Yoga Workout

If the word yoga brings to mind images of upside-down contortions and hours of meditating in silence, you’re not alone. You know it is good for you, but you don’t want to look like a wooden pretzel if you try a class. Fortunately, you can re-think how this powerful practice can benefit your fitness routine and help you reach your goals while feeling like your most supple self. We all know that yoga is great for increasing flexibility, but did you know that it can also help you relieve stress, increase strength, improve mental health, benefit your heart, improve energy, help you sleep better, lose weight, and protect you from injury? Phew! It’s a no-brainer. When it comes to resistance training and practicing yoga, they’re like peanut butter and jelly – they just fit! So, if yoga isn’t a regular part of your fitness routine yet, here’s a simple way to incorporate a few beginner moves so you can take advantage of the many benefits of yoga even if you can’t yet touch your toes.

What to do
Stay in the pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute, breathing easily.

MOUNTAIN POSE
1. Stand with the feet flat on the ground and your weight balanced evenly.
2. Stretch tall from your feet through your legs, core, torso, neck to your head.
3. Lengthen your tailbone toward the floor and lift your pubis toward your navel.
4.Relax your shoulders, back, and arms, and lift your sternum toward the sky.

BENEFITS
Improves posture
Strengthens thighs, knees, and ankles
Firms abs and glutes

EXTENDED MOUNTAIN POSE

1.Begin in Mountain Pose.
2.Lift your arms up in front of you making sure to keep arms straight and palms facing each other
3.Extend your arms above your head while pressing your weight into your feet and feeling the lengthening in your spine.

BENEFITS
Lengthens the torso and back.
Strengthens the abs, pelvis, core, and back.
Strengthens the knee joints.

STANDING FORWARD FOLD

1.Begin in Mountain Pose.
2.Exhale and hinge forward from the hip joints rather than the waist.
3.As your torso and arms hang down, let your neck relax, press your heels firmly into the floor and lift your sitting bones toward the sky.

BENEFITS
Stretches hamstrings, calves, and hips
Strengthens the legs and knees
Relieves tension in head and neck

HALFWAY LIFT

1.Begin in standing forward fold with feet hip-width apart.
2.As you inhale, lift your chest away from your thighs and lengthen your spine while engaging the upper back muscles.
3.Look forward slightly and avoid rounding the spine.

BENEFITS
Lengthens spinal muscles, hamstrings, and calves
Strengthens the back, core, and legs

STANDING FORWARD FOLD

TWIST LEFT

1.From Forward Fold, bend your right knee and reach your left arm straight up to the ceiling.
2.Open your chest and look to the sky as you twist, making sure to keep chest and shoulders open.
BENEFITS
Lengthen the chest, shoulder, and back

STANDING FORWARD FOLD

TWIST RIGHT

1.From Forward Fold, bend your left knee and reach your right arm straight up to the ceiling.
2.Open your chest and look to the sky as you twist, making sure to keep chest and shoulders open.
BENEFITS
Lengthens the chest, shoulder, and back

PLANK

1.Place your elbows directly under shoulders placing hands on the floor slightly wider than elbows.
2.Ground toes into the floor and contract glutes and quads to stabilize.
3.Slightly tuck your pelvis under you, ensuring that abdominals are engaged.
3.Maintain a neutral spine.

BENEFITS
Strengthens the spine
Powers core muscles, chest, back, arms, and shoulders.

LOW PLANK

1.Begining in plank pose and keeping a neutral spine, lower your body slowly by bending elbows while keeping them over your wrists, pushing your heels back, and reaching your sternum forward to create length from the crown of your head to your feet.
2.Lower slowly, keeping your body straight until your shoulders are at the same height as your elbows.

BENEFITS
Strengthens wrists, arms, abs, and lower back.
Helps improve posture by strengthening the muscles surrounding the spine.

UPWARD FACING DOG

1.Moving out of low plank, push your hands into the floor and simultaneously straighten your arms and lift your torso up and your thighs a few inches off the floor as you inhale.
2. Press your tailbone toward your pubis and lift your pubis toward your navel, slightly contracting your glutes.
3.Lift through the top of your sternum and look either straight ahead or tip the head back slightly.
BENEFITS
Strengthens wrists, arms, abs, lower back, and glutes.
Helps improve posture by strengthening the muscles surrounding the spine.
Stretches the chest, shoulders, and abs.

DOWNWARD FACING DOG

1.Begin in a plank position.
2. Slowly push your hips up and back while bringing your head between your arms to create an upside-down V shape with your body.
3.Bend your knees slightly as you press your heels toward the ground.
BENEFITS
Stretches the shoulders, lower back, hamstrings, calves, feet, and hands.
Strengthens the arms and legs.

WARRIOR I

1.Begin in Mountain Pose.
2.Step feet about 3-4 feet apart and raise arms perpendicular to the ground making sure to keep scapula against your back and drawn down.
3.Turn your left foot in 45-60 degrees to the right and your right foot out 90 degrees to the right.
4.Align your right heel with your left heel.
5.Slightly rotate your torso to the right, squaring the front of your pelvis as much as possible with the front edge of your mat.
6. As your left hip point turns forward, press the head of your left femur back to ground your heel and lengthen your tailbone toward the ground.
7.With your left heel firmly planted on the ground, bend your right knee over the right ankle so your shin is perpendicular to the floor.

BENEFITS
Stretches the chest, shoulders, neck, back, and core.
Strengthens the shoulders, arms, back, and legs.

WARRIOR II

1.Begin in Warrior I.
2.Stretch your arms away from the space between the shoulder blades, keeping them parallel to the ground.
3. Keep the side of your torso long and your shoulders directly over your pelvis as you slightly press your tailbone toward your pubis.
4. Turn your head to the left and look out over your fingers.

BENEFITS
Strengthens the legs and ankles.
Stretches the hips, chest, and shoulders.

SIDE ANGLE

1.Begin in Warrior II.
2.Extend your left arm straight up toward the ceiling, then turn the left palm to face toward your head and reach your arm over the back of your left ear until your palm is facing the floor.
3.Stretch from your left heel through your left fingertips and turn your head to look at your left arm making sure to avoid shrugging shoulders.
4.Ground your left heel and bring the right side of your torso down toward the top of your right thigh.
5.Press your fingertips on the floor to the side of your right foot as you push your right knee back against your inner arm.
6. Lengthen your lower spine by tucking your tailbone slightly and checking that your right thigh is parallel with the long edge of your mat.

BENEFITS
Strengthens legs and ankles.
Stretches hips, spine, legs, torso, chest, and shoulders.

REVERSE WARRIOR

1.Begin in Warrior II.
2.Bring your left hand down to rest on your left leg. Raise the right arm up toward the sky and reach your fingers away from each other as you look straight ahead or up at the sky.
3.Keeping the right knee bent, press into your feet and sink hips down toward the floor while relaxing your shoulders.

BENEFITS
Stretches the core, hips, and arms.
Strengthens the hips, lower back, and legs.