Top 5 Yoga Poses to Start Your Day!

Yoga is a great way to start your day. Even if you do not have an hour to complete a full practice give these 5 poses a try and ease out of your dream state and into your day. All you need is 15 minutes to slowly deepen your breath, start to move and create warmth in the body and begin to wake up your brain. I would even recommend doing the first 3

This little yoga sequence will help get your day off to a beautiful beginning where you can take the calmness you create on your mat into the rest of your day.

Top 5 Yoga Poses to Start Your Day!

Reclined Spinal Twist

On your back bring both knees into your chest and give yourself a big

Notice your back and hips. Move your pillow to ensure that your neck and head are relaxed.

Extend your arms into a tee position; bring your knees to the right and your gaze either toward the ceiling or toward your left fingers – depending on how your neck feels.

Take 10 soft, deep belly breaths here – in and out through your nose.

Inhale back through centre and switch sides every 1-2 minutes.

An easy way to deepen your breath and start to bring gentle movement throughout the entire spine.

Child’s Pose (1-3 minutes)

Slowly sit on your shins.  Bring your knees apart about the distance of your forearm or maybe a little wider. Big toes are together.

Sink your hips to your heels, and then start to walk your hands and your body forward until your forehead touches the bed or your mat. Hopefully you feel a gentle stretch through your hips and low back.

Neck is long and arms are extended forward – keeping your hands in front of your shoulders. Lift the elbows away from the bed as you press your hands down.

A gentle way to stretch: shoulders, upper back, low back, and hips as well as continuing to deepen the breath and bring more awareness into

Cat / Cow (Spend 1-3 minutes)

Inhale up to a table top position with hands under shoulders, knees under hips.

Inhale: press the chest forward between the shoulders, let the belly be soft as the tailbone points away from you.

Exhale: round through the upper back, bring chin to chest, pull the belly in and up as you look toward your navel. The tailbone now points toward your knees… Repeat and move with your breath.

This is a great way to start to move with your breath and wake up the body in a gentle and relaxed way.

Downward Dog

From tabletop press into the hands, lift the knees from the floor and extend the legs.

Don’t be afraid to bend the knees to lengthen the back even more – pressing the sit bones up and back.

Bring some movement into the body – shake the head yes and no; bend one knee and straighten the other, wiggle the hips back and forth, bend the knees and come on the outside edge of one foot and the inside of the other to get a stretch through the side of the body. Basically move in a way that makes you feel long and good.

Downward Dog is a position of both length and strength – from the neck to the arches of your feet.

Head is heavy; neck is long.

Hands press the floor away from you – arms are long and strong.

Tree Pose

From downward dog, walk hands to feet or feet to hands and allow yourself a moment in a forward fold. On an inhale roll all the way up to

Bring your hands to your hips – engage the belly and stand up tall.

Put your weight into your right foot – thinking about where your big toe connects to your foot, your little toes connects to your foot and your inner and outer heels – these are the 4 corners of your foot – press down through this 4 corners to lift up straight and tall through the body.

Lift the left knee inline with your left hip. Externally rotate the hip so that the left knees come out to the left. Place the sole of the left foot onto your calf or upper thigh – avoid the knee joint – press the foot into the leg and the leg into the foot.

Keep your hips square, belly engaged, chest open and your back long  – as if you had your back up against a wall.

Balance and breathe. For an extra challenge close your eyes.

Balancing helps to turn your focus inward. Try to focus your gaze on one point in front of you.

After 5-10 breathes switch sides.

More about Jessica and Studio Blue Yoga

Conveniently located in Toronto’s Dundas West area, Studio Blue Yoga offers a variety of Yoga classes for all levels from Foundation Flow for beginners to more challenging Yoga, Yoga Camp (Yoga + Bootcamp), Ballet Yoga Fusion and even a yoga Class set to Hip Hop music.  Studio Blue is dedicated to offer playful, positive and vigorous group exercise classes with certified instructors that channel their inner child in order to deliver nurturing and challenges classes for people of all physical fitness levels. Founded by Jessica McIntyre, a businesswoman turned yoga instructor, who completed a 500 hour intensive Moksha Yoga Training in Kerala, India and has been guiding people through her own practice ever since.  Visit www.studioblue.co.