Yoga postures for beginners

Downward facing dog posture

There downward facing dog posture is surely one of the most famous yoga postures. It is beneficial for alleviate back pain. Lors d’une séance de yoga, le nom « chien tête en bas »  est un exercice des « asanas » (on appelle ainsi les différentes postures en yoga).

Face towards the earth, feet and hands flat on the ground, raise your buttocks to the sky to form a triangle with your body.

This is the posture in which it is entirely possible to rest and with which you can start the next pose. In the Sun Salutation (the sequence of poses that constitutes a classic yoga warm-up), the downward facing dog pose is always performed.

The weight of the body rests mainly on the hands, arms and shoulders. If downward facing dog is done incorrectly, it could cause injury in the long term. This is why it is important to learn how to do it correctly. Get help during practice! Done well, it is one of the yoga postures that soothe the back and soften the legs.

Warrior pose

There are three ways to perform warrior pose. This posture is perfect for yoga for beginners  and is one of the yoga poses on chair.

Warrior 1

Une jambe est tendue en arrière, le pied est droit et bien à plat. Les hanches sont vers l’avant. Le genou avant est aligné avec le pied et forme un angle droit. Tendez les bras vers le ciel et gardez vos épaules éloignées des oreilles. Calm down !

Avancez votre cage thoracique vers l’avant. Fixez votre regard sur vos pouces. Respirez longuement pendant trois minutes.

Warrior 2

Pour cette variation de la pose,  une jambe est tendue vers l’arrière et le pied à plat est tourné vers l’extérieur à 90 degrés. Les hanches font face à l’extérieur (et non vers l’avant comme le guerrier 1). Le genou avant est aligné avec le pied  et forme un angle droit. Le haut du corps est droit et est tourné sur le côté. Les épaules sont tendues et les bras sont tirés de chaque côté en formant une ligne. Le regard est dans la même direction que la main avant. A determined warrior !

Warrior 3

This is the challenging variant, because it requires a lot of balance. Si vous débutez, il est préférable d’être accompagné.e pour pouvoir vous faire corriger.

La jambe d’appui est droite et bien tendue. Penchez votre buste en avant pour former un angle droit avec votre corps, puis décollez une jambe pour la tendre vers l’arrière. Votre jambe levée et votre buste forment une seule et belle ligne. Les avant-bras sont près du corps avec les paumes jointes et les épaules sont loin des oreilles..

The Yoga-Mudra posture

En position assise, tendez une jambe et placez le plat du pied de votre seconde jambe sur la cuisse tendue. Inspirez profondément et penchez-vous sur la jambe tendue. Avec vos mains, aller chercher loin devant vous. À chaque expiration, essayez d’aller le plus loin possible. Maintenez la position 30 secondes en inspirant et expirant profondément. This posture stimulates the abdomen, the intestines and strengthens the lower back.

La posture de l’enfant

La posture de l’enfant est appelée ainsi, car c’est la posture idéale pour calmer les enfants, en effet it calms the nervous system and slows the heart rate. This is the posture of rest: opt for this at any time to take a break from your practice.

Pour réaliser la posture de l’enfant, placez-vous à genoux, les fesses sur les talons. Déposez doucement votre front au sol devant vous et ramenez vos bras le long du corps ou vers l’avant. Fermez les yeux et inspirez profondément pendant 3 à 5 minutes. Les bienfaits de la posture de l’enfant sont nombreux, elle stretch your back, there neck and the shoulders, releases abdominal tension et dorsal et fights fatigue and stress.

To know the benefits of yoga on stress, check out our article!

Cat pose

This yoga posture is ideal if you suffer from back pain. Cat pose massages the spine, works the abdominals. As you inhale, release your stomach towards the ground and raise your head, which hollows your back. As you exhale, hold your navel to your spine and relax your head, which rounds your back. Perform these cat pose movements ten times while inhaling and exhaling deeply.

Seated twist posture

Asseyez-vous sur votre tapis de yoga et pliez une jambe pour venir coller votre pied à votre fessier. Venez placer l’autre pied devant le genou plié. Si c’est votre jambe droite qui est pliée devant, venez placer votre main gauche sur le genou.

À l’inverse, si c’est votre jambe gauche qui est pliée devant, venez placer votre main droite sur le genou. Placez l’autre main à plat sur le sol derrière vous. Alignez vos épaules avec vos jambes, pivotez les hanches en regardant derrière vous tout en gardant le dos droit. Thanks to this posture, you massage your spine.

Upward facing dog posture

This yoga posture is a classic, because elle s’inscrit dans le rite de salutation au soleil. Start with your body and face lying on the ground and your arms folded under your ribcage.

Exhale deeply while stretching your chest toward the sky and stretch your head while keeping your legs still on the ground. Tilt your head upwards and hold the posture while breathing for a few minutes, then slowly bring your body back to the floor. This posture will stretch your back and stimulate your digestive organs.

La posture de l’arbre

C’est une posture permettant de travailler la concentration et l’équilibre all in strengthening the body. Posez la plante du pied bien à plat, venez coller le pied de l’autre jambe sur la cuisse de la jambe tendue, gardez les hanches droites, ouvrez les poumons tout en respirant doucement. Fixez un point pour garder l’équilibre. Maintenez la posture trois minutes et réitérez avec l’autre jambe.

Plank pose

Start by getting into a push-up position, place your forearms on the floor and so that your elbows are parallel to your shoulders. Keep your body straight, avoiding lifting your glutes. If you feel any discomfort, it is entirely possible to place your knees on the ground. Hold the position for 30 seconds and slowly return to all fours position at the end. The board has many benefits, it is one of the yoga postures that work the whole body.

Side angle posture

Start by getting into warrior position 2. Instead of putting your arms in a straight line, come and place your right hand next to your right foot. Then stretch your left hand toward the sky so that it forms a straight line with your left hand.

Standing pincer posture

In a standing position, bring your legs together and place your head as far as possible on them, grabbing your feet with your hands. For greater convenience, you can place your hands behind your knees. Hold the pose for 30 seconds. This pose is perfect for stretching the entire back and thighs. Keep your back straight to avoid discomfort.

Cobra pose

Start in plank position, bring your hands along your waist and lift your chest while keeping your elbows at your sides, hold the posture for a few minutes and gently release.

Si vous ressentez de l’inconfort, pliez les coudes. Cette posture strengthens the spine, stimulates the abdominal organs et stretch the shoulders, l’abdomen, lungs et Chest. It also helps to reduce fatigue et the stress et relieves sciatica. This posture stretches your back and spine and stimulates the digestive organs.

THE yoga helps reduce fatigue, we'll tell you more on the subject!

Pigeon pose

This posture seems simple, but the hip muscles are often less flexible. With the pigeon posture, a conscious placement of all joints is particularly important.

Commencez en position à genoux et venez étirer une jambe vers l’arrière et ramenez l’autre jambe vers vos hanches.

It is important to always place your legs correctly, to be stable, that the weight is equally distributed on both legs, that the hips are straight and pointing forward. If the hips are not straight, the lower back will not be straight as well. If you are not careful, this can have consequences on the spine.

Plus la jambe avant est pliée, plus il est facile d’étirer les hanches. Il est plus important d’être droit que de ramener le tibia de la jambe avant parallèle au bord du tapis.

Are your hips not touching the ground? No problem. Simply slide a blanket or block under your glutes, on the front leg side. From there, it is possible to gradually work on elevating the upper body, lengthening the lower back and opening the chest.

Mountain posture

Knowing how to stand up straight is essential for the well-being of the human body. In this posture, stand up straight and tall, mettez vos bras à distance égale de vos hanches (il n’est pas nécessaire de les tenir à l’horizontale) éloignez vos oreilles des épaules, étirez votre colonne vertébrale et inclinez légèrement les fessiers vers le sol pour basculer doucement le bassin. Respirez profondément et maintenez la position entre 3 à 5 minutes. Cette posture est également présente dans l’yoga urban planning. 

Bridge posture

Lie on your back, bring your knees toward your thighs and raise your hips toward the sky, lifting your entire body up to your shoulders. Bridge posture étire l’avant et l’arrière du corps, activates blood circulation et the digestion, helps release stress et open the lungs et thyroid.

The bow pose

Lie on your stomach on the mat, bring your knees towards your butt, lift your thighs off the floor, arch your back and grab your ankles. Hold the posture for 30 seconds. This posture stretches the back and front of the body all in improving spinal flexibility.

Boat posture

Sit on the floor, bend your knees and lean back. Raise your feet until your shins are parallel to the floor. Place your hands under your knees and pull your legs toward you until your body forms a V. This posture helps with digestion, has stimulate the kidneys, the intestines et tones the thighs et lower back.

The posture of releasing the winds

Lie on your back and bring your knees to your chest. Using your arms, hold your knees against your chest and raise your head, neck and chest. Hold this position for 30 seconds. She improves digestion et releases toxic gases from the system, She stretches the lower back et lengthens the spine.

Half straight leg flexion

Position yourself on your knees then extend one of your legs in front of you, heel on the ground, foot flexed. Lean on the outstretched leg to place your chin on the knee of the outstretched leg.

Breathe while stretching your chest forward and look at the ground to straighten your neck and avoid any discomfort.

Inhale and exhale deeply. Hold the position for three minutes before switching legs.

Lotus pose

Sitting on your hamstrings with your knees bent in a cross-legged position, bring your hands together, palms facing in. Then place your elbows on your knees, palms facing the sky. Keep your spine straight, close your eyes, clear your mind, focus on your breathing and take 15 to 20 long breaths. 

Participating in beginner-level yoga classes three times a week is a good way to improve your health and breathing.

Practicing yoga helps muscle strengthening et à l’équilibre spirituel et corporel. Les bienfaits se font sentir à la fin d’un cours et after around ten courses for the long term. Through the practice of yoga, you will achieve a certain inner peace all in you gently muscling, but surely.

Yoga requires a yoga mat which is often provided if you are practicing yoga in a studio, bring exercise clothing that you feel comfortable in and will allow you to move easily and a bottle of water.

At the house of Studio POSES, our sessions last 50 minutes and are designed to be accessible to all levels. We provide all the equipment you need to fully enjoy the benefits of yoga. Our coaches are there to support and guide you. So don't hesitate any longer, go to POSES at 21 Rue des Filles du Calvaire in the third arrondissement!