Yoga exercises for beginners: 9 basic postures that will encourage you to start

Many times we think that the practice of yoga is for people with developed physical condition or extraordinary flexibility; on the contrary, yoga is to achieve flexibility in the body, strengthen the muscles and calm the mind.

First recommendation: open mind and attention to your body

In this path, there are positions that will make you believe that the practice of yoga is difficult or impossible for your body, but the truth is that there are also basic and gentle postures of less complexity, especially for the joints and without forcing the muscles to give you some discomfort, but that achieve important benefits in its entirety. Accompany an instructor and consult your doctor before starting a routine if you are pregnant, have injuries, are overweight or have recent surgeries.

Second recommendation: Prior heating.

When the yoga routine begins, psychophysical gymnastics or previous warm-up is important, as it allows you to prepare your joints and muscles, in addition to gradually awakening your body, especially your respiratory system. Always start with the axis and center of your body: the spine. Make movements up and down your neck, left and right, turning your head from side to side and then lowering it to one side and the other. These are the three possibilities of movement in this part of the body, and they are the same ones that you must achieve, slowly and breathing, in the entire spine.

After preparing the spine, you can continue with movements in the wrists, elbows, shoulders, ankles, knees and groin; always remember deep and conscious breathing, inhaling to your greatest capacity and exhaling slowly through the nose.

Once the body is prepared, you can continue with the following basic yoga postures:

Yoga Exercises for Beginners

1. Mountain Pose

Standing, lengthen your body by separating your legs about the width of your hip, aligning your knees and ankles; relax shoulders and release your arms. You must feel your head looking for the sky, lengthening your whole body and spine. Take a deep breath and exhale slowly through your nose. This is the Mountain Pose or its Sanskrit name Tadasana . Focus your attention on your spine, your breath, and the equal distribution of your body on both feet. Take a deep breath and raise your arms to your sides, aligning your wrists and elbows with your shoulders. These should be relaxed, make sure they don’t close your neck, but are low. Breathe there for a moment and then bring your hands up, shoulder-width apart, looking up at the sky. breathe.

2. Stork Pose

After about 20 seconds on each set, slowly lower your arms down your sides followed by your torso. Your sight is on your knees and your arms hanging down: this is the position of the Stork or Utanasana . Rest there for a moment, breathing deeply and exhaling slowly through your nose. Let all the posterior muscles in your body lengthen. Inhale and rise up raising arms by the sides to the Mountain position, slowly lower your body while exhaling releasing the air and the weight of your torso in a controlled way to the Stork position. Repeat these breaths with movements, until you achieve a constant and fluid rhythm, slow and calming, revitalizing and energizing…

3. Front fold pose

Rest for a moment in Stork pose. Begin to rise from your head to the front, slowly lengthening your entire back, until your head is at the height of your pelvis. Although your legs are elongated, do not drop the weight on your knees; You must give it a minimum flexion to protect the joint: the knee is released and the muscles are activated more, since these are the ones that support the weight. The hands can be on your legs but without supporting the weight on them. This is the Urdhva Utanasana posture.. Face forward and inhale, exhale slowly as you return to Stork Pose. Take a deep breath as you come up, activating and strengthening your lower back or lumbar, exhale as you release tension in your body and stretch your back muscles. Repeat until the movement is fluid and slow. Visualize the movement in the spine, and pay attention to the muscles that are strengthened and those that are relaxed. Enjoy the activation in the body.

4. Child’s Pose

Slowly lower yourself to the floor, support your knees and look for the position of the Child or Balasana . In it you can rest your back, neck and shoulders. Let the weight of your body be released towards the Earth, and with it achieve rest. Closing my eyes allows me to listen more to what is inside than what is happening outside: breathing, heartbeat, etc…

5. Diamond Pose

Its name in Sanskrit is Vayrasana , and it is the position in which you sit on your heels with your knees bent. Here you can take a deep breath, feel your chest expanding and emptying, your lungs achieving their greatest capacity, and relaxation in your shoulders, arms, face. Breathe in and raise your nose to a higher diagonal, exhale and lower your head and torso. Repeat it as many times until you achieve a constant rhythm, stimulating the organs in the abdominal cavity and making your spine more flexible, developing your breathing capacity and achieving internal tranquility.

6. Staff Pose

Sit with your legs stretching forward and your torso and head up. Point your toes towards the sky and release your shoulders. This is the posture of the Staff or Dandasana , and in it a greater amount of blood is retained in the abdominal area, it strengthens the lower and middle back, as well as the abdomen and legs; postural corrector and of great help for awareness of breathing, in addition to relieving low back pain. Raise your hands to shoulder height, achieving a single line. Take a breath there.

7. Back Extension Posture

Now raise your arms to the sky, separating them to the width of the shoulders, making sure that they are down and not on the neck. Take a deep breath in, and as you exhale, release the weight of your torso and head forward, relaxing your shoulders, neck, and back. Breathe, and relax when exhaling, free yourself to rest. This is the Back Extension or Pascimottanasana pose . Go up inhaling, and exhale while lowering controlled.

8. Half Twist Pose

Raise your torso again, bend your right leg towards your abdomen, and hold it with your left hand, slowly turn your torso to the right and hold your spine long while breathing. This is known as the Half Twist Pose or Ardamatsyendrasana . Slowly return to center as you breathe in and do the same on the left side: bend your left leg and hold on to it with your right hand as you twist your torso to the left side. Breathe there for a moment and slowly return to the center. This placement lubricates the spaces between the vertebrae, making it more flexible and stimulating the sympathetic system. Strengthens the abdomen and back, in addition to stimulating the abdominal organs.

9. Butterfly Pose

Look for the posture of the Butterfly or Baddhakonasana , sitting down and joining the two soles of your feet, lengthening your spine and breathing deeply and consciously. Breathe in and out slowly through your nose. You can breathe up, and release the exhalation as you slowly lower your torso and head forward. Finish your routine with this exercise, and you will feel your body more aligned, active, relaxed and with more attention to your breathing and posture. Your mind calms down and you achieve tranquility accompanied by a complete energization. It is a routine of a few minutes, which you can repeat daily and in a matter of days you will see the change in the way you sit, walk, breathe and above all, the ease of finding calm.