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If You Want To Be A Better Morning Person, Try This Yoga Sequence

Author:

Tatiana Sokolova

March 13, 2018

Ashtanga Yoga Teacher

By Tatiana Sokolova

Ashtanga Yoga Teacher

Tatiana Sokolova is an advanced Ashtanga Yoga instructor and retreat guide. She completed her 200-hour teacher training with the Ashtanga Yoga Studio in Paris, and has since made it her mission to share the Ashtanga practice and all its physical and mental benefits.

March 13, 2018

Feeling clear, focused, and motivated were feelings that I craved yet hadn’t fully discovered until I became devoted to a daily morning yoga practice, or "sadhana."

Whether you have a stressful project deadline lurking or are trying to decide whether you should move cities, change jobs, or stay in a relationship, a morning routine gives you something to hold onto and stand strong in your personal power.

If you also have a feeling of fatigue and low energy when you wake, try these three moves for a short, energizing morning flow.

1. For cultivating stillness: standing asana.

Photo: Tatiana Sokolova

A simple standing asana always puts me in a gracious place to start my practice and helps cultivate stillness, strength, and a sense of power; my heart is open to the receptivity of the practice, and the mind is calm. It’s your resting posture as well, so you can always employ it in between the postures if you feel low energy today and allow the mind and body to absorb the benefits of the previous asana and prepare for the next one.

Steps: Start your practice in this grounding pose: the big toes together, heels slightly separated, pelvic floor in neutral position. Energy is raising from the base of the pelvic floor through the vertebrae as the chest raises slightly and shoulders roll naturally down the back. Your gaze should be neutral and forward. Notice the sounds, the smells, the movement around you. Check to see if you have any tensions in your body and pay particular attention to them while flowing.

2. For improved posture and self-esteem: lizard pose.

Photo: Tatiana Sokolova

Hip-opening poses like this one create an energetic shift and release. As we all know in yoga tradition, hips are known to store negative emotions, especially ones related to control in our lives. So open your hips; breathe; release. I like to do this posture in the morning as it gives me the feeling of self-esteem, improved energy, and quality of life.

Steps: Exhale and place both hands back on the mat; open up your right foot on the outer edge, thus, opening and stretching your right hip more. Place your forearms on the mat. If you feel strong enough, keep your back leg straight; otherwise, you can put your back knee on the mat to make this pose less engaging.

3. For more stability: dancer pose.

Photo: Tatiana Sokolova

If you feel unstable in your life at the moment, try to bring it to the mat and find stability in this pose; rejuvenate your emotions. Remember this feeling, and bring it off your mat and into your present life.