Yoga For Beginners: Poses, Sequences And Tips:

The decision to take up yoga can be one of excitement and adventure. However, when you look at those who are more advanced you wonder if you'll ever be able to successfully execute those poses and positions and keep your balance at the same time. There's no question that mastering yoga for beginners can be a challenge, but the rewards are well worth the commitment you put into it. By faithfully practicing the new techniques you'll learn, you'll find that you can master the skill in little or no time.

The Warm-Up:

Because in yoga you'll be moving your body into new positions, it is important that you always go through a warm up to protect yourself from injury. Focus on warming up the joints that will be supporting much of the poses you make: the hips, shoulders, and spine. These areas tend to hold more tension in the body, and releasing that tension will help you to increase mobility. Look for poses and sequences that will stretch out your hamstrings and loosen up your entire body. The Sun Salutation is a perfect example of a good warm up pose before you get into the more complicated positions of yoga.

Your Strength Workout:

Once you finish your warm up concentrate on building up the strength in your core muscles, arms, and legs. In the early stages of a yoga for beginners lesson, your body may not be strong enough for you to do many of the poses that you've seen. The routines for beginners are not only designed to get you to release stress and improve flexibility, they are also chosen to strengthen those muscles that will protect you when you're ready to take on more advanced poses. It is predominantly those muscles that will support your body as you advance through your yoga routines. They will also help to increase your flexibility so that you can move with the grace that is often associated with yoga.

The Cool Down:

As you complete your routine, your body will have built up a lot of heat and you want to use that to your advantage. Try a few Seated Hip Stretches, to help you to relax and restore your body to a normal position. Try the Savasana sequence when you only have a few minutes to spare. The cool down phase is just as important as the warm up to protect your body from injury and to help you to channel your new found energy to areas of the body that need it the most.

No doubt, yoga for beginners can be a challenge. It is not just an exercise for the body but for the mind as well. It will require dedication and discipline in order to progress and advance through the hundreds of different routines you'll do throughout your life and career as a yoga student. But your body will thank you for the hard work if you keep it up. There is no way to fully appreciate the value of yoga to your overall health until you actually experience it for yourself, so rather than get discouraged when you see those old pros at their best, use it as a means of motivation as you learn one step at a time all the many nuances of yoga.