Lifestyle
11 Easy Yoga Poses To Turn You Into A Bendy Badass
Stay relaxed and active.
Children love to run, jump and roll around, showing just how flexible their body is. In fact, they are able to twist and turn while inside their mother’s womb. Yet, we find our muscles straining and bones creaking now that we’re older. A sedentary lifestyle really deals a toll on our body and health!
You might be in lockdown and confined to your workspace as you work from home. But that doesn’t mean you should neglect yourself necessary workout sessions. These Yoga poses are perfect for staying active and relaxing all the stress off your muscles.
Set the mood, find a favorite, sunlit spot in your home, maybe declutter a little and play a relaxing tune.
Cat-Cow (Bitilasana Marjaryasana)
Down on all four with your foot propped. Maintain a straight posture with your arms and thighs. Breathe in and curl up your back down to your tailbone with your head facing down. Breathe out as you lift up your head and bend your back down.
Eye of the Needle Pose (Sucirandhrasana)
Lie faceup, then bring left knee to chest, then cross left ankle over your body to rest on right thigh. Pull up the left leg and bring your right hand behind the right thigh to meet the left hand. Hold for 30 seconds.
Cow Face Pose (Gomukhasana)
You don’t need to bend your legs, and this can be done while sitting comfortably on a backless chair. But while you can, fold your legs as shown below, then raise up your right hand. Bend it down along the spine while bringing the other up along it, too. And if they can meet, that would be better!
Intense Side Stretch (Parsvottanasana)
Make about a one-step space between your legs, back leg facing a little outward. Put your hands behind, like shown in the demonstration, and let it push your chest to the front. Maintain your legs straight as you bed forward and hold them for 30 seconds. Come back up, then switch legs and repeat.
Plow Pose (Halasana)
This is simple, but if you have concerns over blood vessels, etc., don’t worry too much, and you can skip over it. Keep both hands on your side on the floor as you fold your knees and then push them up, then bend them back. Hold for one minute or two.
Head to Knee (Janu Sirsasana)
Bend one knee to the side and press it on the floor while the other one forward. Sit up straight and pull your arm upward. Exhale before bending down forward as far as you can. Stay for one minute before switching to the other side.
Bow Pose (Dhanurasana)
Lie face down and fold your knees up. Use your arms to reach your foot, pull on them, then lift up your chest, head forward, for as far and as long as you can. Initially, you might not even be able to live your stomach, and that’s okay!
Low Lunge (Anjaneyasana)
This pose is great for relieving back pain and just loosening that tension. While kneeling on one knee, stretch as far as you can to bend the other. Keep your balance and back straight. Raise your arms straight up. Slowly, bent backward as far back and comfortable as you can. Hold this pose for 30 seconds. Switch your legs and repeat on the other side.
Wide-Angle Seated Forward Bend (Upavistha Konasana)
Nope, you don’t need to split! Just open your legs as far wide as possible and make sure the toes are pointed up. Then crawl forward with your hand to slowly get your whole upper body flat on the ground. Hold for one to two minutes.
Half Lord of the Fishes Pose (Ardha Matsyendrasana)
Bend both knees, but with the right flat on the floor and the leftover the right. Put your right hand along the thigh of your left knee and your left hand on the floor behind you, then turn your head. Hold for 20 seconds and breathe calmly. Release and repeat on the other side.
Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
While on all four, try to keep your knees straight (if you can’t, it’s all gucci!) and form a triangle shape with your head down. Then push with your toes forward until your back is flat. Hold for 30 seconds before switching to the other side.