Yoga tools are almost limitless. But if I’m short on time, I do the following Best Of of Hatha Yoga™. Every day, before pranayama, running, meditation, filming and everything else.
Warm up
- head rotation
- pull the head with our hands due to the force of gravity:
• forward
• sideways
- biceps
- triceps
- delts (shoulders)
- sides
- lean forward with straight legs and back
- lean forward to the floor with legs slightly bent and, as much as possible, with a straight back / uttanasana
Basic hatha
- vertical braid/ garudasana
- virabhadrasana 3
- Shiva at a crescent moon rave / natarajasana
- archer twist / parivrtta baddha parsvakonasana
- triangle / trikonasana
- kakasana or bakasana
- wind emission / vayu nishkasana
- seated leg stretches
- cow / gomukhasana
- dove / eka pada rajakapotasana – with an adho mukha svanasana when switching between the left and right side
- butterfly / baddha koṇasana
- birch / salamba sarvangasana
- bridge / urdhva dhanurasana (chakrasana)
- plow / halasana
- earmuffs / karnapidasana
- fish / matsyasana – with straight legs or in a lotus / padmasana
- lying twist / supta matsyendrasana
- headstand / salamba shirshasana
- child / balasana
- cobra / bhujangasana
- locust / salabhasana
- dragonfly / dvi bhuja swastikasana
- boat / naukasana
- sitting forward bend / paschimottanasana
You won’t need:
- “yoga pants” and other accouterments — all Western marketing nonsense
- more space than 1 × 2 meters — I did hatha yoga on a train, plane, inside a bathroom / WC, in front of the airport gate…
- teacher, guru, OSHA-certified trauma-prevention professional
- yoga studios, retreats, ashrams — marketing, again…
- “yoga mat” — something soft and clean is now almost everywhere, plus, hatha yoga can be done on a hard floor (yes, try it and be surprised)
Ideally, I’d advise an empty stomach, because turning upside down with 3 Big Macs and French fries is not fun… but I think those who still want to try will experimentally find out that something is heading in the wrong direction.
No one cares but you
No, no one cares how you look, how much makeup you have, and, above all, “how correct” is “your form”. Yoga is about self-discovery, mind-body synergy and balance… Everything else is for the Instagram or the circus. 😂
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