Yoga sun salutation sequence for beginners
Yoga sun salutation being known more often as Sooriya Namaskaar is the multifunctional sequence of poses that helps you prepare to dive into the deeper Yoga asanas. As the name says it all by itself, this Visayas flow of yoga is to be performed at the sunrise with the constant transformation of breathing between inhalation and exhalation. In addition to this, the yoga sun salutation sequence for beginners can be done at any convenient time of the day to promote its wellness in a newbie.
Sun salutation is a great warmup session to start with for any other yoga or exercise. Many of us who want to initiate the yoga practice at home and do not know what and how to conduct first can surely take guidance from this sequence of poses.
Yoga sunrise salutation for beginners
Yoga sunrise salutation for beginners can be the mixture of bending with the alternation of breath between inhalation and exhalation. These poses start with the straight pose mostly Mountain which initiates the string inhale and then transits your body to Forwarding bending with a maintained and segmented exhalation.
For beginners, sunrise salutation can be a good guidance to cope up with their breaths and core strengthening for further heavy Yoga types.
Variations of sunrise salutation
As every Yoga type is certified with some specific kinds of asanas and their aims of achievement sun salutation is also composed of different variations with varying poses. As the core aim of the sun solution Yoga sequence is to awaken your body mentally and physically by helping reach every drop of blood rush to every tissue of your body, these variations are mostly packed with similar poses.
All of these variations are composed of straight inhalation pose, Forward bending, lunges, and other poses with segmented exhalation.
These basic types of sun solution which we are about to see in this article are of three types:
- Sun Salutation A
- Sun Salutation B
- Sun salutation C
Now without much further ado, let us get started with the yoga sun solution poses.
Sun Salutation
Sun salutation is the type of salutation kind that most of us at home want to practice at home. This is the type that is chosen mostly by our yoga instructors to make us prepare for further heavy stretch.
It contains a high-energy enriched sequence for beginners that gathers your body in line with your brain and consciousness. It has got all the basic full body stretches that help you stretch and expand every bit of your body with easy steps in the way.
The poses are right below for a much clear view.
1. Mountain/Prayer Pose
Let us start with the basic initiative or I suggest it as a resting pose that helps your body get prepared. To this pose, stand on your yoga mat with your hips wide apart in which you feel comfortable. Now place your arms and hands in front of you in a prayer pose. Place your thumbs on your sternum to gain a more self-centered or balanced feeling.
Inhale from the nose before forming the pose and exhale from the mouth in short intervals as long as you can take it.
2. Uttanasana to Flatback Pose
Once you have achieved a straight body posture in the previous pose now let your body bend a little bit. Our next pose is all about bending about your hips with the aim of achieving a flat back. To get into this pose, squeeze your feet back in together in a line and drop your arms and shoulder down away from your head.
For beginners, you can try to touch your fingertips as low on the ground as you can but don’t push yourself in achieving that. It can be achieved with the passage of time and effort.
Forget not to inhale before going into the pose and release the air as you retreat to your straight Standing position.
3. Plank Pose
This is a most basic one and can be done alone providing great stretch to your entire body all at once. In this pose, we are striving for the straight bendless vertebrae in line with your legs and just down to your heels.
To start this pose, you can place your palms on the ground just below your shoulders. Raise your hips up in the air without them being dropping too low or high up destroying the straight line. To gain balance at your palms you have to paint your toes on the ground and hold to this position.
Inhale strongly while moving through this pose and exhale as you move back to your initial Standing position.
4. Knees, chest and chin pose
Just ending the plank pose, exhale, and then hop onto the other transitional pose. As the name indicates, in this pose the knees, chest, and chin touch the ground while being in the semi plank pose. Transitioning from the plank pose to this pose will be needing your upper body to bend downwards to the ground while lifting the hips up in the air.
Your palms and elbows will snuggle your chest region by just being on the side to it for balance and support.
5. Cobra pose
It the basic backbend with your pelvis, legs, and feet planted to the ground. To get yourself started, lie on your belly on your favorite yoga mat and place your palms right beside your chest. Now by putting force to your palms raise your upper body creating a strong bend at the hips. As your upper body gets raised try to implant your lower body rooted to the ground strictly.
6. Downward facing Dog
It is the typical Downward-facing Dog pose. You can exhale to start the pose and stay there for few breaths and retreat back to the normal standing position.
7. Standing Forward Fold Pose
As we continue to move towards the end of this sequence, there is the repetition of the previous or starting poses to enable your body to work for the spaces created.
Like earlier, bend forward above your hips with your arms pulled down. Try to touch your palms or fingers tips to the mat while keeping your legs and knees straight.
Forget not to inhale while moving down and release as you move up.
8. Mountain/Prayer Pose
At the end of this sequence, get back to the prayer pose as you were in the beginning and let your bodywork with the stretch created.
Sun salutation A
Sun salutation A is a modified form of basic Sun solution with more added sequences to it. It consists of more than usual poses and is considered more in place of the basic Sun salutation.
Many trainers also prefer this Sun Salutation A sequence as their starting training course.
1. Mountain/Prayer Pose
Start your sequence by balancing your breathing rhythms. You can either stand straight or sit in the lotus pose for this pose. A basic praying hand posture in front of your chest or face will do the cause. Try to calm your body and breaths at this moment and feel your body.
2. Upward salute Pose
From the prayer pose, transit your arms and hands above your head with your palms touching each other. As you move your head and gaze above, arch your back a bit so it eases your chest opening. Do not push yourself with the bending.
Inhale as you pull your arms above and exhale as your drop your shoulders back.
3. Standing Forward Fold Pose
For the further stretch to back, hips and hamstrings dive deep down towards the ground from the Upward salute pose. Keep your legs and knees straight and stretched.
Do not forget to inhale as you dive down and exhale back as yourself back into a straight Standing posture or you can exhale in shorter segments while bent down.
4. Low lunge pose
Low lunge is all about putting a stretch on thighs, abdominal area, hips, and quads. To get into this pose, start with a strong inhale with a starting plank pose. Now lift your right leg forward in-between your palms and with the knee being bent just below your chin
Try to keep the other leg rooted to the ground without letting it bend at any point. Lift your head up to maintain the balance.
5. Plank pose
This is the basic plank pose putting an extreme stretch on your back, shoulder arms, and quads. To initiate lie down on your mat with both your palms rooted to the ground. Inhale and push your upper body up with the force applied to your palms.
Make sure your elbows and knees are straight without any drooping at any point. To maintain your balance stick your toes to the floor of the mat.
6. Knees, chest, chin pose
To stretch and burn your core and abdomen region try this pose. This pose is quite challenging as Half of your body is tucked in the air while the others are to be landed on the ground.
To get started, from the plank pose, lower your chest, chin, and knees towards the ground while hanging your hips and thighs up in the air.
Hold onto this pose for some breaths and release.
7. Upward facing Dog pose
From lying on your belly on the ground, place your palms on the ground just beside your chest. Now inhale and force yourself up while making your hands and shoulders in line with your hands.
8. Downwards facing Dog pose
From the Upward facing Dog transit toward this pose by moving in a reverse manner. For those move your head down and hips Upward making a pointed end at your tail bone. Exhale before this transition.
9. Standing Forward Fold Pose
Now moving towards the end of the sequence some poses are repeated at this point. One of them is the Forward.
Inhale as you drop your upper body down. Try to stay in this position more than you stayed previously as your body is more open and warmer this time.
10. Upward salute Pose
To relax your blood rush towards your head and your heart rhythms shift from the bend towards the Upward salute. This is just lifting your arms up above your head with your hands joined at palms.
Inhale as you lift your arms up and exhale in shorter and relaxed breaths.
11. Mountain/Prayer Pose
Exhale and lower your arms in the prayer pose in front of your chest
With this, you have completed 1 compete round of dun salutation A. This type is the basis for all other types of sun salutations.
Now let us take you along the other modified sequences of sun salutations.
Sun salutation B
After the basic poses of sun salutation A, now let us give you the more modified and prolonged poses of sun salutation B.
1. Mountain/Prayer Pose
Like the previous types, I consider the mountain pose to be the best start of any yoga sequence. So here it is again.
In this, all you have to do is to stand with your feet apart and to make the prayer pose from hands in front of your chest. Do not forget to inhale while you do this and release it gradually.
2. Chair pose
Up next is the thigh and abdomen burning pose. This pose can not be considered a full chair pose but gives a half gesture of it
To get into this pose, bend down your knees and lower your hips making a nearly 90-degree angle. Achieving this can be tough for a beginner but with time you can gradually increase your angle of bending.
With this bending, accompany your arms in line with your knees high above your head. Do not forget to inhale deeply while stretching your arms above.
3. Standing Forward Fold Pose
After the exhale throw your torso down in the forward direction. Drop your shoulders and head along in the same direction and try to reach out the ground with your fingers or even with palms if possible.
Remain in this posture and release.
4. Half Standing Forward Fold
In easy words, you can consider this pose as Half Forward bending. In this pose, you have to drop your torso halfway down making a right angle with your hips and spine. Try to reach the ground with your fingertips while keeping your gaze Forward
Forget not to inhale deeply as you drop down yourself forward.
5. Four limbed staff pose
Exhale and land on the ground with your palms pressing the ground along with the toes tucked to the ground. Support your spine and hips in the air by the engagement of muscles and keep your body afloat in the air with your head raises up.
Keep your elbows in line with your shoulders and toes at the back.
6. Upward facing Dog pose
From the four-limbed poses, transfer yourself completely on the ground. Now try to lift your torso upwards toward the ceiling by your palms rooted to the mat with deep inhalation. Try to keep your toes and legs straight at the back and retreat back to the lying position.
7. Downward-facing Dog pose
This is the typical reverse of the Upward Dog pose. After exhalation, lift your hips up and heads down between your arms as the palms give you the support for it. Try to keep your feet apart so to balance the hip movement.
8. Warrior pose
To get into this pose inhale as you shift your legs apart in opposite directions. Place your right leg of your hips bent at the knee and move your other leg backward keeping a wide distance from your hips.
Now lift your arms up above your head in line with your shoulders and move your upper body in a way that your body weight is evenly balanced. Exhale as you release from the posture.
9. Four limbed staff pose
Exhale and drop onto your palms and toes while keeping your body afloat.
10. Upward facing Dog pose
As done earlier, you have to bend your head lifted up in the air. Inhale before you perform this.
11. Downward-facing Dog pose
Now move to the downwards pose by pulling your head and back down between your arms. Exhale while you do this.
12. Warrior I left foot pose
Replicate the warrior pose I done earlier but this time with the left foot in front and the right stretch at the back. Inhale before you do the stretch and release the breath in short intervals during the stretch.
13. Four limbed staff pose
At the end of the previous pose, drop yourself on the ground with your palms and feet toes stranded to the ground. Hold yourself up in the air by hugging your abdominal muscles together. Inhale as you do so and exhale at the finishing of the pose.
14. Half Standing Forward Fold Pose
At the closing poses of sun solution A, the body moves towards the final stretch that makes your body relaxed in a good way as it is much warmer now. The Forward bend at the end of the spine will help your body to relax your lower body muscles. Inhale before starring and hold on to it and then release the pose.
15. Chair pose
The final pose will make your upper arms and body stretch and work about the spaces created by the body. To initiate the bending at the knee, inhale and stretch out your arms above.
And you are done with the sun solution B sequence. This was it.
Sunrise salutation C
Like it was with sun solution B, there is the final type called the sun salutation C sequence. Like other sequences, this is also the more modified or pro-form of the basic or sequence A and has much more focused or targeted oriented poses.
Let have a look at them:
1. Mountain/Prayer Pose
The start of this pose is the same as with other sequences. Inhale and stretch your arms above in front of the chest in a prayer pose. Do not rush yourself at this pose.
2. Upward salute pose
Moving above the head from the prayer pose while you inhale in a deep breath will make this pose possible. As you move your arms above the head, bend your spine back a bit to gain body balance.
3, Standing Forward Fold Pose
Exhale and bend in the forward direction by hinging at your hips. Try to touch your palms on the ground for more stretch.
4. Half Standing Forward Fold Pose
For gaining this posture, exhale and bend your torso just parallel to the floor at a point near the lower back. Stretch your arms down keeping your spine straight in line with your head.
5. Lunge Pose
Start this pose as you exhale and stretch your right leg in front of your belly. Extend the other leg at the back with the toe tucked to the ground. Try not to bend the knee at this Backward stretch.
6. Plank pose
Inhale and attain the basic plank pose with a folded or straight elbow. You can change the elbow position according to your level of ease.
7. Knees, chest, and chin pose
Start this pose by keeping your palms on the sides of your chest. Now with the help of your palms and toes draw down your knees, chin, and chest to the floor. Exhale as you do so.
8. Cobra pose
Inhale as you work for the typical chest out Cobra pose with your lower body laid parallel flat to the ground.
9. Downward-facing Dog pose
Exhale and transit your body to the basic Downward Dog pose by pulling your head down while your hips being raised up in the air.
10. Lunge right leg pose
Inhale and pull out your right leg forward in between your arms. Pull back the other leg with balancing at the toe.
11. Standing Forward Fold Pose
It is the typical Forward Fold with exhalation beforehand.
12. Upward salute pose
Inhale as you move your hands above your head in order to create the solute. Keep your feet apart in parallel to your hips.
13. Mountain pose
You are almost done! I consider this pose as the resting pose at the end and prefer it to be the best soothing pose after all the stretch your body has made. This is the typical standing pose with the hands in front of the chest closed in a namaskar form. Exhale and then try to regain your breathing sequences back to normal.
Yoga sun salutation benefits
Many of us think of sun salutation as a beginner technique for warm-up but its benefits are far more way than just a series of warm-up postures. Sun salutation is also known to run the energy throughout your body and hence is responsible for pinching every muscle of your body in this continuous flow of postures.
These poses do not only make your muscle or body mentally or physically awaken but they also perform their duties way beyond that. To know the better essence of sun salutation in our daily lives, let us have a look at what it benefits our body with.
The benefitting sun salutation:
- Cardiovascular workout is the key benefit of why it attracts most of the beginners as well as the trainers to get started with it. The hardcore and complete set of sequences that moves your every bit of body musculature with the free transition of breathing among inhalation and exhalation is the cardiac workout influencer. Moving from one pose to another without a pause will eventually boost up your cardiovascular rate with Hugh sweat break
- A quick warm-up can be assured due to attaining these poses before doing any other harder yoga types. This warmup will also cause a sense of calmness and stress reduction to a person’s body in no time.
- Calories burning at a good rate will keep your body lean and fat-free with just a little effort as these 12 basic poses. The weight loss aid is provided by this breathing-controlled yoga sequence that eventually increases the calorie burn.
- Performing sun solutions can also help you treat cardiovascular problems without any prescribed medications. Many cardiac diseases like blood pressure and related diseases can be reduced as the series of postures make a good blood rush into your bodily extreme making your heart more sturdy.
- Mental disorders can also find relaxing remedies in these yoga Asanas. What treats your mental irregularity is the rate of lowered stress and anxiety, for that these stretches will soothe every nerve of your in coordination with your boastful heart pump. These postures also aim at growing the blood flow to your brain which makes it relaxed and oxygenated all at the same time.
- You can also hope for q glowing skin as you move down the days of doing this ultimate youth sequence. The rate of blood flow through your skin increases which causes more oxygenation of the tissues and hence creating a glowy effect with the more breakout of sweat.
- Physical fitness that accounts for the postures and toned body is also a part of benefits by sun salutation. The lean body with less but sturdy musculature build-up can help you give your the ideal body type without going to a gym.
- Central mindfulness can also be experienced as a benefit of doing a sun salutation. You can think of it as a moving mediation. As you move from one pose to another, your poses are pulled together by balanced breathing and hence makes you feel fully mind and body-centered throughout the sequence.
- Last but not the least, it secures inner peace and gratitude like no other workout. As reaping peace is the common benefit of performing any kind of yoga, sun salutation makes its way to the top as it is practiced to show gratitude to the sun. Plus the time of dawn will also make you absorb the peace of that time very keenly.
At what time should I practice sun salutation?
It can be done at any time or space but it is more useful if done at sunrise. The peaceful atmosphere and purity of dawn time will help you vitalize your body with extra positivity and energy like no other time in the day. Plus a sequence done at dawn will regulate the energy throughout the day making you’re active enough for the whole day.
What speed should I consider while doing sun salutation?
Sun salutation can be done at three different speeds as slower, medium, or fast speed. All of these speeds have amazingly different effects on our bodies.
The slower speed can be good for beginners as well as those who practice it for a basic warm-up.
The medium speed can help your stretch and lengthen your muscles effectively
The higher speed can serve to be a good case of a cardiovascular workout without a doubt.
Does sun salutation help you keep looking young?
Sun salutation has it all that can help your body and skin looking younger for years. This energy flow sequence will help you tone your body, strengthen your muscles, tone your joints and spines, and allows a good flow of blood to your skin and brain. This blood flow will make your skin radiant and helps you grown your hair and nails more often.
Conclusion
In our final words for the yoga sun salutation sequence for beginners, I prefer you to try this energy flow sequence just as a warmup and you will certainly fall in love with what this has to offer you. The energy-rich asana will carve out the better version of your body and you. The above-mentioned sequence is enough alone if practiced ideally and spiritually.
I hope you all will find it a good companion of yours as well make it a part of life.
As we come back with some more amazing yoga facts and sequence, let us know if anyone of you has endured what sun salutation is all about. Till then, happy yoga, stay safe stay healthy.