6 Beginner Yoga Poses Broken Down To Start On Your Yoga Journey

If you are looking to begin your yoga journey, yet are nervous to try a class because you don't know any poses--don't fret! I've got you covered. So that you do not feel overwhelmed, I have broken down 6 basic yoga poses that are popular in yoga sequences. You can follow my short videos to solidify your knowledge on these poses. Happy learning! 

2. Warrior 1 (Virabhadrasana I)

What:

Warrior 1 (Virabhadrasana I) is a basic yoga pose that is incorporated in numerous yoga sequences.

This pose is a base for many other poses, so once you get comfortable in this pose, you will gain more confidence in the core of your yoga practice.

Why:

Warrior 1 is a pose that stretches and strengthens your leg muscles along with invigorating your shoulders and back muscles.

This pose releases an overall feeling of self worth and inner strength and helps increase self esteem.

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How:

1. For warrior 1, stand at the top of your mat.
2. Plant one foot into the ground and step back with your other foot into a high crescent lunge. In this high crescent lunge, your toes are pressing into the mat and your heel is off the ground.
3. To get into warrior one, you will spin your back foot down at a 45 degree angle. Your front heel and your back heel will create one line on your mat.
4. Engage your back thigh to lift your knee cap and protect it from locking.
5. Keep your front knee bent at a 90 degree angle with your knee over your ankle.
6. Both hips should be parallel to the front of the mat.
7. As you lift your arms up over your head, make sure your shoulders stay relaxed and do not scrunch up by your ears.
8. You may grab your hands and stick out your thumb and pointer finger, or you may simply keep your hands separate overhead.
9. Feel all of your inner strength in this warrior 1 pose.

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4. Warrior 3 (Virabhadrasana III)

What:

Warrior 3 may be a bit harder of the three warrior poses.

This pose is a nice foundation to transition your practice into learning more intermediate and advanced poses like standing splits and half moon.

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Why:

This is a very invigorating pose that engages your core muscles while strengthening your standing leg muscles.

It’s a great pose to increase your balance and maintain a good posture.

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How:

1. Warrior 3 is an invigorating pose that takes balance and concentration.
2. Start at the top of your mat and ground down into one foot.
3. Step the other foot back into a high lunge-- toes pressed into the mat and your heel off of the ground.
4. Hands can come to your heart center.
5. Put all of your weight into your front foot as you slowly lift your back foot off of the mat.
6. Make sure your thigh on your standing leg is engaged and has a microbend in it so that you are not locking out your knee.
7. Energize your back leg so that it is not hanging limply.
8. One of the most important parts of this pose is to ensure that your hips are parallel to the ground instead of opening them up. It doesn’t matter how high your back leg is as long as you are squaring your hips to the floor. You may even press your back foot up against a wall or use blocks underneath your hand to prop you up.
9. You can keep your hands at heart center or slowly bring your hands out in front of you.

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6. Downward Dog (Adho Mukha Shvanasana)

What:

Downward Facing Dog is a home base.

It is part of Sun Salutation A and B, which helps warm up the body and prepare you for movement during class.

A part of the sun salutation is commonly referred to as “taking your flow,” which includes, chaturanga, upward facing dog (or cobra) and downward facing dog.

Typically, you spend a few breath cycles in a downward facing dog.

Even though it is typically a pose to rest and restore, it is still a demanding pose because you are engaging your quadriceps, calves, hamstrings, ankles, shoulders, hands and wrists.

Oftentimes, beginner yogis may feel that their wrists are sore in this pose.

If this is the case, there are many modifications.

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Why:

Downward facing dog is a common pose for a reason.

It strengthens the arms, wrists and legs while stretching the hamstrings and shoulders.

Since it is technicallly an inversion--where your heart is above your head--it has many calming properties that can relieve stress.  

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How:

1. From a table top position with your wrists under your shoulders and your knees under your glutes, spread your fingertips out wide.
2. Then, press into your fingertips and the area between your pointer finger and thumb while you push your glutes to the sky.
3. Your heels can be lifted.
4. Imagine trying to bring your shoulder blades together toward your spine as you roll your elbows out and down.
5. You can peddle out your feet to get a stretch in your calves.
6. To ensure you aren’t putting too much weight into your wrists, try to lift your wrists off of the mat to test that the weight is evenly distributed in your fingers and hands.
7. This pose takes practice. Feel free to drop your knees and push back into child’s pose for some rest.

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