The ancient art of yoga provides an intense workout, but with its focus on mindfulness and breathing, it also offers many health benefits. It helps improve strength, flexibility and balance, and regular practice can decrease stress, high blood pressure and chronic diseases like heart disease.
From serene hatha to vigorous vinyasa, each type of yoga class varies in intensity. Regardless of the style, each class will require a yoga mat and optional yoga props like blocks and straps.
1. Tree Pose
Tree Pose, also known as Vrksasana, improves balance, strengthens the legs and core, opens the hips and stretches the inner thigh muscles. It may especially benefit those with stability issues, such as cardiovascular disease or those recovering from injuries.
This pose is challenging for beginners, and the key to success is to be careful with the foot placement. If the foot is too high, it can cause the standing leg’s hip to jut out and throw off the alignment of the whole posture.
Also, beginners should use the support of a wall and focus on breathing deeply to avoid holding their breath. Lastly, a strong focal point or drishti helps to enhance the concentration of this posture and improve balance.
2. Warrior II
Warrior II, also known as Virabhadrasana 2, is a foundational standing posture that strengthens nearly every muscle in the body. It’s a great way to build strength, balance and confidence in the legs, hips, core, chest and shoulders.
To do Warrior II correctly, Salay recommends separating the feet into a double hip-width stance that’s parallel to the back edge of your Liforme mat (or Central Line). She also advises bending the front knee so that it is directly over the ankle rather than behind it. This helps to avoid dumping the hip into the sacroiliac joint. This improves the posture’s alignment and helps to prevent injuries.
3. Lunge
The lunge is a body resistance exercise that strengthens and builds several muscles/muscle groups, including the quadriceps (thigh), hamstrings and gluteal muscles of the buttock. It also challenges balance and core strength.
To perform a forward lunge, stand with your legs hip-width apart, then step back into a lunge position and lower down until your front knee is almost at a 90-degree angle. Hold the pose for a few seconds before returning to standing.
To make the lunge even more challenging, place a weight in each hand when lowering down or raise your feet off the floor to increase the range of motion and challenge balance.
4. Warrior III
Warrior III, also called Virabhadrasana III, is a balancing pose that challenges the legs and core. The back leg stretches behind the body and the torso is leaned forward on the standing leg side to bring the whole body parallel with the floor.
If you’re not able to balance in warrior III, try adding a block between your back foot and the mat for support. This variation of the posture also strengthens the leg muscles and can help with knee issues.
The arms can be either held at heart center or up overhead. Keeping the hands at heart center can help you stay more grounded and focused on the balancing aspect of the posture.
5. Warrior IV
This final pose in the Warrior Sequence can be challenging but it’s important to practice for core strengthening and balance. It also builds confidence and encourages a sense of resilience.
Stand in Tadasana, then step the back right leg out to a 45-degree angle and align it with the front left ankle. Bend the knee directly over the ankle to make the back thigh parallel with the floor.
This powerful standing posture strengthens the hips, legs, shoulders, chest, rib cage, and upper back. It’s also a good stretch for the inner thighs and lower spine. While it doesn’t burn fat, a combination of yoga and a healthy diet does contribute to weight loss.
6. Tree Pose
Tree Pose strengthens the ankles, feet, and legs while improving posture and balance. It also stretches the muscles in the thigh and buttock (glute) and encourages concentration and focus, which can help relieve stress and anxiety.
The key to this pose is balancing the body’s weight evenly on both sides. Beginners should be careful not to put the lifted foot directly on the standing leg’s knee, which can strain the joint.
It’s helpful to practice Tree Pose with a wall or other steadying object nearby for support, especially if one side of the body is stronger than the other. Choosing to gaze down or up at the ceiling can also make it easier to maintain balance in this pose.