Posts Tagged ‘Yoga Positions For Beginners’

Yoga Exercises for Beginners

There are many kinds of yoga exercises, all which seem to have derived from the original eight stages of reaching a state of bliss. Hatha yoga is the most popular type of yoga which encourages good health through the practice of varfious poses and breathing techniques.

Yoga does not require expensive or fancy equipment to perform the exercises. All you need is to bring yourself with a positive attitude. Clothing does not have to be special either. Simply wear some loose fitting, non-restrictive clothing.

You do not have to join a yoga class as any quiet spot in your house is perfectly fine to practice yoga. Ensure that there are no distractions, it is quiet, clean and has plenty of air flow.  A soft mat may be handy together with a blanket and a pillow which will help give you some form of support and added comfort for the laying or sitting down positions. Yoga is normally practiced barefoot, so you don’t need any expensive shoes though you may wish to wear some socks or soft shoes.

Try not to eat a heavy meal for at least two or three hours before doing any yoga exercises. Eating too much can leave you feeling too full which is not comfortable as you move through the exercises. You can eat some fruit or an energy bar and drink a glass of juice an hour or so before doing yoga. You should drink plenty of water as you perform your yoga exercises to stave off any dehydration.

Many people like to practice yoga first thing in the morning as it helps to revitalise the mind and body using the postures and breathing techniques. Others prefer to exercise at night to help unwind from a busy and stressful day. It is perfectly fine to do both. You simply have to find the best time that suits you for your yoga exercises.

Basic yoga poses always start with easy poses, building up to the more difficult poses. Too much strain is not the goal as you should pause if you feel any pain or fatigue. It is beneficial to relax between difficult exercises.

Yoga is best done daily. You can do as little as 15 minutes of fitness exercise and 15 minutes of breathing and meditation each day and you will start to reap the benefits.

Positions For Yoga Beginners

Most yoga poses can be practiced by people at any level, so yoga positions for beginners are not really so different from any other yoga poses. What you will find if you go to a beginners class is that there will be much more explanation of each pose and where all the parts of your body should be every time. The yoga teacher will also spend more time explaining the principles of yoga and making sure that you know how to practice safely.

In a beginners yoga class you will be told the English name for each position by the instructor.g. Downward Facing Dog) and not just the Indian name (Adho Mukha Svanasana). This is especially important if you are joining a power yoga class where students move quickly from one pose to another. You could be completely lost in an advanced class because the instructor may only say the indian names!

It is best to buy a beginners yoga DVD or video and watch it closely all through the first time before starting to practice along with it if you you are a yoga beginners or without an instructor.

Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskara)

The sun salutation is a series of positions that flow well in a sequence and give your body some well balanced stretches. Many yoga students each morning and evening perform sun salutations. This is a shortened version which forms a very basic series of yoga poses for beginners.

It is very important to go through the series in time with your breathing. You should have slow and relaxed breathing. You can strain your breathing by streching so much.

1. Tadasana – Standing Pose

Begin standing with the outer edges of your feet parallel and big toes together. Hands by your sides. Back straight, neck long, head well back on the shoulders. Practice by a mirror or against a wall at first to be sure you are straight.

2. Inhale – Urdhva Hastasana – Raised Hands Pose

Bring the arms straight out to the sides with palms up, sweeping up until they meet above your head and slightly forward. Look up at your thumbs but keep the back straight. Keep the shoulders down – do not stretch the arms up too high.

3. Exhale – Uttanasana – Forward Bend

Sweep the hands out and down, hinge at the hips keeping the head and back straight as you go forward in a swan dive. At the end of your dive, let the head hang and the back bend so that you flop forward. If you need to, bend slightly at the knees then touch the floor either side of your feet. Place hands flat on the floor if you can do this easily. Relax into this pose. Make sure you relax your head completely.

4. Inhale – Flat Back

Roll the spine up to come up to a flat back at right angles to your legs, chin up looking forward, fingertips touching the floor or just above it. Make sure the back is not hollow or bent.

5. Exhale – Return to Uttanansana – Forward Bend

6. Inhale – Return to Urdhva Hastasana – Raised Hands Pose

Reverse the swan dive of #3: roll the spine up to a flat back with arms out to the sides and continuing on up with a flat back, hingeing at the hips, to stand straight with the hands meeting above your head in the Raised Hands Pose.

7. Exhale – Return to Tadasana – Standing Pose

These yoga positions for beginners can be the first step in your yoga practice.

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