Nature teaches us daily rhythms: morning and night, light and darkness, seasons of budding growth and dormant hibernation. Our inhale speaks to our sympathetic nervous system to bring energy and mobilization; our exhale whispers to our parasympathetic nervous system to bring a calm that settles us. Like the tide that rolls in and out, our bellies lift with the in-breath and contract on the out-breath.

In yoga, we work both sides of the body and notice the differences in how it feels when we reach, stretch, and contract — on the left, on the right — awareness and attention to the upper body and the lower body. We awaken and check our posture, our alignment, and notice where we hold tightness and need to soften.