In class #3 of our Body Systems Yoga Series for Full Body Health, we will be focusing on the gastrointestinal system with a 30 minute hatha detox flow. You will find a lot of twists and dynamic movements to help stimulate the GI system.
We will start by learning about ‘detox’ and how it truly is a misnomer because our bodies do a wonderful job of detoxing for us. However, there are things you can do to help support the body’s natural detox mechanisms. One of those is osteopathic manual medicine, and we will learn a technique for bloating and constipation in this class. We will then move into our yoga flow that will help stimulate our GI tract to work properly. This whole series is designed for all levels, with harder poses mapped out in stages to allow each person to choose the level they are comfortable with.
All you will need is yourself and your mat– option to use blocks or straps to help support you in more difficult poses.
Click here for a curated playlist designed specifically for this flow: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/3PNepPZkWPg3eJGFexqv5o?si=711e63e9a098492e
Full Transcript
Introduction to GI Detox Yoga 0:00
[Music] hello I'm Dr Mariella wood and I'm a board certified family physician and certified yoga teacher and welcome back to day three of our body systems yoga series for full body Health today is going to focus on the gastrointestinal system so this will be a detox Hatha inspired yoga Flow full of lots of twists and turns to really activate the system so the gastrointestinal system is huge it contains a lot of the organs in our body starting with our mouth our esophagus stomach our intestines even our liver our gallbladder our pancreas all of that plays a role in our gastrointestinal system so the role of this system is so that you can consume nutrients your body can figure out what nutrients it wants to keep and what it wants to excrete and then it eliminates what you don't need it's our natural detox system if you will but I do want to talk about detox a little bit here so a lot of people talk about detox cleanses or detox yoga flows and they want to put something in their body or do something to their body to detox whatever's in there this is a little bit of a misnomer because our body already does an amazing job of detoxing all on its own some of these juice cleanses or detox teas may help stimulate this system you're depriving your body from other nutrients and just doing a juice cleanse or just doing a tea cleanse that's actually going to be more harmful in the long run because you're not giving your body the nutrients that it needs to support the natural detox system if you really want to focus on detoxing the body it's best to just avoid these quote-unquote toxins to begin with so the biggest toxins that you need to worry about are any toxins from processed foods processed foods charred Foods fried foods all of those do create attacks in our body and it's a byproduct of breaking down those foods and they're called ages and they really can do a toll on the body over time other toxins that people want to detox from are alcohol and I do want to talk about alcohol for a minute so when you drink a lot of alcohol your body actually does create a byproduct from drinking the alcohol called acid aldehyde and that is toxic to the body and this is produced when we drink more than one drink in a night so studies show that one maybe two glasses of wine a night can actually be beneficial for the body because red wine specifically does contain a lot of antioxidants but once you start to drink two three even more drinks than that at night your body can't fully digest and process the alcohol and it does create toxic byproducts so if this does happen to you there are ways to help your body detox number one drink a lot of water flush all that out to sweating either with exercise or steams and saunas and then three what we're going to be working on today is Yoga so the poses that we'll be doing involve a lot of twisting and turning and this actually does stimulate your GI tract because it puts pressure in certain areas it helps turn it on and
Osteopathic GI Activation 2:51
get things going we'll also do an Osteo manipulative medicine technique to help stimulate that tract and the one that I'm going to teach you today is really great for constipation and bloating so with all that I hope you enjoy this flow and I'll see you on the mat [Music] foreign let's first begin with our osteopathic manipulative medicine technique to help activate our GI system great for constipation bloating and just getting the system going so to do so go ahead and lie down on your back you can keep your knees bent or extend your legs out long I'm going to stay seated so I can show you the movements that we're going to do you certainly can do this technique seated but you get a little bit more activation if you're laying down so we'll start first by activating our ascending colon so this is going to be your right side of the body so what you're going to do is take your hand and make a claw shape like this you're going to grab the outside of your abdomen and gently press in and pull towards the center of your belly button and you can hold here like this or you can gently go into rhythmic motion up and down that ascending colon just trying to stimulate it and get it going like so again you can hold put a little bit of pressure and the motion that you want is down and in towards your belly button when you've done this for a few moments we're going to move on to our transverse colon so to do this take your thumbs like this and place them just below your rib cage you're going to do a similar motion pressing in and down again towards your belly button and again you can press in and hold or you can go in rhythmic motion like so to start stimulating that transverse colon last we'll do the descending colon which is going to be on the left side of your body so similar like we did on the right take a claw this time with the opposite hands grab the outside of your belly and really push in and Scoot towards your belly button and same thing here you can go in a rhythmic motion with your movement pressing in and towards your belly button or you can press in and hold great allow yourself to rest for just a few moments and then we'll meet on our backs to start the flow so once you've found yourself on your back we're going to start with the supine spinal twist so go ahead and pull your left knee into your chest and extend your right leg out long give it a good squeeze you can pull it around from side to side a little bit here and then with your right hand grab your left knee and pull the knee over to the right let your left let your left arm
Supine Twists and Tabletop Warm-Up 5:57
extend out long and just start to open up your chest and start to stimulate that gentle twist through your GI tract laughs you can start to connect your breath with the movements with inhale lifting and lengthening and then with the exhales twisting just a little bit deeper on your inhale bring your left knee back into your chest and then we'll switch it to the other side this time pulling your right knee into your chest give it a little squeeze you can move the knee back and forth just a little bit and then when you're ready take your right take your left hand grab the right knee and pull your right knee over to the left allowing your right arm to extend out long stay here for a few rounds of breath again inhaling to lift and lengthen and then exhaling to twist just a little bit deeper on your next inhale bring your right knee back into your chest give a little squeeze and then extend out long this time bring both knees into your chest squeeze them and just gently start to wrap back and forth side to side and then when you're ready start to rock up and down along the length of your spine a few times here and then we'll meet in a neutral tabletop position once you're here make sure your shoulders are rolled down and back shoulder stacked directly over your wrist your core is tucked in your tailbone tucked just slightly and your hips should be directly over your knees from here we'll start with a few rounds of cat and cow so inhale to drop the belly into cat Cow pose and then exhale to round the spine Chuck your chin cat pose again inhale to lift up how pose and then exhale to round the spine look down cat pose we'll do that one more time inhaling to drop the belly gaze up for cow cow exhale to round the spine cat pose inhale here to bring yourself back into a neutral tabletop position and stay here for the exhale next we'll go through a couple rounds of thread needle so on your next inhale lift your left arm up to the sky and give yourself a gentle twist here and then exhale to thread that left arm underneath the right and lay your head down on the ground for a thread the needle thread the needle easy twist again with each inhale lift and lengthen and on the exhales twist just a little bit further on the next inhale lift your left arm back up to the sky and then exhale to place it back down in a neutral tabletop position moving now inhale to lift the right arm up to the sky and then exhale to thread the needle over to the other side we'll stay here for a few rounds of breath inhaling to lift and lengthen and then exhaling to push and twist just a little bit deeper on the next inhale lift your right arm back up to the sky and then exhale to place it back down into a neutral tabletop position
Down Dog Variations and Standing Flow 9:45
from here untuck your toes and then lift your hips up and back to our first downward facing dog of the day from here make sure your shoulders are down and back and your hips are lifted up towards the sky really focus on lengthening your tailbone up you can bend the knees you can lift the heels more important to get your tailbone up than to get your heels down on the ground or your knees straight you can pedal out your dog here and just start to weaken up the body before we begin from here we're gonna go to a twisted variation of downward dog so if it's comfortable for you you can step your feet up just a little bit to make it a little bit more accessible for you then when you're ready take your left hand and grab for your right elbow just gently twist here then bring it back to a neutral down dog and we'll switch the other side take your right hand and grab for your left all right bringing it back to neutral here on your next inhale lift your right leg up and back for a three-legged dog on the exhale shift your weight forward and bring your right knee to the left elbow and gently allow your right foot to land and we'll open up before a fallen star starting to open up to the hearts open up through the belly take a big dip tail here and then exhale to plant your left hand back down the ground lift your right leg up and back to a three-legged dog inhale here to lift and lengthen and then exhale back down into a downward facing dog moving on to the other side now inhale your left leg up and back for three-legged dog then exhale to shift your weight forward left knee to right elbow and kick that leg out and we'll open up into a fallen star inhale to lift up just a little bit higher and then exhale to place your right hand back down on the ground lift up into a downwards a three-legged dog inhale here and then exhale back down into a downward facing dog from here lift your heels bend your knees and then jump hop or step forward and we'll all meet in a forward fold from here you can grab for opposite elbows for a ragdoll variation and just start to release through the low back when you're ready place your hands down on the ground and then lift up to a flat back position and then exhale back down forward fold show your toes to touch your heels can be out slightly an on your next inhale will lift up into a chair position up from here make sure that your shoulders are down and back away from your ears and really sink down into your heels as much as you can now place your hands to prayer Heart Center and we'll go through a couple of Twisted chair poses so inhale here to lift and lengthen and then exhale to bring your left elbow to the right side of your knee like so really work on twisting through the belly keeping your hips neutral inhale up to a chair position and then exhale to the other side right knee to left elbow inhale to lift up back to a chair position and then exhale back down forward fold inhale to lift up to a flat back and then exhale to plant your hands down on the ground and step back into a high plank position from here inhale to shift your weight forward over your wrists and then exhale down through chaturanga dandasana inhale for an upward facing dog or cobra and then exhale to send your hips back to child's pose in child's pose you can walk your knees in instead of being out wide so this puts a little bit more pressure and stimulation on the abdomen which stimulates the GI tract we'll stay here and rest for a few rounds of breath before we get into our next flow when you're ready let's all meet back up into a downward facing dog come here inhale to lift your heels bend your knees and then exhale to jump off our step forward into a forward fold inhale to lift up to a flat back and then exhale back down forward fold inhale to sweep your arms up to patasana chair position and then exhale Twisted chair right elbow left elbow to right knee from here we'll change it up just a little bit so stay deeply bent into your lunge and then you're going to step your left foot back for a twisted lunge from here a little bit more of a challenge we're going to open up into revolve Twisted lunge inhale here to lift and lengthen and then exhale to unwind and open up into a Warrior Two position in your Warrior Two make sure that your right knee is bent left leg is straight and really Bend deeply into that right knee inhale to bend just a little bit deeper and then exhale to keep the bend in your knee and reverse your Warrior inhale once more to lift and lengthen and then exhale to Extended side angle so again keeping the bend in your right knee from here pivot forward into a runner's lunge and then lift your left leg up and back for a standing split to stretch it out a little bit here inhale to lift and lengthen and then exhale to step back into a runner's lunge inhale to step your right foot back to meet your left shift your weight forward and then exhale down through chaturanga dandasana inhale for an upward facing dog or Cobra and then exhale descend your hips up and back for a downward facing dog moving on to the other side now inhale to lift your heels bend your knees and then jump up or step forward to the top of your mat to meet in a forward fold inhale to lift up to a flat back and then exhale back down forward Folds inhale to sweep your arms up overhead for uttasana chair pose and then exhale hands to prayer Heart Center twist over to the left side now right elbow to your left knee from here we'll challenge ourselves so step that right lip back for a twisted runner's lunge and then for one more challenge lift up into a revolved runners inhale here to lift and lengthen and then exhale to open up and unwind into a Warrior Two position I get in your Warrior Two your left leg is going to be bent toe pointing forward your right leg is going to be straight right foot parallel to the back of the mat and really deepen into that front left knee
Twisted Lunge, Side Plank, and Archer's Pose 17:21
inhale here to lift and lengthen and then exhale to reverse to your Warrior inhale once more here and then exhale to move forward into extended side angle inhale here to lift and lengthen and then exhale to unwind back into your runner's pose stay here for the inhale and then on the exhale lift your right leg up and back for a standing split we'll stay here for just one round of breaths inhaling once more to lift and lengthen and then exhale to step back into a runner's lunge inhale to step your left foot back to meet your right shift your weight forward over your wrists and then exhale down through chaturanga dandasana inhale for an upward facing dog or Cobra and then exhale to lift your hips up and back remember downward facing dog go ahead and drop down into a child's pose give yourself a rest here have a sip of water we'll take a few moments before we move on to our next low all right when you're ready let's all meet back up into downward facing dog we'll take one big clearing breath in and out here inhale fully feel your belly oxygenate all the cells in your body exhale to release it all out on your next inhale lift your right leg up and back for a three-legged dog and then exhale to bring your right foot forward in between your hands for a runner's lunge inhale to lift your right arm up to the sky for an easy twist and then exhale to point your left back left foot back on the ground and then step your right foot back for a side plank we'll stay here for just a moment then when you're ready step your right foot behind your little wild thing left leg straight right foot bent inhale to plant your right hand back down on the ground move your right foot forward back to a runner's lunge from here go through another standing split switching up just a little bit this time so inhale to lift your left leg up for a standing split from here we'll go into a giva squat variation so inhale to bend both knees G with squats and then exhale back up to a standing split inhale jeeva squats exhale standing splits from here step back into a runner's lunge and then we're going to move on to Archer's pose so pivot around to the back of your mat Bend deeply into that left knee I'm gonna sit here for a moment here you can place your hands down on the ground your hands can be at prayer Heart Center and if it's in your practice we'll play with a bound Archer's pose so to do bound archers make sure that your left foot is planted firmly onto the mat place your left arm out in front of you and lift your right arm up to the sky you can first try for a half bind wrapping your right arm around your back and for a full bind take your left arm around your knee and class for that right hand really twist to the Torso get that twist in there one more time and then release it back down from here we'll pivot all the way around to the front for runner's lunge and then going through a chaturanga step back into a high plank shift your weight forward over your wrists and then exhale down through chaturanga dandasana inhale for an upward facing dog or cobra and then exhale hips up and back for a downward facing dog moving on to the other side now inhale to lift your left leg up and back for a three-legged dog and then exhale to step your left foot forward in between your hands for a runner's lunge inhale to plant your right hand down on the ground and lift your left arm up for an easy twist and then step back into a side plank position inhale to lift your hips just a little bit higher and then exhale to step your left foot back for a wild thing inhale here to lift and lengthen then exhale to plant your left hand back step your left foot forward into a runner's lunge inhale to lift your right leg up and back to a standing split and then exhale jiba squat inhale up and back standing split and then exhale Jiva squat one more time inhale up and back for a standing split and then exhale back to your runner's lunge from here we'll pivot to Archer's pose so bring yourself to the back of the mat Bend deeply into your right knee and try to get your right foot planted firmly on the ground if you want to play with bound archers so to start go ahead and open your left arm up to the sky you can start with a half bind by bringing your left arm around your back and for the full bind you can wrap your right arm allow around the knee and grab for your hands behind you really twist the Torso gaze up to the sky and then release it back down and we'll meet at a runner's lunge in the top of the mat from here step your left foot back to meet your right shift your weight forward on the inhale and then exhale
Camel, Happy Baby, and Final Relaxation 23:00
down through chaturanga dundasana inhale for an upward facing dog or cobra and then exhale just lift your hips up and back for a downward facing dog drop down to your knees take a child's pose take a little rest here and then we'll move on to one more pose before we cool down all right when you're ready we're going to try a camel pose so to do so come up to your knees your shins should be parallel to each other pressing down firmly into the mats from here make sure the top of your feet are pressing firmly down into the mat and really tuck your tailbone tilt your torso forward from here you're going to take your hands place them on your low back and really start to push it Forward bending the elbows back shoulders down and back and start by just gently pressing your hips forward you can gently start to Arch back and if it's comfortable for you you can gaze back grab for your grab your heels and just release it back like so to come out first begin by putting your hands to your low back and then gently lifting your head back sit back and we'll come to a child's pose to reset all right do that one more time so you can try again so go ahead and sit back sit back up press the tops of your feet firmly into the mats bring your hands to your low back elbows pointed back and start by pressing your hips forward and then gently starting to open up the chest gently gaze up if that feels good for you if it's in your practice bend a little bit deeper grab your heels and release your head all right coming up exactly how you came out head comes last gently sit back into a child's pose foreign poses so go ahead and sit on your back sit on your back swing your legs around and then start to roll down completely onto your back from here we'll do a happy baby so to do so grab the outsides of your feet if your feet aren't available for you you can grab for your thighs your shins whatever is comfortable gently start your walk back and forth just making sure that your low back and your tailbone is pressed deeply into the mat you can rock back and forth you can find some Stillness maybe playing with straightening one leg and then the other and then when you're ready pull both knees into your chest tightened up into a little ball tight as you can and then release your legs out long and we'll find our finding rep and we'll find our final resting pose shavasana so let your whole body melt into the mats just relax here surrender here let the control of the breath go and just find some peace and serenity and feel free to pause the video here if you'd like to stay in shavasana a little bit longer but if you'd like to be guided out in a minute or so just relax and I'll guide you out when it's time all right start by bringing a little bit of movement into your body Begin by wiggling your fingers and your toes maybe start to roll the wrists roll the ankles gently start to bring some movement back into the body maybe take a full body stretch if that feels good for you maybe roll down onto your side into a fetal position and whenever you're ready take your time let's all meet up in an easy seat position if it's in your practice you can bring your hands to prayer Heart Center or bring your thumbs to your third eye The Light in Me honors the light inside each and all of you namaste [Music] thank you
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