Awaken Gently

About This Class

Bryan Kest leads a 66-minute breath-first flow designed to gently awaken the body from head to toe without shock or strain. The class opens in Child's Pose with an extended focus on nasal, full-lung breathing as a meditation anchor — a thread the instructor returns to throughout. From there, students move through a foundational vinyasa sequence (Down Dog, Cobra, Plank) repeated in leisurely rounds to build warmth gradually. Standing balance work — including single-leg balances, Warrior-style progressions, bent-knee balancing, and airplane pose — challenges focus while the instructor consistently invites backing off. Hip-opening low lunges with elbow-to-floor variations, twisting lunges, and balancing lunges address the hips and groins deeply. Prone backbends (Cobra, full-body lifts, Bow-like ankle clasps) provide sustained spinal love. A wide-legged seated forward fold with lateral walks targets hamstrings, inner groin, and the full posterior chain. The class closes with supine core work (scissor legs, plow/legs-over-head), a supported shoulder-stand variation, supine twists, and a generous Savasana. Throughout, Bryan frames the practice as self-care rather than self-improvement, calling for moderation, sensitivity, and gentleness as the keys to a sustainable, healing practice.