bent knee, palms resting comfortably.
   • This keeps the shoulders down and avoids unnecessary neck or upper back tension.
5. Focus on:
   • Spine long and natural
   • Pelvis grounded
   • Neck soft
   • Chest gently elevated
   • Abdomen soft and receptive

🕒 Hold for 1–2 minutes per side, longer if needed

🧘‍♂️ Version 2: Leg Stretch (Supta Padangusthasana variation)

• Place a strap or resistance band around the sole of the lifted foot.
• Gently extend the leg upward, holding both ends of the strap.
• Keep the other leg long on the floor, toes pointing upward.
• Adjust the height of the leg so the stretch feels pleasant, not strained.
• Focus on the release in the hamstring, calf, and lower back.

🕒 Alternate legs after 1–2 minutes

🔹 Breathwork Focus:Breathing is the decompression.
As the body softens, the breath becomes the guide inward.
You may choose between:

• Effortless breathing: Letting breath flow naturally without force
• Conscious expansion breathing:
  • Inhale: Slow, deep, spacious — open the ribs, diaphragm, belly
  • Exhale: Long and passive — don’t force, just extend

🌀 Exhale activates the parasympathetic nervous system, helping to:

• Release muscular tension
• Calm the mind
• Deepen recovery and sleep potential

🔹 Why This Matters Before Sleep:

• Sitting shortens the hip flexors and hamstrings, pulling on the lower back
• This gentle stretch releases tension from the legs and decompresses the spine
• Helps reduce restless leg sensations and overactivity in the nervous system
• Encourages deep pelvic grounding, which naturally leads to better sleep positioning

🔹 Tips for Practice:

• Let the weight of the leg drop into your hands or strap — no need to hold it up
• Use a pillow under the head if needed for neck comfort
• Close the eyes to turn attention inward
• Feel the rhythm of breath and body syncing into stillness

​

🟣 Position 2

LUNA FOLD

Inversion (Inversion – Plow Pose or Neck Traction Variation)

🔹 Symbolic Name Meaning:“Lunar Fold” reflects both the folding inward of the body and the downward, cooling, calming energy of the moon (lunar). This is a time to surrender to gravity, restore the spine, and balance internal systems as the day winds down.

🔹 Core Intention:Reverse pressure. Decompress the spine. Calm the nervous system. Balance the body’s internal rhythms.
This is a circulatory reset, a structural reset, and a nervous system reset in one.

🔹 How to Practice:
✴️ Variation 1: Supported Plow (Halasana – Modified)

1. Lie on your back and slowly roll legs over your head, lifting the hips.
2. Support your lower back with your hands — elbows shoulder-width apart.
3. Instead of extending your legs fully to the floor, try this gentler variation:
   • Knees rest near the forehead
   • Heels remain above the knees
   • Back is supported, neck relaxed
4. Breathe deeply and stay soft in the jaw, face, and shoulders

🕒 Hold for 1–2 minutes or as long as feels restful

✴️ Variation 2: Spinal Traction (Head Pull Technique)

1. Lie flat on your back
2. Interlace fingers behind your head, elbows open wide
3. Slowly draw elbows inward and chin toward chest
4. As you gently press the head forward with your arms, feel the spine lengthening from tailbone to crown
5. Keep the rest of the body passive — feel a gentle traction throughout the neck and spine

🕒 Hold for 1 minute or more, or repeat in a slow rhythm

🔹 Why This Matters (Therapeutic Benefits):

• Spinal decompression: counteracts spinal compression from sitting and gravity
• Neck relief: gentle traction releases tension in cervical spine and shoulders
• Pelvic organ reset: inversion allows gravity to lift and reposition internal organs
• Brain calming: increased circulation to the head can aid clarity and release mental fatigue
• Heart rebalancing: promotes venous return, easing pressure on the heart and nervous system
• Blood pressure harmonization: balances upper and lower body circulation

🔹 Breath Focus:Let the breath move upward with the spine.
Let the exhale drop downward into grounding.

• Inhale: feel expansion in the back body, ribs, upper chest
• Exhale: melt tension down the spine and into the earth
• Breathing should be quiet, continuous, and nourishing

🔹 Practice Notes & Variations:

• Support neck with a small folded blanket if needed
• If using variation 1, ensure no weight is on the neck directly — the support must come from the arms and shoulders
• Come out slowly, especially after inversion — take a few neutral breaths lying flat before moving

🟣 Position 3

SPIRAL RELEASE

Supine Spinal Twist – One-Leg or Double-Leg Version

🔹 Symbolic Name Meaning:“Spiral Release” captures the natural unwinding motion of the spine — a gentle rotation that lets the body return to its neutral blueprint. Spirals are found throughout the body’s fascial patterns, and this position unwinds both physical and energetic tension accumulated through the day.

🔹 Core Intention:Mobilize and decompress the thoracic spine. Balance the nervous system. Release tension through the axis of the body.
This is twisting without tension. It's a supported, grounded spiral — where the upper and lower body turn away from each other, creating space for the spine and a reset for the nervous system.

🔹 How to Practice:
✴️ Version 1: Single-Leg Supine Twist (Deeper Spiral)

1. Lie flat on your back
2. Draw your right knee into your chest
3. Extend your right arm out in line with the shoulder, palm facing up
4. Rotate your hips left, guiding the right knee across the body
5. Keep the right shoulder grounded — gently press it into the floor
6. Gaze to the right; ideally, allow the right ear to rest on the floor
7. Feel the twist lengthen from the base of your spine to your ribs and neck

🕒 Hold 1–2 minutes per side

✴️ Version 2: Double-Leg Supine Twist (Gentle Spiral)

1. Lie on your back with both knees bent
2. Shift your hips to the left slightly
3. Let both knees drop to the right
4. Place the left hand on the right knee for support
5. Extend the right arm out and gaze to the right
6. Keep both shoulders grounded and allow the twist to unfold naturally
7. Align the neck so the ear rests softly on the floor if accessible

🕒 Hold 1–2 minutes or longer per side

🔹 Benefits & Why It Matters:

• Decompresses the thoracic spine, which often becomes compressed from slouching and forward posture
• Helps mobilize the ribs, intercostals, and fascial layers across the torso
• Stimulates the parasympathetic nervous system via vagus nerve pathways
• Gently releases spinal and abdominal tension, aiding digestion and breath
• Supports lymphatic drainage and organ mobility by soft abdominal rotation
• Balances left-right asymmetry, especially after unilateral daily habits (crossing legs, carrying bags, sleeping patterns)

🔹 Breath Integration:Breath fills the twist. Breath softens the resistance.

• Inhale: Expand ribs, side body, and back
• Exhale: Settle deeper into the rotation without force
• Try to “breathe into” the tight spaces
• Let the exhale create weight and surrender

🔹 Practice Notes:

• Use a pillow or bolster under the top knee for support if needed
• Let gravity do the work — never force the twist
• Keep jaw relaxed, tongue soft, and eyes closed for deeper release
• This is not about range — it's about release through symmetry