Balance · 01

A session of its own · 22 min · Twist · After training

Why it works: Chapter 22, Why some runners fly down rocky trails

The routine

1. 1
  Mountain
  Stand tall and find the breath before the clock starts.
Half sun salutations
1. 2
  Upward Salute
  1 min
  Half sun salutations, flowing at your own pace — inhale the arms overhead, exhale fold, inhale halfway lift, exhale fold, inhale rise. Keep going for the whole three minutes; the cards just name the shapes you pass through.
2. 3
  Standing Forward Fold
  1 min
  The fold half of the salutation. Bend the knees as much as you need — the point is the spine lengthening, not straight legs.
3. 4
  Halfway Lift
  1 min
  The flat-back lift between folds. Fingertips to the shins, gaze just past the toes.
1. 5
  Bird Dog
  Right · 1 min
  Hands under shoulders, knees under hips, flat back. Reach the RIGHT arm forward and the LEFT leg back until both are level with your trunk, then hold. Both hip points stay facing the floor — the lifted side wants to roll open and turning it back down is most of the work.
1. 6
  Bird Dog
  Left · 1 min
  Change diagonals: left arm, right leg. Come back under yourself first and change slowly — the moment of the change is the part that counts.
1. 7
  Bear Sit-Through
  Alternate sides · 2 min
  Toes tucked, knees hovering an inch off the floor. That is the bear, and it never touches down. Lift one hand, thread the opposite foot underneath and out the far side, and let the hips turn until you are half facing the sky. Back through the middle, then the other way. Left, middle, right, middle, until the timer stops, at whatever pace keeps the knees off the floor. The hips turn you; the arms only hold you up.
1. 8
  Side Plank
  Alternate sides · 2 min
  THE ROLL: one continuous piece, never a hold. Start on the LEFT hand and the outside edge of the left foot, right arm reaching straight up, bottom hip lifted so you are one line. Roll through plank (both hands down, one straight line from heels to head; you pass through here rather than stopping here) onto the right hand, left arm up. Keep rolling from one side through the middle to the other until the timer stops. Bottom knee down if the shoulder or the waist needs it.
1. 9
  Bridge and Turn
  Right · 1 min
  On your back, both feet planted close to you, arms out. Drive hard through the RIGHT heel and turn the hips up and over the left shoulder until you are on that shoulder and that one foot. Lower under control, then go again until the timer stops. If you are shoving yourself over with your hands, drive harder through the foot instead.
1. 10
  Bridge and Turn
  Left · 1 min
  Change sides: drive through the left heel, turn over the right shoulder.
1. 11
  Single-Leg Bridge
  Alternate sides · 2 min
  Stay on your back and bridge the hips up. Now float one foot, set it down, float the other — slowly, alternating, until the timer stops. The hips never come back to the floor and both hip points stay level. A glass of water on your hips should not spill.
1. 12
  Three-Legged Dog
  Alternate sides · 2 min
  Press back up to down dog, then lift one leg high, set it down, lift the other — in and out, alternating, until the timer stops. This is a doorway rather than a posture, and the doorway is the point: the support changes every time a foot leaves and lands.
1. 13
  Warrior III
  Right · 1 min
  Step forward and stand up. On the right leg, hinge forward as the left leg lifts to horizontal. Hands at the chest to start, alongside the body as you settle, reaching past the ears when you want it harder. Fingertips on a wall is not a lesser version.
1. 14
  Warrior III
  Left · 1 min
  Change sides. Last shape before the floor.
1. 15
  Child's Pose
  1 min
  Hips back to the heels, forehead down. Let the low back and hips go.
1. 16
  Hero
  1 min
  Sit between the heels, toes pointed — the quads and the front of the ankles. Block or cushion under the seat if the knees complain.
1. 17
  Butterfly
  1 min
  Soles together, knees wide. Sit on a cushion if the low back rounds, and fold forward as far as is comfortable.
1. 18
  Knees to Chest
  1 min
  Roll down onto your back and draw both knees in. Let the low back round into the floor.
1. 19
  Corpse
  1 min
  Legs long, arms open, feet falling out. Stop steering the breath and stay until the timer ends.