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Benefits Of Yoga Relaxation And Warm Up Poses

Warm Up Poses

Warm up poses are an essential before delving into any yoga routine. Yoga poses can be quite challenging and demanding and require a great deal of strength, balance and flexibility. Most of us are not ready for the extent of fitness required to practice such yoga routines. Warm up poses help prepare for such a routine and enable us to practice safely without any worry of injury. This off course holds true for almost all physical disciplines. Failure to practice a warm up routine can result in serious injuries.

Warm up poses are so essential before your yoga routine as they increase the flexibility of the joints, loosen up the muscles, and improve circulation. There are various poses that are included in a warm up sequence such as the 'Little Boat Pose', the 'Prayer Pose', the 'Windmill Pose', and neck stretches or arm stretches.

Spinal Rocking

Spinal Rocking or Rocking Chair is a useful exercise that can help to massage and warm up your spine. It therefore works as an effective and useful preparatory exercise before you practice more advanced yoga poses. Since it massages the spine this posture is also quite relaxing, and can also be used to alleviate stiffness and drowsiness that may linger on after waking each morning.

This posture or exercise is particularly useful for beginners and lay people unaccustomed to yoga practices. It is a simple and easy pose that is quite invigorating. It also helps make the spine more flexible and strengthens it. Moreover this exercise is completely safe irrespective of your age or weight, and it is not demanding at all. You may at first find it strange and tend to lose your balance, but you will soon get the hang of it.

Pelvic Tilt

The Pelvic Tilt is a great warm up pose for your yoga routine. Strictly speaking it is not an asana or pose restricted to yoga, but is one that exists in most fitness regimes, albeit in various variations. The Pelvic Tilt can be extremely beneficial, but you should exercise caution if suffering from back injuries, like a slipped disc.

The Pelvic Tilt is in fact a therapeutic exercise that is widely used even in physiotherapy to remedy body posture and develop and strengthen core musculature. Pelvic Tilts of subtle movements that help to strengthen the muscles particularly of the lower back and abdomen. The Pelvic Tilt can also help relieve and invigorate you as it gives your back a gentle massage. You can also coordinate the rocking motion characteristic of the pose with your breathing.

Neck stretches

Neck Stretches are a great way to relax your neck and get warmed up for your yoga workout. These exercises help to relax the neck, head and face, and are particularly useful for distressing as the neck and surrounding region is subjected to great stress and stiffness. This is particularly true for those of us who lead sedentary lives, slouched in front of computers most of the day. Stress that builds up in the region also contributes to mental stress, which is why neck stretches are a great way to relax.

Neck stretches can be practiced almost anywhere as you can do them sitting or standing. Ideally however they should be practiced whilst seated in the Lotus Pose or Easy Pose. Make sure however, that you do not strain your neck. Try to focus on your breath, sending it to the neck muscles, to increase relaxation. Keep your shoulders and jaws relaxed whilst performing neck stretches.

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