Yoga is an ancient art and one in which many people feel anxious about starting, due to the many positions and techniques involved. While it is a complicated exercise, there are positions which anyone can do and which are easy to learn. If you want to learn yoga from scratch, it’s best to start off with the simply meditative poses to begin with, before building up to the more complex poses – this is the way it has been taught for centuries, so you will be following the techniques of thousands of years worth of yoga teachers. Once you have perfected these movements, you can then progress to more advanced stages of yoga for the therapeutic gains that yoga can offer. Don’t be put off if you find that these simple poses are difficult to begin with – it’s just a case that your muscles are not flexible enough at this stage, but this will improve with time. For this reason, it’s advised that you warm up your joints and muscles beforehand to make the poses more easy to perform.
The Sun Salutation is a common position associated with yoga and is a Surya Manaska method for people who have never performed yoga before. This is a simple and easy-to-perform workout which uses a combination of energy, form and rhythm. The Sun Salutation stimulates your neuro-muscular system and keeps the balance between your body and mind. You should practice this for at least 15 days before moving on to other meditative postures.
You begin by standing with your palms folded in Namaskara Mudra in front of your chest, keeping your feet closed together. Keep your breathing normal and try to relax, in order to calm your mind.
The second position involves raising your hands upwards whilst keeping your palms in the same position, so that your hands are now touching your ears – now stretch your hands and abdomen upwards as far as you can, inhaling as you do so.
Bend forward and keep your palms at the side of your respective feet, making sure that your forehead is touching your knees and exhale.
In the fourth position, you need to sit down on your toes and push your right leg backwards – this will mean your left leg is automatically in front between your palms. Look straight ahead as you do this and inhale, as well as raising your head a little.
Take your left leg back, which was in front of you, then raise your hips upwards, making them align with your head – support this action with your hands and exhale, remaining calm all the while.
In the sixth position, you can now lower your body with the support of your palms onto the ground, ensuring that your knees, head and chest are touching the ground. If you can, try to hold your breath here before moving on to the seventh position.
Keeping your waist lower and raising the upper parts of your body, keep your hands straight and inhale again. The breathing techniques in yoga are important to balance the body and mind, and to maintain a sense of calm.
Bring your head down to the ground and raise your hips in a V-like shape, looking towards your heels and exhaling. You can then move on to repeating the previous movements, like so – for the ninth position, repeat the fourth pose and draw air in. In the tenth position, repeat the third pose and exhale. Repeat position number two and inhale, before returning to the initial pose and breathing normally once more.
Yoga is a complex art, but this is a relatively simple workout which can revitalise you in the mornings and improve your flexibility before moving on to more advanced poses.