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05/28/2003: "Sun Salutation"

Are you interested in yoga? If so, the Sun Salutation is a flowing series of moves that can serve as a warmup for any strenuous exercise while it builds flexibility and strength. Want to know how to do it?

Stand in a relaxed posture wearing loose and comfortable clothing, barefoot is best, in a spacious area. Maybe you're living room or recreation room with a carpet. First, from your relaxed standing posture, do a big stretch. I mean extend your arms above your head and lean back and stretch with a purpose, filling your lungs with air. This should feel good. If it doesn't, relax and imagine taking a rest stop after two hours of driving. Okay? Now, from your fully extended position, exhale and bend slowly forward in the familiar touch your toes posture. If you're flexible, place your hands on the floor just in front of and outside of your feet. If you're not flexible, bend forward slowly as far as is comfortable and let the weight of your arms and upper body stretch your lower back. Breathe in and out and with each exhale imagine your lower back becoming more relaxed and your arms and upper body heavier, pulling your hands toward the floor. Take as much time as you need because it feels good and it will make you as flexible, in time, as the person who is now standing bent over at the waist with his hands placed flat on the floor just in front of and outside of his two feet.

So far we've stretched up and back and down and forward. That's how this thing goes, stay with me. From the stretched down and forward posture (like touching the toes) with your hands on the floor, bend your knees and extend your right leg backward. All the way, straight back. Your weight is now on your hands and the toes of your left foot, which is pretty much under you, and your right leg is extended out behind you and that side of your body is balanced on the toes of your right foot. Now we stretch again, this time breath in and rotate your face and upper body toward the sun, stretching your chest and squeezing your lower back. Don't be discouraged if you can't make a good stretch out of this part of movement, it's difficult until you work some flexibility into your hips and lower back, good things take time. Having stretched, to whatever degree, shift a little more weight to your hands and extend your left leg back beside your right one. As you do this you're exhaling and tightening your stomach and drawing it upward toward your spine. You now look to the casual observer as though you're about to do a traditional push-up but with your breath all exhaled and your stomach muscles pulled up against your spine. Now, convert your would be push-up into a girly push-up by letting your knees touch the floor. Now do the girly push-up by lowering your chest to the floor but keep your stomach tight and don't allow it to touch. Your weight is now on your hands, your chest, your knees and your toes. Hold this for a beat and then allow your stomach to relax to the floor. Remember, all this push-up, girly push-up, maneuver is done on a single exhale so it must be quick.

Stay with me, now you get to breathe in. You should now look as though you're doing a traditional push-up and collapsed at the effort. Do a push-up now but only let your upper body leave the floor. You extend your arms slowly rotating your face and upper body forward, inhaling and stretching, while everything south of your belt buckle remains relaxed on the floor. Imagine a Cobra rising to the bait. This part of the movement lasts as long as your inhale. When you're fully extended, raise your lower body while exhaling and tightening your stomach so that you look like an inverted V with your butt at the apex. Your weight is now entirely on your hands and toes. We are almost there.

Now, lower your butt so that your back is straight, you're still working on your last exhale and all your weight is on your hands and your toes, now bring your left foot forward tucking it under your body with your right leg still extended behind you as it was earlier in the movement. Stretch again, inhaling and rotating your face and upper body toward the sun. Bring your extended right leg forward, exhaling, so that you are once again in the touch your toes posture with your hands on the floor in front of and outside your feet as you finish the exhale. Straighten to a standing position and repeat the entire movement except extend the left leg behind you rather than the right leg.

When your completed the entire movement, extending the left leg behind you rather than the right, you will have completed one round of the Sun Salutation.

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