Set yourself up at home.
Choose a room where you can relax and not be disturbed..
Find
a suitable place for your lessons.
Findaplacewherenothing distractsyou Makesureyoutrainonalevel surfacetokeepyourbalance Ifyouareluckyenoughtobe abletotrainoutsideinnature, taketheopportunity Tipstosetupthe perfectyogaspace. 01 02 03 04 05 Ifnot,makeyourindoor yogaspacecalmand relaxing,forexamplewith plantsoressentialoils Gatherallyouryogasupplies inoneplace
01 Chapter yoga poses
POSE 01
Downward Facing Dog
Start off the sequence with deep, full breaths in Downward Facing Dog:
Begin on your hands and knees. Your wrists should be underneath your shoulders, and your knees should be underneath your hips.
Inhale as you tuck your toes under your heels. Then exhale to lift your hips, coming into an upside down "V" shape alled Downward Facing Dog.
Spread your fingers wide, nd create a straight line between your middle ingers and elbows. Work on straightening your legs nd lowering your heels oward the ground. Relax our head between your rms, and direct your gaze hrough your legs or up toward your belly button. Hold for five breaths. Traditionally this pose is done during Sun Salutation A, so you can also come into it from Upward Facing Dog.
Pose2
Three-LeggedDog
Three-LeggedDogstretchesyourhipsandprepsyourlegs foralltheirhardworktofollow:
BegininDownwardFacingDog.Stepbothfeettogether soyourbigtoesaretouching.
Shiftyourweightontoyourhandsandyourleftfoot equally,andraiseyourrightlegintotheair.Trytokeep yourshouldersparallelwiththeground,andgazeatyour leftthighoruptowardyourbellytohelpyoustay balanced.
Stayhereforfivebreaths.
ClickhereformoreonThree-LeggedDog.
FromThree-LeggedDog,
stepyourrightfoot forwardbetweenyour hands.Turnyourleft heelin,pressintoyour feet,andliftyourtorso up.
Liftyourarmsup,andpressyourpalms together.Drawyourshoulderblades downtowardyourhips,andgazeupat yourhands.
Pose3
Focusonmakingarightanglewithyourfront leginWarrior1:Pose4
Warrior2Pose
RollbackyourshouldersandengageyourarmsinWarri
2:
AfterWarrior1,extendyourarmsoutinTpositionasyo
rotateyourtorsototheleft,comingintoWarrior2.
Ideallyyourfrontthighshouldbeparalleltotheground
andyourrightkneedirectlyoveryourrightankle.Mak
sureyourshouldersarestackeddirectlyaboveyourpelv
Pose5
ReverseWarrior
AfterWarrior2,it'stimetoopenupandgiveyourside bodyabigstretchinReverseWarrior:
Gentlyarchyourbackandrestyourlefthandonthe backofyourleftleg.Raiseyourrightarmoverhead, feelingthestretchthroughtherightsideofthebody. Makesureyoucontinuetoloweryourhipsandpress yourfrontkneeforwardsoit'sdirectlyoveryourright ankle. Remainhereforfivebreathsbeforeliftingyourtorso
Pose6
HalfMoonPose
Thefirstbalancingposeofthesequencewillhelpopenyourside bodyandbringtheheat:
FromWarrior2,placeyourlefthandonyourlefthipandstretch yourrightarmstraightout,creatinglengththroughtherightside ofyourbody.Shiftweightontoyourrightfoot,andliftyourleft footup.
Distributeyourweightevenlybetweenyourrighthandandfoot. Liftyourleftarmup,andgazetowardyourlefthand.Holdfor fivebreaths.
Chapter2
Pose7
PigeonPose
PigeonPoseistheultimatehipopener.Stickwithit,evenifit feelstough:
AfterHalfMoonPose,comebacktoDownwardFacingDog.
FromDownwardFacingDog,stepbothfeettogetherandbring yourrightkneeforwardbetweenyourhandssoyourouterright legisrestingonthemat.
Ifyourhipsaremoreopen,inchyourrightfootawayfromyou. Makesureyourlefthipisalwayspointingdowntowardthe mat.
Stayherewithyourhandsrestingonyourhipsoryourrightleg, orwalkyourhandsoutinfrontofyou,allowingyourtorsoto restoveryourrightknee.
Holdhere,breathingintoanyareasoftightnessandtensionfor atleast10breaths.Onceyou'reready,plantyourhandsonthe floorandpushyourrightlegtotheskyforaquickThreeLeggedDogtogiveyourhipsalittlerelease.Thencomebackto
DownwardFacingDog
Chapter3
Pose8
BowPose
BowPosewillhelpincreaseflexibilityinyourstrongspine:
FromDownwardFacingDog,bringyourkneestothematandcometo lieonyourbelly.Bendyourknees,andholdontotheoutsideedgeof yourrightankleandthenyourleft.
Onceyouhaveafirmholdofeachankle,trytokeepyourtoestogether, eitherpointingorflexingyourfeet.Liftyourfeetupashighasyoucan, andshiftyourweightforwardsoyou'rerestingonyournavelinsteadof onyourpubicbone.
Holdforfivedeepbreaths,andthenslowlyrelease.
Pose9
SidePlankPose
EndonastrongnotewithSidePlankPose:
FromBowPose,plantyourhandsonthemat,andpush backintoDownwardFacingDog.Stepbothfeettogether soyourbigtoesaretouching.Nowmoveyourlefthandover totheleftaboutsixinches,soit'sattheuppercentreofyour mat.
Stepyourleftfootforwardtwoinches,andplantthesoleof yourleftfootfirmlyonthematsoyourtoesarepointingto theright.
Thenrollovertoyourleftsideandliftyourrighthandoffthe mat,comingintoaSidePlank.Liftyourrightlegup,andstay herebalancing.Trytokeepyourshoulders,spine,andhipsin onestraightline.Ifitfeelscomfortable,lookuptowardthe ceiling. Engageyourrightfingertipstotakesomepressureoffof yourwrists.Stayhereforatleastfivedeepbreaths,tryingto keepyourcorestrongandtheposesteady.
Savasana
Afteryou'vefinishedthesequenceonbothyourrightandleft side,enjoySavasana:
FromSidePlank,shiftyourweightbackintoPlankwithboth yourhandsplantedontheground.Dropyourkneestothemat, andslowlyshiftontoyourbackandcloseyoureyes.
Inordertorelaxandopenyourbodyfully,extendyourarmsa fewinchesawayfromthebody,withthepalmsfacingup.Put about15to20inchesbetweenyourheels,allowingyourfeetto fallopenwiththetoespointingout.Activelyshrugyourshoulder bladesdowntowardyourhips.Lengthenthroughthespineas muchaspossible,relaxingyourlowerbacktowardthefloor. Afteryou'vefoundacomfortableposition,stayhereforaslongas
youwant,around10minutesormore,ifyourscheduleallows forit.Ifyou'reshortontime,remaininSavasanaatleastuntil yourheartrateslowsdownandyourbreathreturnstoits naturalsoothingrhythm.
EndPose10