YOGA ALIGNMENT GUIDE

📷 @kiana_ng ⚡️DO/DON'T FOR 📐 #Astavakrasana ↔ #EightAnglePose on 👉 @yogaalignment ⚡️⁠⠀ -⁠⠀ ❌ DON'T ⁠⠀ - drop one shoulder⁠⠀ - relax legs⁠⠀ ⁠⠀ ✅ DO ⁠⠀ - squeeze inner thighs to upper arm⁠⠀ - kick legs straight⁠⠀ - lift shoulder of free arm to keep shoulders level⁠⠀ -⁠⠀ SHARE this with a fellow yogi and save for later! 🤗⁠⠀ -⁠⠀ #YAarmbalances #practiceyogachangeyourworld @yogaalignment #dailyyoga #armbalance

📷 @actionjacquelyn Today we’re practicing #CamelPose ↔️ #Ustrasana 🐪 this pose opens your heart & improves your posture! 💓. . . . Biggest alignment tips: DON'T bend from your lower back, instead OPEN UP the chest lifting your heart towards the sky . Tuck the toes to help you balance . Keep the neck in line and try not to kink it back too far back . . . #YAbackbends #yogaalignment #camelposevariation @yogaalignment #heartopener

📷 @roxannegan_ Getting up and down - Handstand against the wall 😊😊 save this post and tag a friend who is practicing their 🙌 #AdhoMukhaVrksasana ↔ #HandstandPose on 👉@yogaalignment ・ ・ ・ PART 1: Looks so easy right?! 🦊 As easy as it looks, it took me a lot of courage to start walking up the wall. I felt like my arms were gonna break; they couldn't take more than 4 steps. It's true: #practiceandalliscoming I am always very patient with my practice, and that's a blessing. Whenever I tried, I would try to take two more baby steps. Then one day... I got to the wall. Now I do more reps because it really strengthens my shoulders & core, and tones my arms. . ・ ・ ・ PART 2: WALKING DOWN How do I get down?? So here's how I get down from the wall... It's really more work in the arms and shoulders compared to walking up. Your arms and shoulders will be on burning by then. But I always love and embrace the burn in my arms 💪🏼🔥 . . #YAinversions #yogainversion #yoga #handstand

📷@sistersofyoga 💰 #Vasisthasana ↔ #WealthyPose or #SidePlankPose on 👉@yogaalignment . . . BENEFITS SIDE PLANK: . ▫️Strengthens wrists, arms, shoulders, and spine. ▫️Improves balance, concentration, and focus. ▫️Stretches wrists and back of legs. ▫️Tones arms, abs, hips, and legs. . COMMON MISTAKES: . ▫️Locking out elbow. ▫️Weight resting in wrist. ▫️Hips sinking toward mat. ▫️Collapsing into shoulder. ▫️Arm not inline/arm not engaged. ▫️Head down/not in-line with body. . MODIFICATIONS: . ▫️Bring bottom knee and shin to mat. ▫️Step top foot in front of body. . 🧘🏾‍♀️: @hippie_heathen . . #YAstrengthpose #SistersOfYoga #SOYTutorial #yogatips @yogaalignment #yogacues #yogaalignment #yogatutorials #learnyoga #yogaforeveryone #yogalove #yogaforcorestrength #yogalove #sideplank #yoga #yogawarrior

📷 @neyu_ma @yogaalignment How to get from Warrior II into Bird of Paradise. 🐥 #SvargaDvijasana ↔ #ParadiseTwiceBorn Pose or #BirdofParadisePose on 👉@yogaalignment Step 1: Warrior 2 pose Step 2: Side Angle Pose with hand in front of the foot Step 3: Bind the hand together underneath the thigh of the front leg Step 4: Bring the back leg forward and begin to shift weight Step 5: Lift the bound leg up Step 6: Straighten the lifted leg This pose requires focus and balance as well as shoulder and hip flexibility. 💚 #YOGAALIGNMENT #IMPROVEYOURPRACTICE @yogaalignment #YASTANDINGPOSE #birdofparadise #yogatutorial #yogalove #howtoyoga

📷 @actionhiro One of the most requested transitions from you yogis: #Kakasana ↔️ #CrowPose to  #ChaturangaDandasana ↔#FourLimbedStaffPose or #LowPlankPose on @yogaalignment . . Here are the 3 most common things I see when things go south AND 5 exercises to help with them! Enjoy and don’t forget to tag a friend who could use this and try it out yourself! What makes the last 3 “advanced”? Well for these exercises in particular, it plays on the concept of “trusting self” through coordination. Especially for more seasoned practitioners, a lot of us got into the habit of coming into a pose and running through the checklist ✅ of all the alignment cues to get into a “good” posture. What if we just got into the “good” posture right away and didn’t look for the validation of running through that checklist? And how do we put that to the rest? Coordination. Try it out! And don’t forget to have fun with it. #YAarmbalances #YAstrengthpose #yogatransition #chaturanga

📷 @susanbishopyoga Woohoo! 🎉 I’ve found vertical in my #HandstandPose ↔️ #AdhoMukhaVrksasana ! But it didn’t happen overnight. More like over 704 nights (2 years!!) 💕 !! . . First remember everyones vertical will look different because we are all built differently (how boring if we all looked the same) and we all have different challenges (strength, flexibility, control). When I held that handstand back in the summer of 2016 I was thrilled. Even after I saw the picture and realized how poor my alignment was 🍌 . There’s nothing wrong with my 2016 handstand EXCEPT it was haaard to hold. When your alignment is off it takes more strength (much more) to hold. So how did I find vertical? By starting with a strong foundation (hands 🕷!!) and building it up from there based on my own specific challenges. . . ⬅️SWIPE to see the progress throughout the years as I built straight arm strength, increased flexibility in shoulders and thoracic spine, pulled in my ribs and core, engaged from glutes all the way up thru my toes (and shifted my gaze down between my hands). . ⬅️⬅️SWIPE again to see my fav alignment drill - chest to wall holds! With hands about a foot from the wall tuck your toes and pull belly and ribs in to feel your straight up alignment. You may be so balanced your toes come off the wall!! Try to hold up to a minute or more!! 💗 . . #YAprogress #YAinversions @yogaalignment #yogatutorial #handstand #instayoga #yogapractice#handstandtips #yogagoals

📷 @cece.carson ⁣ 🦄 There is more than 𝗢𝗡𝗘 way to do any one thing, don’t you know?⁣ 👉🏼 Swipe for 6 ways to move from #DownwardFacingDogPose ↔️ #AdhoMukhaSvanasana to #CrescentLungePose or #HighLungePose ↔️#UtthitaAshwaSanchalanasana on @yogaalignment ⁣ It is so easy to get caught up in the same same 𝗦 𝗔 𝗠 𝗘 way to do anything (everything). 💤 So switch it 𝗨𝗣 already! ⁣ ⁣ 1/ #EkaPadaAdhoMukhaSvanasana ↔️ #ThreeLeggedDogPose 2/ #KneetoNose Sliders ⁣ 3/ Open Hip⁣ 4/ Same Leg Hop⁣ 5/ Switch Leg Hop⁣ 6/ Tuck Hops⁣ ⁣ Try a new way & let me know what you think! Or make up one of your own & share it with me!⁣ ⁣ ❤️ Like what you see? 𝐒𝐇𝐀𝐑𝐄 with a friend // 𝐒𝐀𝐕𝐄 for keepsies // 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝗪 me how you do it!⁣ ⁣ ⁣ ⁣#YAtransitions #yogatransition @yogaalignment #yogasequence ⁣

📷 @inspiremyyoga Swipe to see how to enter #ViparitaParivrttaSuryaYantrasana ↔️ #SuperSoldierPose or #InvertedCompassPose on @yogaalignment . . Using a block and a wall can help you develop balance as you progress into this pose and a great way to try it for the first time. . . #YAbalance #hipopeners #standingbalancing @yogaalignment #howtoyoga

📷 @kickassyoga Swipe for 2 ways on how to work on #HalfMoonPose ↔️ #ArdhaChandrasana on @yogaalignment One is focusing on the stretching aspect, the other is playing with balance. Music by @jeffkaale #YAbalance #balancepose @yogaalignment #balancepractice

📷 @geeoice_yoga Tight hips & hammies plague many of us, and that can make things tricky for headstand sometimes. Do you find it hard to walk feet up to stack hips over shoulders? or lift one or both legs to float up, instead of kicking? here’s one suggestion worth trying: prop it like it’s hot! 🔥🔥 ⠀ We’re going upside down in #SalambaSirsasana ↔ #SupportedHeadstandPose on @yogaalignment ! The supported part means forearms on the floor, hands often cradling the back of the head. i prefer this method, because it’s less pressure on the head & neck. ⠀ now let’s get proppin’: 1️⃣ assume the position, but with feet up on blocks. that little bit of elevation can make all the difference in getting those hips directly over the shoulders for a more stable liftoff. ⠀ 2️⃣ lift one foot up, entire leg engaged & energy out through the toes. keeping all those muscles activated helps a ton with upside-down balance. ⠀ 3️⃣ the fun part: as that top leg goes up & you press the floor away through your forearms, you may feel that bottom one start to float off the block—almost effortlessly. ⠀ 4️⃣ see if you can bring both legs 🆙 to meet overhead. you can also play with lifting both legs up together off blocks in a pike press, or with legs out wide in a straddle press. you may find that extra little bit of elevation makes press practice sooo much easier! . . #YAinversions #headstand #yogalove #yogatutorials