5 Tips for Vinyasa Yogis

Photos via Pinterest.

Do you practice a lot of vinyasa flow yoga? Here are some great tips for great alignment, and for deepening your practice!

Tip #1: In Downward Dog, try moving the hands a little wider apart on your mat. This will allow your shoulders to move more freely between downdog, high plank, Chaturanga, updog, and the transition back to downward dog. These poses should not make your shoulders hurt, so if you’re feeling pain, check in with your alignment! I made this adjustment to my posture recently, and have noticed a huge difference when transition between the poses! 

Tip #2: Spread your feet a little wider on your mat than you normally do in high lunge, Warrior I and Warrior II. Stability comes from taking up a lot of space on your mat. Picture your feet drawing in toward each other, so you engage the inner thighs.

Tip #3: In Triangle, soften the palm of your hand that’s reaching up. You do want to stretch and awaken the fingers, but you don’t have to grip. Instead of flexing so hard that your fingers are stiff, picture someone pressing on the center of your palm so that it gently relaxes. Notice how this allows energy to flow through your hand and whole arm, into the shoulder, extending downward. This way, prana does not get blocked anywhere in the pose; instead, the energy flows through you. Notice where you can do this in other poses: back off a little, instead of gripping, and notice the energetic difference it makes.

Tip #4: Remember mula bandha. Mula bandha helps you contain all of the powerful energy you create in the body during each pose, and it protects your spine.

Tip #5: Offer the poses. When you become tired or frustrated, give the pose away. Instead of clinging to your progress or telling yourself you’re ‘good’ or ‘bad’ at a certain posture, let it go. Surrender your attachment to the practice.

What tips do you have for vinyasa yogis?