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These sequences are designed to get the body flowing and are a great way to begin your yoga practice. Feel your breath encouraging you to move: Inhalations help to open and give you length, while exhalations inspire bending and folding and help to ground you.

Surya Namaskar A: Sun Salutation A Variation

Inspired by Sun Salutation A, perform the following moves in order, allowing the breath to guide your movement.

Repeat 5 times.

Full Instructions
  • Inhale: Standing tall, reach your arms up to the sky.
  • Exhale: Lean your upper body to the right side, reaching your left arm to the right. Use your right hand to grab your left wrist overhead.
  • Inhale: Reach your arms overhead while returning to center standing.
  • Exhale: Lean your upper body to the left side, reaching your right arm to the left. Use your left hand to grab your right wrist overhead.
  • Inhale: Come through to stand tall at center, reach your arms overhead, and lift your heels off the ground for a moment of balancing.
  • Exhale: Return your heels to the ground and fold forward, hinging from the hips. Take a breath or two here before repeating the entire sequence three or four more times.

Surya Namaskar B: Sun Salutation B Variation

Inspired by Sun Salutation B, this sequence helps warm up the lower half of your body. Continue to use your breath as a guide to move your body.

Repeat 5 times on each side.

Full Instructions
  • Exhale into adho mukha svanasana, or downward-facing dog: Start on all fours with your hands planted underneath your shoulders and your knees stacked firmly underneath your hips. Pike your hips up to the ceiling, forming an upside-down V-shape.
  • Inhale into ashta chandrasana, or crescent lunge: Step your right foot between your hands to move into a high lunge and reach your arms high.
  • Exhale into namaskar parsvakonasana, or prayer twist: Bring your palms together and twist to your right side, toward your bent leg; lower your left elbow toward the outside of your right knee. Take a breath or two before returning to center.
  • Inhale into viparita trikonasana variation, or sky archer: Unwind from your twist and begin to straighten your legs, pivoting to face the long edge of your mat. Open your body into a big “X” shape, stretching your arms and legs out to the sides. Let your left hand grab your right wrist overhead and lean to the left, feeling a side-body stretch.
  • Exhale: Slowly pivot to face the front of the mat and bend forward, planting your hands in front of your feet. Step back to high plank, then lower to the bottom position of a pushup.
  • Inhale into urdhva mukha svanasana, or upward-facing dog: Straighten your arms while pulling your chest up to the ceiling and into a backbend.
  • Exhale: Return to downward-facing dog.
  • Repeat on the left side.
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