Good morning loves, <3

There are quite a few advanced yoga postures I’m currently working on in my practice, so I thought I’d share a few with you (along with some tips) and perhaps you can relate it to your own practice. 🙂

The first posture I’m working on is king dancer! This pose seemed so far out of my reach even just a few months ago… But one day during my practice last month, I flipped my grip at the last minute and voila! I pulled it off… somewhat. 😉

King dancer is a very intense posture for me, so I make sure to warm up lots before getting into the full expression. I like to do lots of heartopeners and really focus on warming up my shoulders (lots of extended puppy) beforehand. You’ll notice a huge, positive difference in your ability to pull off ANY posture if you take the time to warm up and stretch first. I can’t stress that enough. 

Another posture I’m working towards (and have been for some time now) is full camel.  Over the last few months I haven’t seen or felt too much progress in regards to this specific pose, but that’s simply because I took a bit of a step back from my usual routine (which normally includes a strong focus on backbending postures and spine conditioning exercises). Recently, I’ve been dedicating much of my practice to increasing my inner/outer hip flexibilty as well as focusing on my hamstrings.

I’m excited to get back into developing my full camel (and more backbending in general). I will definitely keep you updated over the next few months with my progress… The picture you see below is current and is as deep as I can go in full camel at the present moment. <3

As mentioned above, I’m really working hard on my inner/outer hip flexibility. I spend about 30 minutes everyday (in addition to my regular practice) focusing on poses like: pigeon, goddess, frog, lizard, and lots of lunges. I never set timelines for myself in regards to learning certain postures, but middle splits is one that I really have my heart set on! Hence, the strong focus on hip openers. 😉 I’m super excited for the day that I can comfortably chill out in the splits! I’ll let you know when that day comes. 😛

So for now, I will continue to focus on working that inner and outer hip flexibility as it’s really bringing so much joy and satisfaction to my practice… And that really is the whole point isn’t it?! <3

To be honest, my yoga journey has not included much in the way of inversions! EXCEPT, I do love a good pincha and could chill in a headstand forever… But I definitely need to build more strength in my upper body so I can start to focus more on handstands. I’m starting to alternate each day between strength and flexibility focused practices… For the last 3 to 6 months I have mainly been working my flexibility but I truly believe it’s the marrying of both strength and flexibility that will take my practice to the next level.

I’m super thankful to have some great motivation at home as well because my husband is currently working on developing his handstands and arm balances (lots of conditioning exercises). He’s really inspiring me to evolve my practice a bit more in that direction as well. 🙂

I hope you enjoyed hearing a little bit about where I’m at in my yoga journey! And, if you’re wondering about the beautiful mat I’m using in these photos, it’s from a company called: Zenlife by Gosaproject. The company is based out of Miami and I really can’t say enough about them. The owners have the most amazing, positive energy. They believe whole-heartedly in giving back and therefore they donate a percentage of every sale to help single mothers in Colombia to reduce the participation of children in the drug trafficking industry.

Not only is the company amazing, but the mat itself is super high-quality and soooo very beautiful (even more beautiful in person than in the photos)! I fell in love with it the first time I stepped foot on it. It’s perfect for hot yoga- as the grip significantly improves as your practice gets sweatier! So if you’re looking for a good mat for your Bikram class, I’d definitely consider checking out Zenlife. I also love that you can put it directly into the washing machine after your practice, just make sure to hang dry. 🙂

If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out. Sending lots of love and good vibes your way. <3

Namaste loves,

Molly xx

Entire outfit is by Flo Activewear.