Doing yoga in the morning has changed the way I feel during the day.
It’s probably hard to believe how much such a small change can make. So, I encourage you to try this easy 10 minute yoga workout for beginners.
I’m not entirely sure why shifting my yoga workouts to the mornings had such a profound change.
But, I guess that I experience its benefits earlier in the day. Thus, allowing me to take them with me for the rest of the day.
I’ve noticed that doing a short yoga sequence in the morning helps me relax. But, it also lets me focus better at work. Best of all I feel energized and don’t carry over any stress from the day before.
Because you’ll probably need to head out to work or take the kids to school soon, this routine is meant to be short but effective.
If you’re short on time, do poses 1 through 5. If you feel good and have a bit more time to spare, finish poses 6 and 7 as well to complete the workout.
1. Child’s Pose
The child’s pose lets your body slowly get started on your yoga routine. It gives you enjoy a gentle stretch which helps your body wake up.
It’s a good starting point because it doesn’t require much effort. This makes it easier to transition from getting out of bed to being fully awake.
As you relax in this posture, you’ll start to feel your joints and muscles loosen up. This will prepare you for the poses that follow.
In addition to your lower back, the Child’s Pose also stretches your hips, thighs, knees and ankles. It also helps to calm your mind. This allows you to let go of all the stresses from the day before.
Together, these features help get you ready for the day you have ahead.
Stay in this relaxing position between 5 to 10 breaths.
2. Cat/Cow Pose
From the Child’s pose, slowly transition to the Cat/Cow pose.
Like the previous pose, this posture helps stretch your back. Doing so lets it get rid of any tightness you may experience from being stuck in the same position for the last 8 hours.
Also, it also warms up your spine to get it ready for more demanding poses to follow. The slow, gentle movement helps increase blood flow to get the muscles ready.
At the same time, moving your back allows your spine to receive more nourishing synovial fluid. This fluid provides lubrication to your facet joints allowing them to bend and twist easily.
The synovial fluid also keeps you joints healthy by delivering nutrition to these parts.
Slowly go through the motions alternating between the cat and cow poses. Do this for 8 to 10 breaths.
3. Downward Facing Dog
This is probably the most well-known yoga position, at least in name.
And yes, the pose gets its name because it looks very similar to what dog’s look like when they stretch.
It is one of the foundation poses of yoga.
The downward dog helps energize you while increasing blood circulation. It also helps stretch your back, hamstrings, ankles and calves.
In the same time, it “wakes up” your upper body as your arms, shoulders and upper back are slowly put to work.
This is an excellent pose for anyone who experiences stiffness or soreness when they wake up in the morning. It also helps fight fatigue and sleepiness.
Since you’re doing the pose in the morning, make sure to practice proper form. Keeping your core tight during the pose helps prevent your lower back and hips from drooping.
Plus, make sure to get good footing, so your feet don’t slide back.
Hold the top position for 5 to 10 breaths before moving on to the Warrior poses that come next.
4. Warrior I
From the ground, we now get up on our feet.
Warrior I is a powerful pose that shows strength.
It is a bit more complicated compared to the postures above because it has many different elements. But, it’s still very beginner-friendly.
This pose helps you develop a stable and balanced base as it forces you to use a split stance. More importantly, it teaches you proper alignment even when your upper and lower bodies are doing different things simultaneously.
At the same time, Warrior I lets you stretch your arms, shoulders, neck and chest. Opening them up will feel good especially after a long night’s sleep. The stretch also helps overcome some of the effects of sitting on your desk for hours at a time.
Aim to hold the Warrior pose for 30 seconds to a minute on each side.
5. Warrior II
Once you’re done with the first Warrior pose, it’s time to move to a slightly more difficult one.
Warrior II is very similar to Warrior I.
But this time, you’ll be bringing your hands down and out to your sides. Your pelvis and head will also turn towards different directions.
As with all other yoga poses, don’t forget to breathe. This lets your body oxygenate. And, it also helps to calm your mind.
Like Warrior I, this pose helps with stamina and stability. It also builds lower body strength and balance.
Other lesser-known benefits of doing the Warrior II pose are stimulation of your abdominal organs, helping prevent osteoporosis, improve sciatica symptoms and infertility.
With Warrior II, aim to hold the posture for 30 seconds to 1 minute for each side.
6. Camel Pose
As you get near to the end of your yoga sequence, it’s time to get your body ready for the day ahead. For most of us, it’s going to mean spending a lot of time sitting on a desk hunched over.
So, as a pre-emptive measure, the Camel pose is one step ahead.
This is a back-bending pose that helps boost your energy levels. Plus, it counteracts many of the bad postures we practice every day.
By letting your entire back bend to form a letter “C,” it helps negate many of the upper and lower back tightness and soreness. Also, it also stretches your front side, including your abdomen, thighs and chest.
It’s worth noting that the Camel pose is an intermediate posture. And, it requires a lot of flexibility.
When starting out, you can use yoga blocks to reduce the amount of back bend you do. As an alternative, you can also go with more gentle backbends like the Sphinx or cobra poses.
Try to hold the Camel for up to 5 breaths.
7. Seated Spinal Twist
Finally, close out your morning yoga routine with the Seated Twist or Half Lord of the Fishes Pose.
This yoga pose is an excellent complement for the backbends. And, it further loosens up your spine,
Gently twisting your spine helps improve mobility which helps get rid of upper and lower back stiffness. It also relieves the tightness you may be experiencing.
In addition to the physical benefits, twisting poses in yoga help with digestion and constipation. It also promotes kidney and liver function which help your body remove toxins efficiently.
As with doing any type of backbend, twisting movements need to be done slowly. Gradually increasing your range of motion helps prevent injury.
In the beginning, you’ll likely see that you’re able to turn farther in one side that the other. Don’t worry because it’s very typical. Most of us are dominant in one and tighter on the other.
Over time, the imbalance will correct itself as your body adjusts.
Aim to hold each side for 30 seconds.