5 Core Strengthening Yoga Poses
Yoga has taught me a lot about my body. It’s made me realize I had muscles I didn’t even know existed, has given me better flexibility, eased some back issues I was having and made me understand the importance of building a strong core.
Your core region consists of your obliques, pelvic region, hip muscles and those that support your spine. Vaguely speaking, they are responsible for keeping your torso upright.
A lot of people don’t understand the importance of strengthening all of these muscles, but they are missing out on some great benefits.
A strong core can help you improve sport performance. Sports, like tennis that require dynamic movements between your upper and lower body, can seriously benefit from a stable core.
Did you know that your risk of injury reduces significantly when you take care of your entire midsection? Many injuries are caused from a lack of balance and excess strain on the lower back. Core strengthening exercises build your back muscles so you can protect it from unnecessary strain.
Other benefits include better posture, improved ability to complete everyday activities, and of course, flatter abs.
If you’re interested in reaping all these rewards, here are my five favorite yoga poses for a strong, lean core!
- Boat Pose – The boat pose can be a real abdominal killer. To do this sit on your mat, lift your knees so they are parallel to the ground and stay balanced by leaning back on your sit bones. It’s important to keep your back straight while doing this pose.
If you can, straighten your legs. If your back starts to curve, bring your knees back into a bent position. Hold this pose for five complete breaths then release. This pose always makes my midsection quiver, but makes me feel oh so strong afterwards.
- Side Plank – Remember when I mentioned the importance of obliques? This is a great exercise for targeting that muscle group.
Start in downward dog then step both feet together so your big toes are touching. Move your right hand over to the left so it’s centered with the top middle of your mat. Roll over to the left and plant your left heel down. The key here is to balance on your outer left, flexed foot. Reach your arm straight up above you and take five full breathes. Release and repeat the movements on the other side.
- Crow – This one looks tough, but I assure you it’s not so bad. Begin in a wide squat with your hands firmly planted on the ground with your fingers spread wide. Slightly straighten your legs and place your knees as high on your triceps as possible. Shifting your weight forward, balance on your arms and slowly begin to lift each foot off the floor. Again, remain here for five breaths.
- Four-Limbed Staff/ Chaturanga Dandasana – This position is frequently used when doing Sun Salutations. When held for longer it is a great core strengthener.
Come into a Standing Forward Bend with your palms flat on the floor. As you inhale, jump both feet back so your shoulders are above your wrists and your body is straight. Exhale and bend your elbows as you lower your torso towards the ground. Once your elbows are parallel with your back, stop and hold for five deep breaths.
- Plank – I like to call this the old faithful because it’s simple, yet effective.
From Downward Facing Dog, draw your torso forward until your shoulders are above your wrists. You want your body to be in one straight line. Pressing your hands firmly on the ground, press back through your heels. Keep your neck in line with your spine, broaden your shoulder blades and hold for 60 seconds. Don’t forget to breathe!
If you add these five core savvy yoga exercises into your daily routine you will have a slender and strong core in no time at all. Namaste.
About the Author
Yoga at Home: the Intimate Experience of Self-Practice
There are a lot of reasons to begin a home practice, but one of the most rewarding is the way a dedicated sadhana, or practice, can make anywhere you unroll your mat feel like home. And while nothing quite compares to the live transmission of a living, breathing teacher, there is an unparalleled intimacy that grows out of self-guided practice. Not to mention the opportunity to drop into a personal connection with the divine while eluding the modern obstacles of schedule, cost, convenience, availability, travel time, etc. But before we get into the details of how to practice yoga at home, let us consider for a moment what yoga is.
Yoga is not something you do, it is something you are.
With a more practical explanation, Leslie Kaminoff says any time your body, your breath and your mind are doing the same thing at the same time, you are in a state of yoga. Please don’t get me wrong, the clarity of this message need not take away from the infinite depth of what is a lifelong practice. However, yoga can be plainly understood as a state of union where all the fragmented parts of ourselves — physical, mental, emotional, spiritual — coalesce into a singular experience of the present moment. With that understanding, it is possible (and important) to feel the freedom of being yoga anywhere, especially at home.
When you can experience yoga at home, you have the potential to live your yoga every single day — whether you’re a seasoned practitioner with memberships to studios all over town or someone nurturing the initial seeds of curiosity. My humble intention here is to share what I’ve learned in my personal, sometimes messy, exploration of the art of home practice.
