| The day began at 6 a.m. when the alarm clock jolted you out of your sleep. You showered quickly and then began rousing the rest of the household. The pressure to get everyone bathed, dressed, fed and out the door in time to be at school and work by 8:00 a.m. has left you tired and a little cranky before you even make it to your desk. As the day wears on, you feel more and more stressed and tired—wondering how you will find the energy to be fully present and active with your family in the evening.
For many of us, this scenario is all too real, every single day. As I have taught yoga over the years, one of the most gratifying things students have ever said to me about the practice is that it has helped them to slow down, to focus their minds and to feel present in their bodies. At the end of a day like the one described above, our energy may not support an intense spinning class or even a fast-paced yoga class. What our body-mind may be crying out for is a practice that draws our attention to the breath and to restoring the body rather than asking even more of it.
The following sequence of breathing and asana is designed to calm the nervous system and relax the body. As always, it is recommended that you practice on an empty stomach. This practice requires the use of either one or more blankets or a yoga bolster. If you don’t have a bolster, blankets can serve to accomplish the support required to make these asanas restorative.
Find a quiet space where you can be uninterrupted for 20 to 30 minutes. Begin by sitting on your mat—you may wish to sit on your blanket or bolster—in sukhasana, simple cross-legged pose. Drop the shoulders away from the ears, lift up through the spine so that the body is long from tailbone to crown of the head. Close the eyes gently and begin to feel and hear the breath—both inhale and exhale moving through the nostrils. After a few moments of simply following the breath, place your right hand on your belly and consciously soften it. Allow the right hand to rest on the belly and feel that on the inhale the belly (still soft) pushes the hand outward. On the exhale, feel the belly drop back toward the spine. If it feels like the belly gets rigid, consciously soften it and let it move with both inhale and exhale.
Try not to get anxious about this soft belly breathing, just let it happen. Notice if the shoulders begin to creep up toward the ears and drop them once more. After several minutes of breathing with the right hand on the belly, release the hand and continue letting the belly move with the breath. Take a final moment with the eyes closed to set an intention for your yoga practice. Name your intention silently and seal it with a deep long inhale. As you exhale, release all tension from the body-mind, release all anxieties and all distractions—anything at all that would interfere with your practice.
ASANA 1 – Supported Adho Mukha Svanasana (Supported Downward Facing Dog)
 Place either a bolster or a blanket that you’ve folded into thirds on your mat lengthwise. To come into Adho Mukha Svanasana (AMS), begin on your hands and knees (Fig. 1a), open the palms wide and spread the fingers out, tuck the toes underneath and lift the sit bones (buttocks) toward the ceiling (Figs. 1b, 1c). The body will form an angle with energy lifting up from the hands, through the arms and up the back all the way to the tailbone. Energy will move down from the buttocks to the heels. If the backs of your legs are tight, feel free to keep the knees bent. The bolster or blanket(s) (you may find it helpful to place a blanket on top of a bolster to add height) should be lengthwise on your mat in between your hands. Without collapsing the
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