Integral Yoga teacher Bhuvaneswari Pipitone was inspired to share how asanas can be made more accessible (even in the kitchen & wearing jeans!). “I needed a gentle practice and it needed to be short,” she noted. You can also use a chair or anything available in the house with a height close to the hands.
The #SunSalutations (#SuryaNamaskaram) are a series of 12 postures that serve as a tonic to the system. They are designed to invigorate and balance the body and mind, while stretching and strengthening the muscles. See below for breakdown of the sequence.
Adapted Sequence:
Pos. 1: Palms Together
Pos. 2: Arms Alongside Ears
Pos. 3: “Forward Fold” (hands grasped onto edge of counter [or chair], hips aligned over ankles, head aligned laterally with hips)
Pos. 4: Lunge (use wall to stabilize your front foot against)
Pos. 5: “Downdog” (same as pos. 3)
Pos. 6: “Chaturanga” (step slightly forward, lift heels, elbows tucked, abdomen slightly engaged as you lower toward counter in one plane, close to a 45 degree angle)
Pos. 7: Cobra (don’t let your head drop back. The backbend comes from just beneath the shoulder blades, not the neck. Also in this position, if lifting the heels is accessible, it may provide more spacial comfort in the low back area. Otherwise can explore keeping heels on the floor)
Pos. 8: “Downdog” (same as Pos. 3 and 5)
Pos. 9: Lunge (with opp. foot forward as pos. 4)
Pos. 10: “Forward Fold” (same as pos. 3,5,8)
Pos. 11: Arms Alongside Ears (step slightly forward)
Pos. 12: Palms Together
Tip: Keep breathing steadily. Can explore starting pos. 1 with an exhale and alternating with each position until the end, so you are inhaling with backbends and exhaling with forward bends.
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