So you have decided to start practicing yoga. You go to a class and walk away confused. There were names of poses and movements that you made you get lost in the sequences. The following poses are some of the most commonly used in beginning yoga classes
1. Sukhasana - Easy Seat Pose
Inhale - cross the legs.
Exhale - sit extending the spine. Place a block or folded blanket under the sit bones if you feel any rounding in your lower back.
Inhale/Exhale - close the eyes to relax and breath in Easy Pose.
Stay for about 6 breaths.
Relax completely taking care of the breathing and slowly bringing it in control.
This pose strengthens the back and easily crossed legs, stretches the knees and ankles, opens the hips, groin, and abductors (outer thigh muscles). The active use of the diaphragm and lungs can be seen, which further improves the breathing, impacting the stability and balance while in the pose.
2. Tadasana - Mountain Pose
Begin to stand at the center of the short end of the mat.
With feet placed close to each other, outer edge parallel the mat resulting in a slight inner rotation of the legs.
Hands left hanging towards the sides, close your eyes and take breaths working on making the breathing slow and deep.
Stand here in Tadasana, taking 8 rounds of breathing preparing the body and the mind for the practice
This pose has a has a toning effect on the glutes, outer thighs, calf muscles, shin, ankles, and feet. The legs become strong at the ankles and the knees. Its helps to engage the abdominal and core muscles- strengthening them. It also helps boost energy levels and the conscious alertness of the body as a whole.
3. Uttanasana - Standing Forward Fold Pose
Exhale - bending forward with the torso flexing the hips to go into Uttanasana or Standing Forward Fold Pose.
Exhale completely here and reach for the floor with the palms and try to bring the face close to the knees or the place where one is comfortable.
Exhale- pull lower abdominal, just below the belly button, towards the spine. Repeat with each exhale.
This pose helps to tone the abdominal muscles while pulling the belly in and further helps to improve digestion. A great pose to reduce the excess belly fat. Improves the flexibility of the spine while opening the hamstrings and the calves muscles.
4. Adho Mukha Svanasana - Downward Facing Dog Pose
Placing the hands on the floor while bending the knees, take the legs behind, pressing the feet firm on the floor.
Press the shoulders, using the arms while raising the lower back upwards and bring the chest towards the floor for a deeper stretch around the hamstrings.
Exhale- pull lower abdominal, just below the belly button, towards the spine. Repeat with each exhale.
Use your abs to bring the hips to flex deeper. Feeling the hips flex and creating space for the hamstrings.
This pose opens the upper back and mid-back muscles. Enhanced joint mobility with muscular elasticity increases body flexibility. This action opens the chest cavity and is effective for respiration; the breath is deeper and longer.
5. Balasana - Child's Pose
Coming on the shins and the knees, place the hips on the heels.
Placing the hands on the heels, exhale to stretch moving forward.
Go gentle and slow with the stretch and as you exhale.
This pose aids in the flexibility of the lower limbs, ankles and feet are enhanced with the alignment. The shoulders and the neck in a surrendering position which eases the neck and enhances neck flexibility and prevents injury to the ankles and shoulders. It lengthens the spine and settles the vertebrae in its natural space
6. Chataranga Dandasana - Four Limbed Staff Pose
Shift forward to the balls of the feet and press back through your heels
Exhale- bend your elbows at a 90-degree angle to lower half way
Keep your elbows tucked into your sides and stacked directly over your wrists
Hug your arms into your side body, engaging your lats.
This pose is energizing pose as it gives the body energy and momentum to transition to other poses. The alignment fortifies the shoulders by engaging the shoulder blades to support the arms. This pose is a core strengthening pose as the alignment engages the core. The abdominal muscles use their strength to hold the body almost parallel to the floor.
7. Bhujangasana - Cobra
Laying on your stomach, bring your palms by the sides of your chest, get your feet together, press the tops of your feet into the mat, lift the knees off the mat.
Keeping your feet engaged actively, slowly push into your palms and roll the shoulders back, lift the chest and head off the mat.
Roll the shoulder blades down, relax the neck, press the pubic bone down towards the mat. Stay here for 5 full breaths.
This pose enhances the body flexibility by the symmetrical stretching and contraction of the various involved muscles. The lower back muscles are in contraction with the support of the stretching of the core while opening and stretching of the chest and rib cage. This pose also stimulates the retinaculum (these are networks of tissues around the tendons of the ankle joint) which are generally never stretched in our day-to-day activities.
This pose is often used as a substitute/modification for Urdhva Mukhva Svanasana - Upward Facing Dog.
8. Bitilasana Marjaryasana - Cat/Cow Pose
Begin the slow abdominal breathing here, while focusing on the movement of the spine.
Inhale take the chest upwards and outwards gazing up, and as you exhale, take the chest in and shoulders out pulling in the tummy to the maximum. This slow inhalation and exhalation, activates both the solar and the heart chakra, bringing a good balance to the entire body.
The practice of Cat Cow Pose, brings in fresh energy into the whole body if the breathing is perfect and slow. This energy is nothing but the activation of the chakra, bringing a smile to your face.
Practice this posture, for about 12 breaths as it takes that many breaths to work on the entire spine.
This pose is great for strengthening the spine. Doing the Cow stretch activates the tailbone, the root of the spine, while the cat stretches to release the tension of the neck and upper back. This movement also stretches the abdomen, hips, lungs and chest and helps in improving the blood flow in the spine and pelvic region.
9. Baddha Konasana - Bound Angle
From a seated position, bring the legs to bend at the knees towards the torso and allow the knees to fall open.
Place the soles of the feet together while resting the thighs on the floor.
Stretching the spine while making sure the thighs are rested well on the floor, take 5 rounds of breathing closing the eyes to watch the breath.
Release all the tension around the hips and the lower back.
This pose strengthens the pelvic floor and psoas muscles as well as the hip flexors. As the hip flexor muscles loosen up, one is able to lengthen and decompress the spine as well. Regular practice of this pose helps release all stiffness and tightness from the pelvic floor and hips and helps with hip opening.
10. Savasana - Corpse
Bring the body to relax by going into Savasana or the Corpse Pose.
Lying down on your back with legs and arms stretched out with some distance between the legs and the arms away from the body relax the muscles at a conscious level with breathing.
Contract muscle groups starting at the toes and ending at the head. Inhale- contract muscles, exhale release.
Stay relaxed in this pose for about 12 breaths and watch the spine move with breathing.
This yoga pose as a therapeutic yoga promotes and improves respiratory and cardiovascular function, promotes recovery from and treatment of addiction, reduces stress, anxiety, depression, and chronic pain, improves sleep patterns, and enhances overall well-being and quality of life.
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