Stretch! An Illustrated Step-By-Step Guide To 90 Slimming Yoga Postures by Nika Florek
Easy Meditation Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit with legs straight in front of the body
❖ bend both legs and cross it in front of your body
❖ place the hands on the knees
❖ close your eyes
❖ keep the head, neck and back upright and straight
❖ relax the whole body
❖ arms should be relaxed and not held straight
Precautions:
People with severe knees problems should not be sitting in this posture for too long
Benefits:
❖ this is the easiest and most comfortable meditative pose
❖ it facilitates mental and physical balance without strain or pain
Half Lotus Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit with legs straight in front of the body
❖ bend one leg and place the sole of the foot on the inside of the opposite thigh
❖ bend the other leg and place the foot on top of the opposite thigh
❖ without any strain, try to place the upper heel as near as possible to the abdomen
❖ adjust the position so that it is comfortable
❖ place the hands on the knees and close your eyes
❖ keep the head, neck and back upright and straight
❖ relax the whole body
❖ arms should be relaxed and not held straight
Precautions:
People suffering from sciatica or weak or injured knees should not perform this posture
Benefits:
❖ allowing the body to be held completely steady for long periods of time, holding the trunk and head like a pillar with the legs as a firm foundation
❖ applying pressure to the lower spine, which has a relaxing effect on the nervous system
❖ the breath becomes slow, muscular tension is decreased and blood pressure is reduced
❖ the normally large blood flow of the legs is redirected to the abdominal region stimulating digestive process
Lotus Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit with legs straight in front of the body
❖ bend the left knee and place the left foot on the right thigh
❖ bend the right knee and place the right foot on the left thigh
❖ adjust the pose so that it is comfortable, the knees should be firmly on the floor
❖ place the hands on the knees and close your eyes
❖ keep the head, neck and back upright and straight
❖ relax the whole body
❖ arms should be relaxed and not held straight
Precautions:
People with sciatica or sacral infections should not perform this posture
Benefits:
❖ itʼs a healthy position to sit in, especially for those suffering from varicose veins, tired and aching muscles or fluid retention in the legs
❖ it increases the efficiency of the entire digestive system, relieving stomach ailments such as hyperacidity and peptic ulcer
❖ you can practice Vajrasana directly after meals, for at least 5 minutes to enhance the digestive function.
Thunderbolt Pose I
Instructions:
❖ kneel on the floor with the knees close together
❖ bring the big toes together and separate the heels
❖ lower the buttocks onto the inside surface of the feet with the heels touching the sides of the hips.
❖ place the hands on the thighs, palms down
❖ the back and head should be straight but not tense
❖ close the eyes, relax the arms and the whole body
Option:
If there is a pain in the thighs or ankles, the knees may be separated slightly while maintaining the posture. You can also put the pillow below your buttocks and sit on it.
Precautions:
Be careful with your ankles and knees
Benefits:
❖ altering the flow of blood and nervous impulses into pelvic region and strengthening the pelvic muscles
❖ increasing the efficiency of the entire digestive system, relieving stomach ailments such as hyperacidity and peptic ulcer
❖ this is the only posture that you can practice directly after meals, for at least 5 minutes to enhance the digestive function.
Thunderbolt Pose II
Instructions:
❖ from the Thunderbolt Pose I bring your hands to the back, interlock the fingers
❖ inhale, raise your head up and expand the chest
❖ exhale, bend forward and rest the chest on the thighs and forehead on the floor
❖ raise the hands up, so that the shoulder blades will come close to each other
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale drop the hands on your lower back and slowly raise the head and upper body up
❖ exhale, go back to the starting pose – place the hands on the thighs, palms down and look forward
Option:
If you have tight shoulders, you can just rest your hands on the lower back without raising it up
Precautions:
Be careful with your ankles, knees and shoulders
Benefits:
❖ increasing the efficiency of the entire digestive system, relieving stomach ailments such as hyperacidity and peptic ulcer
❖ stretching and strengthening the shoulders and arms
Thunderbolt Pose III
Instructions:
❖ from the Thunderbolt Pose I bring your left palm below the belly button, put the right palm on top of the left palm
❖ inhale, raise your head up and expand the chest
❖ exhale, bend forward and rest the chest on the thighs and forehead on the floor
❖ your palms are pressing the stomach
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, slowly raise the head and upper body up
❖ exhale, go back to the starting pose – place the hands on the thighs, palms down and look forward
Precautions:
Be careful with your ankles and knees. It shouldnʼt be performed by people with gastric problems
Benefits:
❖ speeding up digestion due to the pressure on the stomach
❖ getting rid of excess wind or gas in your belly
❖ adding strength to the calf and thigh muscles.
One Leg Forward Bend I
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched and spread apart as far as possible
❖ inhale, raise your both hands up above the head
❖ exhale, twist the trunk and bend forward to the left leg
❖ grab hold of your left toe (calf)
❖ bring the forehead to the knee, keep the knee straight
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, raise your both hands up above the head
❖ exhale, twist to the right side and repeat the movement on the right side
Precautions:
People suffering from slipped disc, sciatica or hernia should not practice this posture
Benefits:
❖ stretching hamstring muscles and increasing flexibility in the hip joints
❖ toning and massaging the entire abdominal and pelvic region
❖ removing excess weight in the abdominal area and stimulating circulation to the nerves and muscles of the spine
One Leg Forward Bend II
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched and spread apart as far as possible
❖ bring your left hand up and rest your right hand on the back
❖ twist your trunk and bend forward to your right leg, grab hold of your right toe (calf) with your left hand
❖ inhale, raise your head up, look up
❖ exhale, bend forward and bring the forehead as close as possible to the knee
❖ keep both knees straight
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, raise your head and left hand up, bring your left hand to the back and right hand up, twist to the left side and repeat the movement on the left side
Precautions:
People who suffer from slipped disc, sciatica or hernia should not practice this posture
Benefits:
❖ stretching hamstring muscles and increasing flexibility in the hip joints
❖ toning and massaging the entire abdominal and pelvic region
❖ removing excess weight in abdominal area and stimulating circulation to the nerves and muscles of the spine
Two Legs Forward Bend I
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched and spread apart as far as possible
❖ inhale, raise the both hands up above the head
❖ exhale, bend forward and grab hold of your left toe with your left hand and right toe with your right hand
❖ try to bring your forehead to the floor in between the knees, keep both knees straight
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, raise your both hands and head up
❖ exhale, release both hands on the floor next to the thighs
Precautions:
People suffering from slipped disc, sciatica or hernia should not practice this posture
Benefits:
❖ stretching hamstring muscles and increasing flexibility in the hip joints and spine
❖ toning and massaging the entire abdominal and pelvic region
❖ removing excess weight in abdominal area and stimulating circulation to the nerves and muscles of the spine
Two Legs Forward Bend II
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched, feet together
❖ inhale, raise your both hands up above the head
❖ exhale bend forward, slide the hands down the legs and grab hold of your feet (alternative: ankles, calfs)
❖ bring your head as close as possible to the knees, keeping your knees straight
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, raise both hands up
❖ exhale, release both hands on the floor next to the thighs
Precautions:
People suffering from slipped disc, sciatica or hernia should not practice this asana
Benefits:
❖ stretching hamstring muscles and increasing flexibility in the hip joints and spine
❖ toning and massaging the entire abdominal and pelvic region
❖ removing excess weight in abdominal area and stimulating circulation to the nerves and muscles of the spine
Twisted Pose I
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched, feet together
❖ bend the left knee and place the foot on the floor
❖ inhale, raise your both hands up above the head
❖ exhale, turn the trunk to the right side and place the right palm behind the right buttock, and the left palm next to right thigh, with the fingers pointing to each other
❖ twist the head and trunk as far to the right as is comfortable, using the arms as levers, while keeping the spine upright and straight
❖ the buttocks should remain on the floor, the right elbow may bend a little, but try to keep it straight
❖ look over right shoulder as far as possible without straining, feel the twist in the lower back
❖ hold the final position for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, straighten your head and raise both hands up above the head, re-center the trunk
❖ exhale, release the hands, repeat on the other side
Precautions:
People with back complaints should be careful with this posture
Benefits:
❖ stretching the spine, loosening the vertebrae and toning the nerves
❖ alleviating backache, neck pain lumbago and mild forms of sciatica
Twisted Pose II
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched, feet together
❖ bend the right knee and place the foot on the floor
❖ inhale, raise your both hands up above the head
❖ exhale, turn the trunk to the right side and place the right palm behind the right buttock, and the left palm on the right shoulder, left elbow is pressing on the right knee
❖ twist the head and trunk as far to the right as is comfortable, using the arms as levers, while keeping the spine upright and straight
❖ the buttocks should remain on the floor
❖ look over right shoulder as far as possible without straining, feel the twist in the lower back
❖ hold the final position for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, straighten your head and raise both hands up above the head, re-center the trunk
❖ exhale, release the hands, repeat on the other side
Precautions:
People with back complaints should be careful with this posture
Benefits:
❖ stretching the spine, loosening the vertebrae and toning the nerves
❖ alleviating backache, neck pain lumbago and mild forms of sciatica
Sitting Half Boat Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with your legs outstretched, feet together
❖ inhale, bend the left knee, grab hold of your left foot (alternative: ankle, heel, calf) and stretch the leg up
❖ keep the back and knee straight and try to bring your leg as close as possible to the forehead
❖ gaze at the big toe and hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ exhale, slowly release the leg on the floor
❖ repeat on the other side
Precautions:
People with back complaints or a displaced coccyx should not practice this pose.
Benefits:
❖ rendering the hamstring muscles and improving flexibility of hip joints
❖ toning abdominal muscles
❖ strengthening arms and spine muscles
Twisted Forward Stretch
Instructions:
❖ from the Sitting Half Boat Pose inhale and grab hold the outer side of your left foot (option: ankle, heal, calf) with your right hand
❖ twist the trunk towards the left side, extend the left arm to the back at the shoulder level
❖ turn the head to the back and gaze over the left shoulder at your left palm
❖ keep your knees and back straight
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ exhale, straighten your head and trunk, release your left hand and bring the left leg down on the floor
❖ repeat on the other side
Precautions:
People with back complaints or a displaced coccyx should not practice this asana
Benefits:
❖ rendering the hamstring muscles and improving flexibility of hip joints
❖ toning abdominal muscles
❖ strengthening arms and spine muscles
❖ gentle twist of the lower back is strengthening lower back muscles
Hip Rocking Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with the legs outstretched, feet together
❖ inhale, bend the left knee, grab hold of the left knee and ankle and bring the hip to the side
❖ straighten your back, and start rocking the hip to the left and right (movement reminds rocking the baby)
❖ rock the leg for 5 breaths
❖ slowly release the leg on the floor
❖ repeat on the other side
Precautions:
People with back complaints or a displaced coccyx should not practice this pose.
Benefits:
❖ opening and releasing tension in the hip
❖ improving flexibility of the hip joints
❖ toning abdominal muscles
❖ strengthening the spine
Butterfly Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with the legs outstretched, feet together
❖ inhale, pull in your feet and place the soles of the feet together, as close as possible to your pelvis, let the knees fall out to the sides.
❖ bounce the knees gently (like a butterfly flapping itʼs wings)
❖ breath normally and keep bouncing the knees for the duration of 5 breaths
❖ release the legs and go back to the starting position
Precautions:
People with sciatica or knee problems should not practice this pose.
Benefits:
❖ improving the flexibility in the groin and hips region
❖ relieving the inner thigh muscles tension
❖ removing tiredness from long hours of walking or standing
❖ preparing the legs for other meditative postures
Cobbler’s Pose
Instructions:
❖ sit down on the floor with the legs outstretched, feet together
❖ inhale, pull in your feet and place the soles of the feet together, as close as possible to your pelvis, let the knees fall out to the sides. Keep the spinal chord and the neck straight.
❖ inhale, grasp your feet, raise your head up and bend to the back
❖ exhale, bend forward, bringing your forehead all the way down to the big toes
❖ press the elbows against the thighs, bringing them closer to the floor
❖ hold the pose for 5 breaths
❖ inhale, raise the head and trunk up
❖ exhale, return to the starting pose
Precautions:
People with sciatica or knee problems should not practice this pose.
Benefits:
❖ improving the flexibility in the groin and hips region
❖ relieving the inner thigh muscles tension
❖ soothing the lower abdominal organs and helping the excretory system remove waste from the body.