5 Yoga Poses For Beginners
When you’re just starting out on your yoga journey, taking a class can feel pretty intimidating, even if it’s online. With so many complicated names and poses, it can be hard to follow along. Luckily, there are so many beginner-friendly yoga poses that will give you a great foundation to build your practice upon. Once you master some of these fundamental asanas, you’ll feel much more equipped to keep up with a class, whether you’re in-studio or practicing from home.
“Once you master some of these fundamental asanas, you’ll feel much more equipped to keep up with a class, whether you’re in-studio or practicing from home.”
Cat-Cow aka Marjaryasana-Bitilasana
Cat-Cow is actually a combination of two poses, but each of them are rarely done without the other. This sequence is a wonderfully easy backbend and chest-opener that helps to warm up the spine and shoulders, and is often done at the beginning of a yoga class.
To get into this pose:
Start in a tabletop position with your shoulders stacked over your wrists and your hips stacked over your knees. Make sure your fingers are spread wide and your palms are firmly grounded down into the mat.
On an inhale, start to drop your belly and look up towards the sky, creating an arch in your spine. Continue pressing down through the palms, making sure to keep a long neck and drawing your shoulders away from your ears. You should feel a nice stretch in your chest.
On the next exhale, push into your palms and begin to round your spine and drop your head. Scoop your bellybutton in and up towards your ribcage, feeling a nice stretch in your upper back and shoulders.
Repeat a few more rounds, moving with your breath.
Chair Pose aka Utkatasana
Chair Pose is a beginner-friendly standing pose that strengthens the core and legs while stretching the shoulders, chest, and abdomen. While it may look like an easy squat, it actually requires some concentration to activate the correct parts of the body. While your glutes are sinking down, your upper body is stretching upward, creating a lengthening of the spine.
To get into this pose:
Begin in Mountain Pose (aka Tadasana) with feet hip-width apart, arms by your sides. Make sure your weight is distributed evenly evenly throughout the soles of your feet.
On an inhale, sweep your arms up by your ears as you bend the knees as if sitting back in a chair. Tuck the tailbone slightly to remove any arch in the lower back, and make sure you are keeping a long, straight spine.
Make sure your knees are stacked over your ankles and not too far forward over your toes. If you feel balanced, you can bring the palms to touch above your head and look up towards the sky. Make sure to draw the shoulders down away from the ears.
Upward Facing Dog aka Urdhva Mukha Shvanasana
Upward Facing Dog is an easy reclined backbend and chest-opener that strengthens the arms arms and legs while stretching the entire front of the body. It’s a great foundational pose for building strength as you work your way towards more challenging poses.
To get into this pose:
Begin by lying on your belly, legs hip-width apart. Place your palms down on the mat underneath your shoulders.
On an inhale, begin to activate your legs and press them down into the mat as you press up through the palms until your arms are straight (if you can’t straighten the arms, do Low Cobra instead).
Continue pressing up through the palms and pressing tops of your feet down into the earth as you engage the thighs and lift your legs and hips an inch or two off the mat. Make sure you’re not collapsing in the shoulders, and draw the shoulders away from the ears. Draw your shouldersblades together.
Downward Facing Dog aka Adho Mukha Svanasana
Downward Facing Dog is quite possibly the most famous yoga pose ever. This beginner-friendly forward bend is also a mild inversion, meaning your head is below your heart. It’s a foundational asana that stretches and strengthens the entire body at the same time.
To get into this pose:
Start in a tabletop position. Wrists are stacked directly under the shoulders and hips are stacked under the hips. You can also start from your Upward Facing Dog.
Walk your hands slightly out in front of your shoulders and spread the fingers out wide onto the mat and firmly ground down in the palms.
On an exhale, tuck your toes under and start to lift your knees off of the mat. Press your hips up and back, and press your chest down towards your legs.
You can bend one leg at a time if it feels good, and eventually straighten out the legs and reach the heels toward the mat. It's totally fine if you can't straighten your legs or reach the mat with your heels.
Allow your head to drop and your neck to relax, and continue pushing into the palms as you draw your shoulders away from the ears.
Child’s Pose aka Balasana
Child’s Pose is a wonderful resting pose that stretches the thighs, hips, chest, shoulders, and back. It’s every yogi’s sanctuary throughout their practice, as you can always take a break in this pose if things are getting too difficult. It’s also an excellent way to end your practice, or even just to stretch out the body in a low-impact way.
To get into this pose:
Start in tabletop position and bring the knees hip-distance apart. Big toes touch.
Sit back on your heels.
Inhale, straighten the back and lengthen the spine. Exhale, release your torso down towards the mat with arms stretching out long in front of you and your chest coming down between your thighs. Place your forehead down onto the mat.
Press the palms down onto the mat and continue pressing the hips and bum down onto the heels.
Check out our Pose Guide for tons of other asanas to try. See you on the mat!
