Pretty much everyone knows from first-hand experience how hard is it to get over a break-up. Even if you are the one who is doing the breaking up we all know how hard that can be too. Everything in life suddenly different because that person isn’t there. The shock is almost too intense to describe, but it’s a universal feeling.
At those times, it’s good to get out of your head and stay active. Try practicing this yoga routine during a break-up, or other difficult period, or anytime for that matter. Daily life presents its own set of struggles so this routine is for you people having a generally happy time too!
The poses in this sequence have two main ingredients: strength and expansion. Each pose requires strength in the legs and core. Your strength allows you to find expansion in the back, chest, shoulders, and head. Oh, the psychological parallels! Resisting getting too flowery with my wording here, I think it’s a nice routine to practice when working through difficult times.
Start with feet together, reach straight up with your arms and arch slightly back.
Tara’s tip: The more you push down through your feet the further you can arch back.
Hang Over Legs
Fold over your legs. Grab opposite elbows and let your head hang down. You can also rock side to side to loosen up your spine.
Tara’s tip: Let your spine be easy and loose here. Forcing too much here in the warm up is never good. Allow your body to open up in its own time.
Warrior One
Come into Warrior 1, the ultimate battle preparation pose. Holding this for a while will show you how strong you actually are.
Tara’s tip: Think of the pose as a warm up, not a final position. Allow your body some wiggle room for adjustments.
Warrior One 2
Interlace your hands behind your back and reach upward. This transition pose feels great because you have the stability of your legs in Warrior 1, plus expansiveness in your chest and upper back and it just feels good in your neck and head to arch slightly up.
Tara’s tip: Keep your front knee bent over your foot. Work on your strength while you also reach up through your spine.
Warrior One 3
Take your hands over your bent front leg and rest your head on the inside of your knee. Use the connection of your head to your knee as leverage to start to bring your hands over your head. This is a nice shoulder opener
Tara’s tip: Lift up in your stomach so you don’t collapse into your legs, even though you are in a forward bend. It should feel more of a lift “up and over” than just “over”.
Warrior Two
Come back up and open into Warrior 2. Your legs will start to feel like they are working now. Hold here for 5 breaths.
Tara’s tip: Stick with it here and keep the knee bend fully over your front foot even when it starts to get more challenging.
Warrior Two 2
Stay in Warrior 2 and rest your forearm on your front leg. Rotate your top arm and side body up. Your back foot is your anchor here. Feel the stretch from your foot all the way up through your top hand.
Tara’s tip: Use your forearm to push your torso out of your legs. You will feel more of an expansion then in this strong pose.
Extended Side Angle
Bring your bottom hand to the ground and reach your top hand
straight up. Press your fingertips into the ground and look to your top hand.
Tara’s tip: Use the floor as resistance to lift up towards your top hand and try to arch slightly back.
Extended Side Angle Arm Reach
Stay in the extended side angle and reach both arms sideways and forward, past your front leg.
Tara’s tip: Lift your torso up out of your legs and spin your chest upward.
Triangle
Straighten your front leg, reach your bottom hand to the floor and stretch your top hand straight up.
Tara’s tip: Test yourself by taking your bottom hand up off the ground to make sure you are lifting out of your legs.
Triangle Arm Reach
Keep your legs in triangle position and reach both arms forward beyond your front leg.
Tara’s tip: When you reach out with your arms, make sure your torso is working towards a straight line instead of a rounded arch.
Bonus Fun Round: Dancer Prep
I am a firm believer in fun yoga. So after you’ve done all that challenging strengthening and lengthening, try a fun pose, preferably one that will make you fall over and laugh. Dancer is fun, and there’s usually a point where you can test your limit and then crash—which can also be fun!
Start standing on two legs. Bend one foot up and keep your knee pointing down. Slowly start to kick your leg behind you, keeping your hips as even as you can. Make sure you are prepared to crash. Sand is a good surface for this one!
Dancer 1
I am a firm believer in fun yoga. So after you’ve done all that
challenging strengthening and lengthening, try a fun pose, preferably
one that will make you fall over and laugh. Dancer is fun, and there’s
usually a point where you can test your limit and then crash—which can
also be fun!
Start standing on two legs. Bend one foot up and keep your knee
pointing down. Slowly start to kick your leg behind you, keeping your
hips as even as you can. Make sure you are prepared to crash. Sand is
a good surface for this one!
Dancer 2
I am a firm believer in fun yoga. So after you’ve done all that
challenging strengthening and lengthening, try a fun pose, preferably
one that will make you fall over and laugh. Dancer is fun, and there’s
usually a point where you can test your limit and then crash—which can
also be fun!
Start standing on two legs. Bend one foot up and keep your knee
pointing down. Slowly start to kick your leg behind you, keeping your
hips as even as you can. Make sure you are prepared to crash. Sand is
a good surface for this one!
Dancer 3
I am a firm believer in fun yoga. So after you’ve done all that
challenging strengthening and lengthening, try a fun pose, preferably
one that will make you fall over and laugh. Dancer is fun, and there’s
usually a point where you can test your limit and then crash—which can
also be fun!
Start standing on two legs. Bend one foot up and keep your knee
pointing down. Slowly start to kick your leg behind you, keeping your
hips as even as you can. Make sure you are prepared to crash. Sand is
a good surface for this one!
Dancer 4
I am a firm believer in fun yoga. So after you’ve done all that
challenging strengthening and lengthening, try a fun pose, preferably
one that will make you fall over and laugh. Dancer is fun, and there’s
usually a point where you can test your limit and then crash—which can
also be fun!
Start standing on two legs. Bend one foot up and keep your knee
pointing down. Slowly start to kick your leg behind you, keeping your
hips as even as you can. Make sure you are prepared to crash. Sand is
a good surface for this one!
