Ten Yoga Poses to Do Everyday

Ten Yoga Poses to Do Everyday

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If These 10 Yoga Poses Aren’t Already a Part of Your Everyday Yoga Practice, They Should Be. These are the poses all yogis should be practicing regularly—regardless of experience.



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Ten Yoga Poses to Do Everyday

Yoga Pose #1: Tree (vrksasana)

Performing this pose can help you connect with your core muscles. Not only can these movements increase your balance and stability, but they can also challenge your body to depend on your brain’s mental focus.

Steps:

  1. Stand in the middle of the mat, with your weight balanced equally between your feet and your arms relaxed at your sides.
  2. Shift your weight to your left foot, slowly bend your right knee, and bring your right knee into your chest.
  3. Place the sole of your right foot on the inside of your left calf or thigh, pull your legs to the midline of your body, and place your hands in a prayer position in front of your chest.
  4. When you feel balanced, lift your arms toward the sky, keeping a slight bend in your elbows. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths. Repeat these steps on the other side.


Yoga Pose #2:  Triangle (TRIKONASANA)

This lateral-facing standing pose opens your hips and shoulders and stretches your hamstrings. Performing these movements can also lengthen your torso and help build balance and strength in your legs.

Steps:

  1. Stand at the top of the mat, with weight balanced equally between your feet and your arms relaxed at your sides.
  2. Extend your right leg behind you, balancing your weight between your feet. Place your right foot parallel with the back of the mat and keep your left foot pointing forward. Extend your arms to form a T.
  3. Bend at your left hip and place the fingertips of your left hand at the outside of your left foot. Rotate your torso to your right and extend your right arm until aligned with your left arm. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths. Repeat these steps on the other side.


Yoga Pose #3: Chair (utkatasana)

Also known as the Fierce pose because of its intensity, this is great for building strength in your legs. And because this pose’s movements have squat-like aspects, you can enjoy similar benefits to that position.

Steps:

  1. Stand in the middle of the mat, with your weight balanced equally between your feet and your arms relaxed at your sides.
  2. On an exhale, bend your knees, shift your weight backward as if lowering yourself into a chair, and place your hands on your waist.
  3. Extend your arms at an angle toward the sky. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths.


Yoga Pose #4:  Mountain (TADASANA)

Don’t let what seems like a simple pose fools you.  It’s one of the most common poses in yoga and a foundational stance for all standing poses. But it’s also the embodiment of standing with intention and integrity.

Steps:

  1. Stand in the middle of the mat, with your weight balanced equally between your feet, the outer edges of your feet parallel with the sides of the mat, and your arms relaxed at your sides.
  2. Pull your shoulder blades toward each other, aligning your ears, shoulders, and hips, and turn your hands away from you. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths.


Yoga Pose #5: Butterfly (BUDDHA KONASANA)

Spread your wings with this seated hip opener that also targets your groin muscles. Folding forward during this pose can also help ease lower back pain. This is an especially great pose to perform during pregnancy.

Steps:

  1. Sit on the mat, with your legs extended and your arms relaxed at your sides. (You can also sit on a folded blanket.)
  2. Bend your knees and bring your feet toward your sitting bones, placing your hands on your shins. (If you feel pain, pressure, or discomfort in your knees, place your feet farther away from your body.) Press the outer edges of your feet and your sitting bones into the mat.
  3. On an exhale, bend at your waist and lean forward and rest your inner forearms on the inside of your thighs. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths.


Yoga Pose #6: Pigeon (EKA PADA RAJAKAPOTASANA)

This pose is a deep hip opener that can also help with lower back pain, tight or sore hips, and overall well-being. Although these movements are challenging, you can benefit from the release of tension in your hips and back.

Steps:

  1. Sit in a cross-legged position at the top of the mat, with your hands on your knees.
  2. Bend your left knee, place your left leg behind you, and place your hands flat on the mat, angling the sole of your left foot toward the right side of the mat.
  3. Press your hands into the mat and extend your left leg behind you, placing your right shin parallel with the top of the mat and pressing the top of your left foot into the mat. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths. Repeat these steps on the other side.


Yoga Pose #7: Eagle (GARUDASANA)

You can soar like a majestic bird with this pose. It’s excellent for developing and enhancing balance, strength, and flexibility throughout your body. This pose also helps you draw energy into the center of your body.

Steps:

  1. Stand in the middle of the mat, with your weight balanced equally between your feet and your arms relaxed at your sides.
  2. Shift your weight to your right leg and bend your left knee. Bring your left leg across your right leg to align the back of your left knee with the front of your right knee. Place your hands in a prayer position in front of your chest.
  3. Press your thighs together, slightly bend your right knee, and shift your weight backward as if lowering yourself into a chair.
  4. Hook your right arm under your left elbow until your elbows align. (Or cross your right elbow with your left triceps.) Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths. Repeat these steps on the other side.


Yoga Pose #8: Crow (KAKASANA)

Arm balancing is a great way to build upper-body strength while also testing your fortitude. This pose demands core strength, which you will also develop. What’s unusual about this pose is that your knees rest on the backs of your arms.

Steps:

  1. Squat in the middle of the mat, with your elbows resting on the inside of your knees, your heels lifted off the mat, and your hands in a prayer position in front of your chest.
  2. Place your hands flat on the mat in front of you and press your elbows into the sides of your knees.
  3. Gently lean forward, pressing your hands into the mat and gazing at the top of the mat.
  4. Press down through the ball of your right foot to lift your right leg off the mat. When you find your balance, press down through the ball of your left foot to lift your left leg off the mat. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths.


Yoga Pose #9: Warrior 1 (VIRABHADRASANA 1)

This is an excellent pose for creating strength and power in your legs. It’s part of the Warrior series of yoga poses, which can help build stability in your body—and make you feel like nothing can stop you.

Steps:

  1. Stand at the top of the mat, with your weight balanced equally between your feet and your hands on your hips.
  2. Extend your right leg behind you, with your toes angled toward the top-right corner of the mat and your upper body parallels with the top of the mat, and slightly bend your left knee. (If you can’t see the toes of your left foot, widen your stance by spreading your legs farther apart.)
  3. Raise your head and your arms toward the sky, with your hands in a prayer position over your head. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths. Repeat these steps on the other side.


Yoga Pose #10: Warrior 2 (VIRABHADRASANA 2)

Movements in this strong standing pose are excellent for building strength in your legs, lengthening your spine, and opening your chest, shoulders, hips, and arms. This added power can help you be an amazing everyday warrior.

Steps:

  1. Stand at the top of the mat, with your weight balanced equally between your feet, your palms facing forward, your shoulder blades pulled together, and your arms relaxed at your sides.
  2. Extend your right leg behind you and turn your right foot until parallel with the back of the mat. Make sure you can see the toes of your left foot. (If you can’t, widen your stance by stepping your legs farther apart.)
  3. Push your legs apart energetically and bend deeply with your left knee. Raise your arms to form a T, lengthen your spine through the crown of your head, and gaze over your left arm. Hold this position for 3 to 5 full breaths. Repeat these steps on the other side.


Conclusion:

Home practice can be hard if you don’t have your own workout/yoga routine. It’s only human to go through phases where you get distracted by the shiny new challenge pose to try—or, on the opposite end of the spectrum, simply getting stuck in your favorite feel-good sequence for a longer period as you are comfortable.

While you don’t want to lose sight of goals or the sweet sensations that keep you coming back to your mat, it’s a good idea to take a critical eye to your yoga practice now and then and look for the areas where you could strive for greater overall balance.

That’s what yoga practice is all about after all, and yoga practitioners of every level can benefit from going back to basics regularly to re-examine the actions and alignment of foundational standing yoga poses, backbends, forward bends, and inversions.

So, in this article, I’ve compiled a list of top ten yoga poses that stand the test of time—that is, ten asanas every single yogi (beginner or experienced) should be practicing on a regular.



Related: Yoga 101: Yoga Poses for Beginners


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