Yoga Basics #2: How To Do Sun Salutation A (video included!)

You guyssss I’m so freaking excited for this week’s Yoga Basics post. Yoga Basics is a weekly series devoted to, you guessed it, the basics of yoga. Think of it as a crash course in namaste. Last week was all about what is yoga and what you NEED to know before your first yoga class.

Today’s topic: all things Sun Salutations!

Why do we do sun salutations?

Like most aspects of yoga, there are a number of reasons and trains of thought behind why we do what we do. If we wanna get touchy-feely about things, we salute the sun to literally give thanks for giving us light.

From a physical standpoint, most classes start with a variation of sun salutations as a way to warm up the body and bring our focus inward.

In one of my acting classes freshman year of college we started every day with a few rounds of sun salutations as a group. We flowed through the movements in silence, taking cues from each other for when it was time to move into the next move.

It got our bodies warmed up and also helped us tune in to each other as a group.

The same is true for a yoga class, doing a few rounds of sun salutation in the beginning is a great way to bring everyone together and sync up the energy in the classroom.

 

a note about vinyasa yoga

I primarily studied a vinyasa yoga format in yoga teacher training. Vinyasa means the moves are linked together. This is the style of yoga I personally have been drawn to because it is fast paced and feels familiar to my dancer roots.

With vinyasa yoga, all movements are linked with breath. This is why I’ve notated the breaths in the breakdown below and in the videos. In classes I teach these moves are all linked together and flow.

 

Breaking it down: Sun Salutation – A

Side note #1: This isn’t the only version of Sun Salutation- A. The sun salutations you practice or have experienced in a yoga class might look different from the one I show below. Different traditions follow different movement patterns. The below variations are the ones I personally teach in class.

 

Side note #2: All bodies are different. I encourage you to use the photos + video below as a guideline for how the poses look. Not the strict rules.

At the end of the day, we all move differently and have different proportions or limitations. My downward dog might not look like your downward dog. In all truthfulness my upward facing dog sucks.

I decided to provide photos + video because words alone don’t get the point across, but please do not take my representation of each pose as the “only” way to do it.

 

Sun Salutation A: The Movements

Tadasana // Mountain Pose

Form Cues:

• stand with your feet together
• engage your thighs
• tuck your tailbone in and down
• lift up through the top of your head like someone is pulling you up by a string

 

Urdva Hastasana // arms up over head

Form Cues:

• coming from tadasana, you’ll sweep your arms up over head
• bring them together above your head and rotate your upper arms inwards and towards each other.
• I personally like to add a tiny back bend.

 

Uttanasana // forward fold

Form Cues:

• fold forward at your hips
• let go of any tension in your neck and arms
• option to bend your knees slightly if your hands don’t touch the ground

 

Ardha Uttansana // Lengthen spine + look forward

Form Cues:

• reach the crown of your head forward to straighten out your spine.
• if your back is still rounding, option to bend your knees
• I’m doing a modified version of this pose with my hands on my shins (hello, tight hamstrings!)

 

Chaturanga Dandasana

Contrary to popular belief, chaturanga is not just the word for a fancy transition.

Form Cues:

• Start in extended arm plank pose. Your shoulders should be stacked directly above your elbows and wrist.
• Slowly lower your body down, like you’re doing a push-up, but instead of bringing your elbows out to the side, hug them in towards your rib cage.
• Think of your body as one long plank of wood. Lower it down as one solid piece and don’t like your butt stick up or round.
• ** Looking at the photo above I actually lowered too far. The ideal spot to stop is when your elbow is at a 90 degree bend.
• Option: If chaturanga is a bit too much for you, there’s always the options to lower your knees, chest and chin instead OR you can lower from your knees for a half-chaturanga

 

Upward Facing Dog // Urdhva Mukha Svanasana

Form Cues:

• press down firmly through the tops of your feet
• lift your thighs off the mat
• draw your shoulders back and your heart forward
• make sure your shoulders aren’t hiking up towards your ears!

Side Note: Upward Facing Dog is a pose I personally really struggle with. I have tight chest muscles and weaker back muscles which makes broadening my chest a bitch.

My form in the above photo and video aren’t perfect in this pose because of these limitations. In a perfect world my shoulders would be farther back to let my chest open.

In an upcoming post I’m focusing on the practice side of yoga practice and will breakdown the poses I’m currently actively working on. Uh, there’s a few!

 

Downward Facing Dog // Adho Mukha Svanasana

Form Cues:

• press your chest back towards your thighs while extending your legs
• option to bend your knees slightly
• work on actively bringing your heels towards the mat
• ground through your palms and really press into the floor with all 5 fingers

 

Sun Salutation A: Video

Typically I like to lead my classes through 3 rounds of Sun Salutation A. After reviewing the moves above for basic form and alignment cues, follow along with my flow below!

Now go forth and salute dat sun!!! Next Tuesday will be all about Sun Salutation – B. Stay tuned 🙂

OUTFIT
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