For a beginner, seeing professionals practise yoga can be quite daunting. The acrobatic form and advanced poses can easily make someone wonder how to get to that level and whether or not they even can. But yoga is more than just advanced forms and mastering complicated routines.
Yoga is about practising mindfulness and forming a connection between your body and your mind. It doesn't have to be difficult. Yoga simply encourages focusing on the needs of your body and allowing your body to heal through asanas (poses) and routines.
As a beginner, you can start your practice by focusing on the organic flow of your body. Start simple. Begin with yoga poses that help with a stiff body. If you wake up in the morning and stretch your body, you've already practised one yoga pose! Don’t worry about not practising complex asanas; the poses listed below are meant to engage your body just as much as any other asana.
Here are five yoga poses that help with stiffness in the body, and can turn into a great yoga for beginners routine in itself!
1. Mountain Pose or Tadasana
While this may seem like a very simple asana to practise, its effect and form are not as simple. The mountain pose is one of the best asana for beginners. It engages your bones, hips, toes, legs, and shoulders.
- Begin by lifting all your toes, fan them out, and drop your toes down, creating a wide and solid base to maintain balance
- Your feet and calves should be rooted firmly on the floor
- While you practise, your quadriceps should be engaged
- Draw them upward. Your kneecaps should rise
- Turn both your thighs inward firmly
- Draw in your belly and stretch your collarbones
- Your shoulders should be stacked in alignment with your pelvis
- Bring your shoulders up towards your ears and then release them
- Keep your palms facing forward and keep your arms at the side, but your elbows can be slightly bent
- The crown of your head should be rising above towards the ceiling
2. Raised Arms Pose or Urdhva Hastasana
This pose is just as basic as your routine morning stretching, and that is why it's a great addition to a yoga for beginners routine. However, you must make sure that your form is right while practising the raised arm pose.
- Begin by bringing your arms up and over your head as you inhale
- Maintain good alignment in this pose
- Keep your heels on the ground
- Your shoulders should move away from your ears at the same time
- Your gaze can come up to your hands and your palms can touch while you stretch
3. Child's Pose or Balasana
- Get on your knees and lower your hips so that they're touching your heels
- Your palms should be on the floor and your fingers should be pointing away from you
- Rest on your heels and stretch your arms out in front of you while you place your forehead on the floor
4. Downward Dog or Adho Mukha Svanasana
If you’re someone who wakes up with discomfort or stiffness in the back, this is just the right asana for you to add to your yoga for beginners routine. It stretches your hamstrings, waist, and your back.
- Begin on all fours, get on your knees, and rest your palms on the floor
- Point your fingers away from your body
- Raise your body such that your toes support your body up
- Your waist should be pointing towards the ceiling and your legs should be slightly apart but firm on the ground
- Keep your arms and legs straight
5. Triangle Pose or Trikonasana
Engaging your thighs, hips, knees, shoulders, and ankles, this is a great addition to the routine for yoga for beginners with stiff bodies.
- Begin by standing and stretching your feet apart till your body looks like a triangle
- Place your hands on your waist
- Let one foot out, facing outwards, and let the other foot face inwards
- This is not a perfect position, for example, let your right foot face right and left foot face outwards in its direction
- Stretch your arms sideways and bend your body at the waist to stretch
- Touch the right ankle with your right hand while your left arm remains straight pointing upwards
- Make sure your gaze is in the direction of your left arm and your neck is turned towards it too
- Deep breathe slowly and maintain this position for 10 to 30 seconds before you switch to the other side
While these are just a few poses that can help with stiffness in your body, there's a lot more in store in the yoga for beginners bracket of asanas. The key to mastering routines, forms, and asanas is not rigorous training or putting your body through heavy movement. It's simply consistency.
Practising consistently makes your body accustomed to the different poses you try and helps your body find its natural strength. Moreover, it also brings in mindfulness towards your body and makes you more aware of what your body needs so that you can practise accordingly and reap the benefits of yoga.
If you’re looking to advance your practice and find an in-depth understanding of yoga, we can help!
Ohmayoga is an online yoga academy whose aim is to educate and relay valuable information on yoga and wellness through certified gurus from Rishikesh. The yoga teacher training courses that Ohmayoga offers are holistic and don't just provide the minimum requirement. You can reach out to Ohmayoga to help you with your queries.
