sun salutations

I have been working on hanumanasana in my practice and have been incorporating this hip opening sequence into my sun salutations. Give it a try and see how it feels, and maybe you will be inspired to create your own flows!

First, do several rounds of your favorite version of sun salutations to warm up your body.

Hippie Part I:
Continue with another round of sun salutes. When you get to the lunge:
Make sure the knee is directly above the ankle. Hug that leg in, and keep the back leg lifted and strong. Walk your hands to the inside of your bent leg, then release your torso towards the mat, and rest on your forearms. Stay here for five to ten breaths. Walk your fingertips to either side of your bent leg and step back to down-dog with an exhale. Take a vinyasa (i.e., plank/chatturanga/cobra/downdog) and then repeat on the other side.

Hippie Part II:
Keep rockin' those sun salutations. When you get to down-dog:
Inhale and lift one leg high in the sky. Keep pressing evenly into your hands. Take a couple breaths. Then, bend the knee and open your hip out to the side. This is fire hydrant pose. (I don't think there's Sanskrit for that one!) Breathe some more. Then, with a big inhale sweep that leg forward so it comes directly behind the same-side wrist and come into Eka Pada Rajakapotanasana (Pigeon). Stay here for at least ten breaths. With a big exhale, lift up and press all the way back to down-dog. Enjoy the difference in the length of your legs and repeat on the other side. Take a vinyasa, then step or jump your feet up to Uttanasana with an exhale, and inhale back to Tadasana.

Onwards to more sun salutations! The first vinyasa (flow) in the Ashtanga tradition is Surya Namaskara A. Although this is the first piece of the Ashtanga practice, it is challenging! It requires strength and flexibility to execute the flow from chatturanga to up-dog, as well as coordination to execute the jumps between postures. It's a great way to generate energy and heat in the body.

The full version of A isn't appropriate for every body. If you're stiff, injured, or still building strength, you might find them overly difficult or burn yourself out before you get into other asanas. For this reason, I often use a modified version of SNA, that incorporates lunges in place of the jumps, and bhujangasana, a less intense backbend. From here, you can always move onto the Ashtanga version when you're fully warmed up.

SURYA NAMASKARA A (modified)

INHALE standing in TADASANA (Mountain Pose)
EXHALE to soften and release hand along sides
INHALE to URDVA HASTASANA (Upward Hands)
EXHALE to UTTANASANA (Standing forward fold)
INHALE to High Lunge
EXHALE to ADHO MUKHA SVANASANA (Downward Facing Dog)
INHALE to Plank (High Pushup)
EXHALE through CHATURANGA DANDASANA to floor
INHALE to BHUJANGASANA (Cobra)
EXHALE to ADHO MUKHA SVANASANA (Downward Facing Dog)
INHALE to High Lunge
EXHALE to UTTANASANA (Standing forward fold)
INHALE to Urdvha Hastasana (Upward Hands)
EXHALE to Tadasana (Mountain Pose)

SURYA NAMASKARA A (Astanga)

STAND in TADASANA (Mountain Pose)
INHALE to URDVA HASTASANA (Upward Hands)
EXHALE to UTTANASANA (Standing forward fold)
EXHALE to CHATURANGA DANDASANA
INHALE to URDHVA MUKHA SVANASANA (Upward Facing Dog)
EXHALE to ADHO MUKHA SVANASANA (Downward Facing Dog)
HOLD FOR FIVE BREATHS
INHALE jump forward and look up
EXHALE to UTTANASANA
IINHALE to Urdvha Hastasana (Upward Hands)
EXHALE to Tadasana (Mountain Pose)

It's no secret that I don't tolerate the cold well. Even on the hottest days of summer, I'm toting around a cardigan just in case it gets chilly in the evening and to shield myself from overactive air conditioning when I'm inside.

As much as I love the fall, I dread the cold weather! This is the time of year when I'm ready to spend the bulk of my days bundled under blankets and cats, drinking tea until spring comes again. Of course, I have a life to live, so I have to get moving at some point. I have to generate my own heat, and the best way for me to do that is with some sun salutations!

The origins of Surya Namaskara, or Sun Salutations, can be traced back to the Vedas, the oldest texts in the Hindu tradition. While there's no telling exactly how sun salutations were executed in the past, we do know that traditionally they were part of a daily routine that a practitioner would execute to prostrate before God and seek well-being. In short, people would do sun salutations to feel good and start the day off in a positive way! To this day, the physical practice is often accompanied with the recitation of mantras, although the specific mantras and execution may vary from region to region.

In the modern practice of yoga, we'll most often see in yoga classes sun salutations derived from the Ashtanga tradition. I like to mix it up, so I'm going to devote this week to sharing a few different sun salutation practices that will help warm you up and brighten your day! Stay tuned!