Beginners Yoga: Core Strength and Endurance

1
Beginners YogaCore Strength and Endurance

• This yoga workout sequence is designed to
  strengthen your core, especially targeting the
  shoulders, chest, thighs, and abdominals. It
  combines flexibility training with body
  resistance to provide a safe entry into yoga for
  beginners and a reliable workout plan for
  experienced yogis. A full workout requires about
  50 minutes of uninterrupted time. A yoga mat and
  rolled cloth are recommended but not necessary.
• Slides automatically timed to max-length
  exercises with pose entry time of 15 to 30
  seconds allotted. Before attempting the
  exercises for the first time, I recommend
  browsing through the slides and familiarizing
  yourselves with pose entries. Some poses
  (tadasana especially) will be used on several
  occasions as pose entries and exits. If you have
  finished the exercise early, and the slide has
  not changed, just click the mouse to skip
  forward.
• Presentation compiled and edited by Joshua
  Sweeney
• Technique description and photos by
  Yogajournal.com

2
Savasana -- Corpse pose(6-7 mins total)
In Savasana, it's essential that the body be
placed in a neutral position. Sit on the floor
with your knees bent, feet on the floor, and lean
back onto your forearms. Lift your pelvis
slightly off the floor and, with your hands, push
the back of the pelvis toward the tailbone,
then return the pelvis to the floor. Inhale
and slowly extend the right leg, then the
left, pushing through the heels. Release both
legs, softening the groins, and see that the legs
are angled evenly relative to the mid-line of the
torso and that the feet turn out equally. Narrow
the front pelvis and soften (but don't flatten)
the lower back. With your hands lift the base
of the skull away from the back of the neck and
release the back of the neck down toward the
tailbone. If you have any difficulty doing this,
support the back of the head and neck on a folded
blanket. Broaden the base of the skull too, and
lift the crease of the neck diagonally into the
center of the head. Make sure your ears are
equidistant from your shoulders. Reach your
arms toward the ceiling, perpendicular to the
floor. Rock slightly from side to side and
broaden the back ribs and the shoulder blades
away from the spine. Then release the arms to the
floor, angled evenly relative to the mid-line of
torso. Turn the arms outward and stretch them
away from the space between the shoulder blades.
Rest the backs of the hands on the floor as close
as you comfortably can to the index finger
knuckles. Make sure the shoulder blades are
resting evenly on the floor. Imagine the lower
tips of the shoulder blades are lifting
diagonally into your back toward the top of the
sternum. From here, spread the collarbones. In
addition to quieting the physical body in
Savasana, it's also necessary to pacify the sense
organs. Soften the root of the tongue, the wings
of the nose, the channels of the inner ears, and
the skin of the forehead, especially around the
bridge of the nose between the eyebrows. Let the
eyes sink to the back of the head, then turn them
downward to gaze at the heart. Release your brain
to the back of the head. Hold for 4-5
minutes. Roll gently with an exhalation onto one
side, preferably the right. Assume the fetal
position, then take several slow breaths. With
final exhalation, press your hands against the
floor and lift your torso, dragging your head
slowly after. The head should always come up
last.
3
Marjaryasana -- Cat Pose(30 secs)
Start on your hands and knees in a "tabletop"
position. Make sure your knees are set
directly below your hips and your wrists, elbows
and shoulders are in line and perpendicular
to the floor. Center your head in a neutral
position, eyes looking at the floor. As you
exhale, round your spine toward the ceiling,
making sure to keep your shoulders and knees
in position. Release your head toward the floor,
but don't force your chin to your
chest. Inhale, coming back to neutral
"tabletop" position on your hands and knees.

4
Bitilasana -- Cow Pose(2-3 mins total)
Start on your hands and knees in a "tabletop"
position. Make sure your knees are set
directly below your hips and your wrists, elbows
and shoulders are in line and perpendicular
to the floor. Center your head in a neutral
position, eyes looking at the floor. As you
inhale, lift your sitting bones and chest toward
the ceiling, allowing your belly to sink
toward the floor. Lift your head to look straight
forward. Exhale, coming back to neutral
"tabletop" position on your hands and knees.
Repeat 15 to 20 times.
5
Tadasana -- Mountain Pose(1 min total)
Stand with the bases of your big toes
touching, heels slightly apart (so that your
second toes are parallel). Lift and spread your
toes and the balls of your feet, then lay them
softly down on the floor. Rock back and forth and
side to side. Gradually reduce this swaying to
a standstill, with your weight balanced evenly
on the feet. Firm your thigh muscles and
lift the knee caps, without hardening your
lower belly. Lift the inner ankles to
strengthen the inner arches, then imagine a
line of energy all the way up along your inner
thighs to your groins, and from there through
the core of your torso, neck, and head, and
out through the crown of your head. Turn the
upper thighs slightly inward. Lengthen your
tailbone toward the floor and lift the pubis
toward the navel. Press your shoulder blades
into your back, then widen them across and
release them down your back. Without pushing your
lower front ribs forward, lift the top of your
sternum straight toward the ceiling. Widen your
collarbones. Hang your arms beside the torso.
Balance the crown of your head directly over
the center of your pelvis, with the underside of
your chin parallel to the floor, throat soft, and
the tongue wide and flat on the floor of your
mouth. Soften your eyes. Center yourself, and
hold position for 45 seconds to 1 minute. Stay
in Tadasana form for the next exercise.
6
Utkatasana -- Chair Pose(1 min total)
Stand in Tadasana. Inhale and raise your arms
perpendicular to the floor. Either keep the
arms parallel, palms facing inward, or join the
palms. Exhale and bend your knees, trying to
take the thighs as nearly parallel to the
floor as possible. The knees will project out
over the feet, and the torso will lean
slightly forward over the thighs until the front
torso forms approximately a right angle with
the tops of the thighs. Keep the inner thighs
parallel to each other and press the heads of the
thigh bones down toward the heels. Firm
your shoulder blades against the back. Take your
tailbone down toward the floor and in toward your
pubis to keep the lower back long. Hold position
for 30 seconds to 1 minute. To come out of this
pose straighten your knees with an inhalation,
lifting strongly through the arms. Exhale and
release your arms to your sides into Tadasana.
7
Dandasana -- Staff Pose(1-2 mins total)
Sit on the floor with your legs together and
extended in front of your torso. If your torso
is leaning back, it may be because tight
hamstrings are dragging the sitting bones
toward the knees and the back of the pelvis
toward the floor. It may be helpful to sit on
a blanket or a bolster to lift the pelvis.
A simple way to check alignment is to sit
with your back against a wall. The sacrum and
the shoulder blades should touch the wall, but
not lower back or the back of the head. Put a
small rolled-up towel between the wall and the
lower back. Sit towards the front of the
sitting bones, and adjust the pubis and tail bone
equidistant from the floor. Without hardening the
belly, firm the thighs, press them down against
the floor (or your support), rotate them slightly
toward each other, and draw the inner groins
toward the sacrum. Flex your ankles, pressing out
through your heels. To lengthen your front
torso perpendicular to the floor, think of energy
streaming upward from the pubis to the sternum,
then down the back from the shoulders to the tail
bone. Then imagine the tail lengthening into the
floor. Imagine your spine as the "staff" at the
vertical core of your torso, rooted firmly in the
Earth, the support and pivot of all you do. Hold
position for 1 to 2 minutes.
8
Uttanasana -- Standing Forward Bend Pose(1 min
total)
Stand in Tadasana, hands on hips. Exhale and
bend forward from the hip joints, not from the
waist. As you descend draw the front torso out of
the groins and open the space between the
pubis and top sternum. As in all the forward
bends, the emphasis is on lengthening the front
torso as you move more fully into the
position. If possible, with your knees
straight, bring your palms or finger tips to the
floor slightly in front of or beside your
feet, or bring your palms to the backs of your
ankles. If this isn't possible, cross your
forearms and hold your elbows. Press the heels
firmly into the floor and lift the sitting bones
toward the ceiling. Turn the top thighs
slightly inward. With each inhalation in the
pose, lift and lengthen the front torso just
slightly with each exhalation release a little
more fully into the forward bend. In this way the
torso oscillates almost imperceptibly with the
breath. Let your head hang from the root of the
neck, which is deep in the upper back, between
the shoulder blades. Hold position for 45
seconds to 1 minute. Don't roll the spine to
come up. Instead bring your hands back onto your
hips and reaffirm the length of the front torso.
Then press your tailbone down and into the pelvis
and come up on an inhalation with a long front
torso. To exit, return to Tadasana. Remain in
Tadasana for the following exercise.
9
Virabhadrasana III -- Warrior III Pose(2-3 min
total)
Stand in Tadasana. Exhale and fold forward to
Uttanasana. From Uttanasana, exhale and step
your left foot back into a high lunge position.
Your right knee should be more or less at a
right angle. Lay the midline of your torso
(from the pubis to the sternum) down on the
midline of the right thigh (from the knee to
the hip crease) and bring your hands to your
right knee, right hand to the outer knee, left
hand to the inner. Squeeze the knee with your
hands, lift your torso slightly, and with an
exhalation, turn it slightly to the right.
Now from the lunge position, stretch your
arms forward, parallel to the floor and
parallel to each other, palms facing each other.
Exhale and press the head of the right
thighbone back and press the heel actively into
the floor. Synchronize the straightening of
the front leg and the lifting of the back leg.
As you lift the back leg, resist by pressing
the tailbone into the pelvis. Don't allow the
torso to swing forward as you move into position
instead, as you straighten the front knee, think
of pressing the head of the thighbone back. This
centers the femur in the hip joint, grounds the
heel into the floor, and stabilizes the position.
The arms, torso, and raised leg should be
positioned relatively parallel to the floor. For
many students the pelvis tends to tilt. Release
the hip of the raised leg toward the floor
until the two hip points are even and parallel to
the floor. Energize the back leg and extend it
strongly toward the wall behind you reach just
as actively in the opposite direction with the
arms. Bring the head up slightly and look
forward, but be sure not to compress the back of
your neck. Stay in this position for 30 seconds
to a minute. Release back to the lunge on an
exhalation. Bring your hands to the floor on
either side of the right foot, and on an
exhalation, step your left foot forward to meet
your right. Stay in this forward bend for a few
breaths, then repeat for the same length of time
on the other side.
10
Adho Mukha Svadasana Downward-Facing Dog Pose
(2-3 mins total)
Come onto the floor on your hands and knees.
Set your knees directly below your hips and
your hands slightly forward of your shoulders.
Spread your palms, index fingers parallel or
slightly turned out, and turn your toes under.
Exhale and lift your knees away from the
floor. At first keep the knees slightly bent
and the heels lifted away from the floor.
Lengthen your tailbone away from the back of
your pelvis and press it lightly toward the
pubis. Against this resistance, lift the
sitting bones toward the ceiling, and from
your inner ankles draw the inner legs up into the
groins. Then, with an exhalation, push your top
thighs back and stretch your heels onto or down
toward the floor. Straighten your knees but be
sure not to lock them. Firm the outer thighs and
roll the upper thighs inward slightly. Narrow the
front of the pelvis. Firm the outer arms and
press the bases of the index fingers actively
into the floor. From these two points lift along
your inner arms from the wrists to the tops of
the shoulders. Firm your shoulder blades against
your back, then widen them and draw them toward
the tailbone. Keep the head between the upper
arms don't let it hang. Hold position for 2 to 3
minutes. To exit, enter High Lunge (to follow).
11
High Lunge from Downward-Facing Dog Pose (2-3
min total)
Start in Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing
Dog). Exhale and step your right foot forward
between your hands, aligning your knee over the
heel. Keep your left leg strong and firm.
Inhale and raise your torso to upright. At
the same time, sweep your arms wide to the
sides and raise them overhead, palms facing.
Be careful not to overarch the lower back.
Lengthen your tailbone toward the floor and
reach back through your left heel. This will
bring the shoulder blades deeper into the back
and help support your chest. Look up toward
your thumbs. Be sure not to press the front
ribs forward. Draw them down and into the torso.
Lift the arms from the lower back ribs, reaching
through your little fingers. Hold for about 45
seconds. To exit, exhale, release the torso to
the right thigh, sweep your hands back onto the
floor, and, with another exhale, step your right
foot back and return to Adho Mukha Svanasana.
Hold for a few breaths and repeat with the left
foot forward for the same length of time. To
exit, return to Adho Mukha Svanasana. Then enter
Balasana (to follow).
12
Balasana -- Childs Pose (2-3 mins total)
Kneel on the floor. Touch your big toes
together and sit on your heels, then separate
your knees about as wide as your hips.
Exhale and lay your torso down between your
thighs. Broaden your sacrum across the back
of your pelvis and narrow your hip points toward
the navel, so that they nestle down onto the
inner thighs. Lengthen your tailbone away from
the back of the pelvis while you lift the base of
your skull away from the back of your neck.
Lay your hands on the floor alongside your
torso, palms up, and release the fronts of
your shoulders toward the floor. Feel how the
weight of the front shoulders pulls the shoulder
blades wide across your back. Hold position for
2 to 3 minutes. To come up, first lengthen the
front torso, and then with an inhalation lift
from the tailbone as it presses down and into the
pelvis.
13
Dolphin Pose (3 mins total)
Come onto the floor on your hands and knees.
Set your knees directly below your hips and
your forearms on the floor with your shoulders
directly above your wrists. Firmly press your
palms together and your forearms into the
floor. Curl your toes under, then exhale and
lift your knees away from the floor. At first
keep the knees slightly bent and the heels lifted
away from the floor. Lengthen your tailbone
away from the back of your pelvis and press it
lightly toward the pubis. Against this
resistance, lift the sitting bones toward the
ceiling, and from your inner ankles draw the
inner legs up into the groins. Continue to
press the forearms actively into the floor. Firm
your shoulder blades against your back, then
widen them away from the spine and draw them
toward the tailbone. Hold your head between the
upper arms don't let it hang or press heavily
against the floor. You can straighten your
knees if you like, but if your upper back rounds
it's best to keep them bent. Continue to lengthen
your tailbone away from the pelvis and lift the
top of your sternum away from the floor. Once
you reach the apex, hold position for 1 to 2
minutes. To exit, release your knees to the
floor with an exhale. Wait 30 seconds, then
re-enter the Dolphin Pose for the Dolphin Plank
Pose (to follow).
14
Dolphin Plank Pose(1 min total)
Start in Dolphin Pose, knees bent. Then walk
your feet back until your shoulders are
directly over the elbows and your torso is
parallel to the floor. Press your inner
forearms and elbows firmly against the floor.
Firm your shoulder blades against your back
and spread them away from the spine. Similarly
spread your collarbones away from the sternum.
Press your front thighs toward the ceiling,
but resist your tailbone toward the floor as
you lengthen it toward the heels. Lift the base
of your skull away from the back of the neck
and look straight down at the floor, keeping
the throat and eyes soft. Hold position for
30 to 45 seconds. To exit, release your knees to
the floor with an exhale.
15
Virabhadrasana II -- Warrior II Pose(2-3 min
total)
Stand in Tadasana. With an exhalation, step or
lightly jump your feet 3 1/2 to 4 feet apart.
Raise your arms parallel to the floor and reach
them actively out to the sides, shoulder
blades wide, palms down. Turn your right
foot in slightly to the right and your left foot
out to the left 90 degrees. Align the left
heel with the right heel. Firm your thighs and
turn your left thigh outward so that the
center of the left knee cap is in line with
the center of the left ankle. Exhale and
bend your left knee over the left ankle, so that
the shin is perpendicular to the floor. If
possible, bring the left thigh parallel to the
floor. Anchor this movement of the left knee by
strengthening the right leg and pressing the
outer right heel firmly to the floor. Stretch
the arms away from the space between the shoulder
blades, parallel to the floor. Don't lean the
torso over the left thigh Keep the sides of the
torso equally long and the shoulders directly
over the pelvis. Press the tailbone slightly
toward the pubis. Turn the head to the left and
look out over the fingers. Stay for 30 seconds
to 1 minute. Inhale to come up. Reverse the feet
and repeat for the same length of time to the
left.
16
Salambhasana Locust Pose (2-4 min total)
For this pose you might want to pad the floor
below your pelvis and ribs with a folded
blanket. Lie on your belly with your arms along
the sides of your torso, palms up, forehead
resting on the floor. Turn your big toes
toward each other to inwardly rotate your
thighs, and firm your buttocks so your coccyx
presses toward your pubis. Exhale and lift
your head, upper torso, arms, and legs away from
the floor. Youll be resting on your lower
ribs, belly, and front pelvis. Firm your
buttocks and reach strongly through your
legs, first through the heels to lengthen the
back legs, then through the bases of the big
toes. Keep the big toes turned toward each
other. Raise your arms parallel to the floor
and stretch back actively through your
fingertips. Imagine theres a weight pressing
down on the backs of the upper arms, and push up
toward the ceiling against this resistance. Press
your scapulas firmly into your back. Gaze
forward or slightly upward, being careful not to
jut your chin forward and crunch the back of your
neck. Keep the base of the skull lifted and the
back of the neck long. Stay for 30 seconds to 1
minute, then release with an exhalation. Take a
few breaths and repeat 1 or 2 times more.
17
Matsyasana - Fish Pose (1 min total)
Lie on your back on the floor with your knees
bent, feet on the floor. Inhale, lift your
pelvis slightly off the floor, and slide your
hands, palms down, below your buttocks. Then
rest your buttocks on the backs of your hands
(and dont lift them off your hands as you
perform this pose). Be sure to tuck your
forearms and elbows up close to the sides of your
torso. Inhale and press your forearms and
elbows firmly against the floor. Next press
your scapulas into your back and, with an inhale,
lift your upper torso and head away from the
floor. Then release your head back onto the
floor. Depending on how high you arch your
back and lift your chest, either the back of
your head or its crown will rest on the floor.
There should be a minimal amount of weight on
your head to avoid crunching your neck. You can
keep your knees bent or straighten your legs out
onto the floor. If you do the latter, keep your
thighs active, and press out through the heels.
Stay for 15 to 30 seconds, breathing smoothly.
With an exhalation, lower your torso and head to
the floor. Draw your thighs up into your belly
and squeeze.
18
Virabhadrasana I -- Warrior I Pose (2-3 min
total)
Stand in Tadasana . With an exhale, step or
lightly jump your feet 31/2 to 4 feet apart.
Raise your arms perpendicular to the floor (and
parallel to each other), and reach actively
through the little-finger sides of the hands
toward the ceiling. Firm your scapulas against
your back and draw them down toward the
coccyx. Turn your left foot in 45 to 60
degrees to the right and your right foot out 90
degrees to the right. Align the right heel
with the left heel. Exhale and rotate your
torso to the right, squaring the front of your
pelvis as much as possible with the front edge
of your mat. As the left hip point turns forward,
press the head of the left femur back to
ground the heel. Lengthen your coccyx toward
the floor, and arch your upper torso back
slightly. With your left heel firmly anchored
to the floor, exhale and bend your right knee
over the right ankle so the shin is perpendicular
to the floor. More flexible students should align
their right thigh parallel to the floor. Reach
strongly through your arms, lifting the ribcage
away from the pelvis. As you ground down through
the back foot, feel a lift that runs up the back
leg, across the belly and chest, and up into the
arms. If possible, bring the palms together.
Spread the palms against each other and reach a
little higher through the pinky-sides of the
hands. Keep your head in a neutral position,
gazing forward, or tilt it back and look up at
your thumbs. Stay for 30 seconds to a minute.
To come up, inhale, press the back heel firmly
into the floor and reach up through the arms,
straightening the right knee. Turn the feet
forward and release the arms with an exhalation,
or keep them extended upward for more challenge.
Take a few breaths, then turn the feet to the
left and repeat for the same length. When you're
finished return to Tadasana.
19
Finished!

• If you feel a bit tense or sore after the final
  Virabhadrasana, return to Uttanasana, Bitilasana,
  or Balasana, depending on what needs attention,
  for an additional rep to loosen the body.
• Combine this yoga exercise with light
  free-weight lifting (on separate days) to further
  strengthen your core.
• After several weeks of this training, along
  with flexibility yoga training and cardio work,
  you may be ready to attempt more advanced yoga
  techniques. View them at yogajournal.com or wait
  for an advanced workout from yours truly.
• On a side note, this yoga session burns about
  250 to 400 calories, or more than an hour of
  jogging. Huzzah!
• -Josh