Hello guys and welcome to my article section!
I’m so excited to share more of my yoga experience with you all here.
Let’s kick things off with talking about sun salutations. Sun Salutations, or Surya Namaskaras
as they are known in sanskrit, are a great way to warm up and detoxify the body. Practiced
early in the morning by the yogis who came before us, this practice is also a great way to help
the body absorb vitamin D.
For those of you who practice with me online or in person, you’ll know that I enjoy
incorporating sun salutations into my practice. Whenever I’m pressed for time, I try to get on
the mat and practice at least 3 surya A’s and 2 surya B’s. Within these sequences we pretty
much explore it all, heart opening with our upward dogs, full body strengthening with our
downward dogs, back body stretching with our forward folds and hip opening when we move
into our warrior ones.
When I’m working into a practice that I know will require a lot of openness in the hip flexors, I
LOVE to start with a 12 point sun salute. The low lunges included in this sequence poses are
perfect for warming up the Psoas and finding length in the front side body. This version of the
Surya Namaskara is considered to be a more gentle alternative than it’s A and B siblings.
You’ll typically come down through knees, chest and chin during a 12 point sun salute instead
of Chaturanga, you also move through Cobra rather than Upward dog. However, the low
lunges can make this salutation quite challenging if you are living in a tighter body. If you have
tight hips, be sure to use blocks when needed, slow down as you move in and out of each
pose and of course remember to breathe.
Sun salutations form a great foundation for our practice and stand alone as a concise and
effective way to strengthen and extend the whole body. If you are starting to build on your
own practice outside of a studio and in your own time, I would suggest framing your practice
around your sun salutations. This way you know you have warmed up the whole body, front
and back! If you are getting back into the swing of your practice, but maybe finding it hard to
make the time, committing to an 8 – 10 minute Surya A and or B sequence is good way to get
back into the flow of things.