Building Your Own Yoga Practice
Building your own yoga practice is a very rewarding endeavour.
It's nice to not have to think about it in class, but to develop your own practice gives you the benefit of customizing your routine, to your own likes and needs.
Of course, you need experience.
Even this basic guideline requires a familiarity with the practice because there are MANY poses, sequences, and combinations.
Technique should be learned and practiced in class first! Here is a simple yoga practice guideline to get you started: Warm Up Start your practice in mountain pose, and take some deep inhale and exhalations.
Many people will either do some forward bends, side stretches and simple twists.
Cardio/Strength The hardest part of your yoga practice should go after the warm up.
In Ashtanga yoga this is normally where the vinyasa sequences come in.
A common sun salutation consists of: forward bend, plank, chaturanga, upward dog, downward dog.
Then from downward, pick a standing pose such as: crescent warrior 1, 2, 3 or reverse, triangle, prayer etc.
After every standing pose, perform the sequence again and then repeat on the other side.
Balance Move on to balance before you are too fatigued to hold the poses.
There are some balance poses such as tree, where you are only maintaining your balance.
Others, like crow, require a great deal of strength and concentration as well! Floor Now is a good time for floor poses.
Wheels, shoulder stand, plough, headstand, back bends, seated twists and forward bends go nicely here! Relaxation Start by going into child's pose, and then savasana (corpse pose) to relax and let your body start to tingle! Many will meditate at this time, but for most, the workout is complete! This is a "skeleton" of a yoga program.
It's meant to give you an idea of a good natural order and flow of poses.
It's nice to not have to think about it in class, but to develop your own practice gives you the benefit of customizing your routine, to your own likes and needs.
Of course, you need experience.
Even this basic guideline requires a familiarity with the practice because there are MANY poses, sequences, and combinations.
Technique should be learned and practiced in class first! Here is a simple yoga practice guideline to get you started: Warm Up Start your practice in mountain pose, and take some deep inhale and exhalations.
Many people will either do some forward bends, side stretches and simple twists.
Cardio/Strength The hardest part of your yoga practice should go after the warm up.
In Ashtanga yoga this is normally where the vinyasa sequences come in.
A common sun salutation consists of: forward bend, plank, chaturanga, upward dog, downward dog.
Then from downward, pick a standing pose such as: crescent warrior 1, 2, 3 or reverse, triangle, prayer etc.
After every standing pose, perform the sequence again and then repeat on the other side.
Balance Move on to balance before you are too fatigued to hold the poses.
There are some balance poses such as tree, where you are only maintaining your balance.
Others, like crow, require a great deal of strength and concentration as well! Floor Now is a good time for floor poses.
Wheels, shoulder stand, plough, headstand, back bends, seated twists and forward bends go nicely here! Relaxation Start by going into child's pose, and then savasana (corpse pose) to relax and let your body start to tingle! Many will meditate at this time, but for most, the workout is complete! This is a "skeleton" of a yoga program.
It's meant to give you an idea of a good natural order and flow of poses.
