Welcome to the eighth day of our 10-day chair yoga for weight loss series. Today, we'll focus on connecting with our breath to engage deep core muscles and enhance our practice.

Begin by sitting tall and moving slightly forward. Ensure your sit bones are pressing down, keeping your feet firmly on the ground. Proper alignment of your knees, hips, and ankles is crucial at this stage. Breathe deeply, inhaling through the nose and exhaling through the mouth, to help activate your core muscles.

"Even breathing exercises can strengthen core muscles and support your spine."

Engage your rib cage by placing your palms underneath it. This will help you feel the expansion and contraction as you breathe. Through focused breathing, you activate the core and maintain spinal support throughout the yoga session.

Focus on gentle arm movements to accompany your breathing. Circle your arms above your head and focus on actively engaging your right rib cage as you pull your arms higher. Repeat the same exercise on the left side to ensure balance and equal stretch across both sides of your body.

• Lift and lower heels to engage core muscles.
• Incorporate arm movements with T-shape posture.

To deepen the stretch of the intercostal muscles (between the ribs), extend arms and lean to one side. Stretching these muscles helps improve the capacity and efficiency of your lungs. Explore your range by leaning further from time to time, synchronizing movement with your breath.

Perform sun salutations—even in a seated position—by circling arms, diving forward, stretching deeply, and refocusing breathing at the core of your practice. This adds dynamic movement to enhance flexibility and improves cardio capability without overstressing your body.

Finish by carefully stretching the hip flexors and slowly opening your legs to one side, ensuring alignment is maintained. Use your breath to assist in deeper stretches while gently swaying side-to-side.

Finally, transition into hamstring stretches in a seated position, pushing your heel forward and hinging from the hips for the maximum effect on flexibility.

Conclude your session by gathering energy back into your body, lifting your arms into a crowd-pleaser move reflecting your cautious yet fruitful practice. Smile, breathe deeply, and seal the session with joy.

"Take a full breath in, exhaling with joy."