My Yoga Routine

Let me begin by saying that I hate exercising. Period. But, I'm forced to exercise because things tend to get too out of hand otherwise (I tend to put on weight easily). Back in my childhood, I used to love sports. I was part of my school teams of badminton, table tennis, basket ball, net ball and throw ball. I love swimming too. I always like the competitiveness of sports hence I enjoyed them, and also got my dose of exercise without my realizing it. It’s the regulated kinds of exercise that tend to bore me, but which I’m forced to do now. So physical activity has always been a part of me.

Over the years I've done all forms of exercises, from Jane Fonda workouts to weight training to jogging out on the roads to, of course, yoga. When I began learning yoga, about 20 years back, I discovered that yoga had an almost infinite number of asanas, from the simplest to the unimaginably convoluted. I also discovered that my body was comfortable with a few, and as long as these few asanas targeted all the major parts of my body, it was enough. In other words, you don’t need to do the tough ones to be healthy, the simple ones are quite adequate.

Hence, I've pared my yoga routine down to the barest of the bare minimum, using simple, easy-to-do asanas. About a 20-30 minute yoga workout which has 13 asanas , including the Shavasana, which is the last one, plus the Surya Namaskar. And, by the way, though the Shavasana seems nothing but lying flat on your back with your eyes closed, it is the asana that gets you in touch with all your body and mind, and therefore, the best asana of all, according to me. You can stretch the 20-30 minutes by holding each asana for a longer period of time, which I do often when I feel in tune with my body. So, here it is – my yoga routine.

To begin with, put on some soft, soothing music... try Hariprasad Chaurasia's bansuri(my favourite) or Ravi Shankar's sitar. Or any soft, soothing music of your choice. Oh, and breathe normally through all these exercises. And also, don't force your body to stretch beyond its capacity. Take it easy, and stretch progressively further as you become more flexible with regular practice. So, here goes –

I always begin my yoga by standing still and breathing deeply for a few moments. This gets my mind and body prepared for the asanas.

Surya Namaskar
I always begin by doing the Surya Namaskar. I have found the Surya Namaskar, a flowing series of a number of asanas, the best way to warm up, preparing my body for the other asanas that follow. The Surya Namaskar also tones up the large muscles of the body, making them supple. It is especially beneficial for increasing the flexibility and strength of the spine. As one gets stronger and more flexible, one can increase the speed and repetition of the Surya Namaskar. I go according to how my body feels; some days I feel like going slow, with fewer repetitions of the cycle of asanas, while at other times, I like to quicken the pace and do more reps. These asanas of the Surya Namaskar should be done in a smooth flow. The asanas of the Surya Namaskar are: 1) Stand with your body erect with your palms joined together in a namaste. Inhale and lift your arms overhead and join your palms. 2) Exhale and bend forward until your hands touch your feet. 3) Inhale, put the right leg back, arch your back, and lift your chest and chin. 4) Exhale, put your left leg back and go into the plank position. Keep your back and legs in a straight line, supporting your weight on your hands and feet. 5) Retain your breath, lower your knees, chest, and forehead, keeping your hips up and toes curled under. 6) Inhale, straighten your body on the floor and arch your back, supporting your upper body on your hands (the bhujangasan or cobra pose). 7) Exhale, curl your toes under, press down on your heels, and lift your hips up towards the ceiling, supporting your upper body with your hands. 8) Inhale, bring your right leg forward, keeping the left leg back, and lift your chest and chin in an arching stretch. 9) Exhale, bring your left leg forward, lift your hips up towards the ceiling, and go into the forward bend position, with your hands touching your feet. 10) Inhale, lift your torso up until you are standing erect, then stretching your arms upward overhead, slowly bend backward from the waist, arching your spine. 11) Exhale, and gently straighten your body in an erect position, with your palms joined in a namaste.

Utthita Trikonasana
Stand with your feet a little more than shoulder width apart. Turn the foot of your right leg outward, and the foot of your left leg a little inward. Raise your arms by your sides and hold them parallel to the floor. Now, bend sideways from the waist to touch your right foot with your right hand, with the left arm stretched toward the ceiling. Hold this position for a minute. Straighten up. And repeat on the other side. This asana gives a wonderful stretch and improves the flexibility of the body. Improves your balance too.

Padahastasana
Stand with your feet together. Raise your arms overhead and bend forward from your waist and touch your toes. As you become more flexible, you can grab hold of your ankles and try to get your forehead to touch your knees. Hold for one minute. And return to the starting position. The spine and the hamstrings get a great stretch.

Veerabhadrasana
Stand with your feet a little more than shoulder width apart. Turn the foot of your right leg outward, and the foot of your left leg a little inward. Raise your arms by your sides and hold them parallel to the floor. Now bend the knee of your right leg and stretch your body towards your right side, you left leg straight, planted firmly on the floor. Turn your face towards your right and hold this position for a minute. Return to starting position and repeat on the other side. Strengthens the muscles of the legs and improves balance.

Janushirsasana
Sit on the floor with your legs straight out in front of you. Bend you left leg at the knee so that the sole of the foot rests on the inside thigh of your right leg. Now raise your arms and bend forward, and get hold of your right leg's toes with both your hands. Try to get your face as close as possible to your right knee. Hold for one minute and come up. Repeat on the other side. A good stretch for the hamstrings and the back. Gives your internal organs a massage.

Upavishtakonasana
Sit with your legs stretched sideways as far out as possible. Bend forward and try to touch your chin on the floor in front of you, while you grab hold of your toes on either side with your hands. Try to keep your spine as straight as possible, and try not to bend your knees. Hold for one minute. And release the stretch. This gives an intense stretch to the inner thighs. Improves the flexibility of the pelvic region.

Paschimottanasana
Sit erect with your legs together and stretched out in front of you. Now raise your arms up overhead and bend forward and grab hold of your toes. Try to get your face as close to your knees as you can. Don't allow your knees to lift off the floor. Hold for a minute and come up. The spine, hamstrings, and calf muscles get a good stretch. Massages the abdominal region.

Shalabhasana
Lie flat on the floor on your belly, with your arms by your sides. Now lift your head, torso, arms, and legs off the floor, so that you are balancing on the lower part of your belly. Hold for one minute, and come down gently. Great for toning the back muscles. Strengthens the spine. Also strengthens the core muscles.

Bhujangasana
Lie flat on your belly, face down on the floor. Place your palms on the floor at shoulder level. Now lift your head and chest off the floor, straightening your arms, while the lower portion of your body, from abdomen down, remains on the floor. Stretch your head back, looking up at the ceiling. Hold for a minute, and come down gently. Wonderful stretch for the spine. Also gives a nice stretch to the chest and strengthens arm muscles.

Dhanurasana
Lie on your belly, face down. Bend your knees. Reach back with your hands to grab hold of each ankle with each hand. Now, pull your legs up from behind, and lift your head and torso up. Hold for one minute, and release out of the stretch gently. Another wonderful asana for your back muscles and spine.

Urdhwa Prasaritapadasana
Begin by lying on your back, arms by your side. Now, place your hands, palms down, under your lower back. Then, tautening your abs and tightening your leg muscles, lift both legs off the floor to a height of about 30 degrees. Hold them there for a few seconds (count a slow ten silently). Then raise your legs to a height of about 60 degrees, and hold for a few seconds. Then lift up to 90 degrees or straight up. Then reverse the process, coming down to 60 degrees, then 30 degrees, then down on the floor. Very good for the abs.

Halasana
Lie on your back. Lift both your legs and your hips up, off the floor, and swing them over to reach over your head, so that the tips of your toes touch the floor above your head. Hold for one minute. Terrific for the spine, and massages the abs too. But requires some expertise. So get expert help for this one.

Sarvangasana
Lie on your back. Lift both your legs and your hips off the floor, lifting them straight up, until your whole body is balanced on your shoulders and the nape of your neck, with your hands supporting your waist from behind. This is considered to be the queen of all the asanas (the king being the Sirshasana, or the head stand, which is too advanced for me). Anyway, the Sarvangasana tones the whole body, including the glandular system deep inside. But this exercise too needs a fair amount of expertise. So, learn the technique from an expert first.

Shavasana
Lie flat on your back. Close your eyes and let your whole body go limp. Breathe deeply and slowly. And relax completely for one minute. Feel the soft music flowing over you and through you. Great relaxation after doing all the asanas.

Well, that's it. Actually, the fun thing about this set is that you get a total body workout in just about 20-30 minutes, depending on how long you hold each asana. Also, after each asana, it is advisable to take rest for a minute or so and then get into the next asana. Sometimes, when in the mood, I take an hour to do all the asanas, holding each asana for a longer period of time. And about the breathing pattern of each asana, a rule of thumb is to inhale when you bend back or straighten your body, and exhale when you bend forward. When in position of any asana it is important to breathe normally. I also follow up these exercises with some pranayama during which I sit in the Padmasana.

By the way, all forms of exercise are liable to cause injury, so expert help by your side at first is advisable.

-by Rita Putatunda