The official start to my yoga journey

My First Poses:

Conquer Breath (Ujjayi)

5-8 minutes

The conquer’s breath is intended to help you relax and get your mind into the yoga “zone.” The position pictured above is not necessary to preform the breathing technique, but it is certainly used by many (including myself)! A detailed step-by-step guide can be found at Yoga Journal, but I will summarize the steps they have provided below.

Steps:

1. Start by inhaling deeply through your nose, then exhaling deeply out the mouth by passing your air over the back of your throat. Upon the deep exhale, your breath should create a “haaah” sound as it escapes. Repeat several times.
2. After several repeats of step #1 and a feeling that your throat is “warm,” attempt to get the air over the back of your throat while both inhaling and exhaling through just your nose. With practice, you should begin to hear a faint hissing sound as the air passes through.
3. Maintain the process summarized above for 5-8 minutes. Then return to normal breathing for 2 minutes before moving on to your next pose.

Childs Pose (Balasana)

2-3 minutes

The child’s pose has always been one of my go-to morning wake up stretches that releases tension from in between my shoulders, hips and helps my body feel less fatigued and stiff!. Integrating the deep, steady breathing patterns that yoga requires has taken this pose to the next level for me. I feel like I can stretch much deeper, and for longer than before. It’s incredible! I’m excited to see how much deeper I can go as time passes along.

Detailed step-by-step guide found at Yoga Journal.

Steps

1. Get into kneeling position, touch big toes together while resting on your heels. Hips and knees should be in line with each other.
2. Take a deep breath and exhale before extending your arms forward to the ground, past your head. Tuck head in slightly to stretch out neck and straighten spine out as much as comfortably possible.
3. Hold for as long as you’re comfortable.
4. Inhale before sitting up (by extending from the tailbone).

Cobra Pose (Bhujangasana)

2-3 minutes

The cobra pose is another awesome beginner stretch that I’ve been doing for as long as I can remember. I’ve struggled with lower back pain for the majority of my life and this pose has always been a huge relief from the discomfort. While relieving tension in the lower back, you also get a great stretch in the legs, hips and arms. To simplify, the cobra pose is incredibly refreshing, especially when stretching out a stiff morning body.

Detailed step-by-step guide at Yoga Journal.

Steps

1. Lie down on your stomach, stretch your legs back and pull your upper body up by resting arms directly under your shoulders
2. push your pelvis and tops of feet into the floor and look up to the sky.
3. Inhale, Straighten arms and puff your chest out to feel the stretch!
4. Exhale before laying back down.

Corpse Pose (Savasana)

5-8 minutes

The corpse pose is a great way to end a yoga session (even a workout session!) because it’s all about winding your body down and simply relaxing. I’ll admit, it’s quite awkward when you first start out because you’re just lying their flat on your back facing the ceiling.It can be uncomfortable if you’re not warm and you don’t have that clear mind that usually follows a yoga or other workout session! It is very relaxing once you get truly comfortable, It felt like I could fall asleep when I decided to try it for 10 minutes after my 40 minute jump-rope and yoga session! I’m excited to explore more “uncomfortable” poses like this one, because it’s really all about the mindset you’re in when attempt them.

Corpse pose further explained at Yoga Journal

Summary

So far, I have had a very pleasant start to my yoga inquiry. The biggest benefits i’ve been experiencing so far is less body fatigue, more energy, and an overall better mood throughout the day! Whether or not it’s a placebo effect from my initial research, I’m feeling great so far and I cannot wait to explore more poses and routines that involve a bit more exertion!

Sources:

All poses and step summaries discussed are from the “poses” section of Yoga Journal and do not have any authors or creators listed.

Photos from Unsplash and Yoga Journal