All Over Yoga

After that upbeat cardio 15 Min Playlist Workout last week, we are going to slow it down a little this week with an all-over yoga workout.

Yoga is probably my all time favorite exercise. There was a time I did it every day, like clockwork, and it really did change my life. I lost almost 30 pounds, gained a ton of flexibility and had a much calmer and happier demeanor.

Yoga is all about self-developing and listening to your body. You can get a hard-core workout, but in a calm and relaxed state of mind. It takes a lot of practice and patience, but if you work at it a little bit every day, even the hardest of poses become manageable.

Our Yoga workout for the week has 4 sets. For an all-over body workout, do all four sets. If you'd like a more focused workout. Pick one or two sets that suit your needs and repeat 3x. Hold each pose for about ten breaths. If you find you need more of a challenge, you can hold your poses longer.

For Yoga, I like to play nature sounds or some chiller, calmer music. it makes it easier for me to clear my mind. But if you'd rather play heavy metal. More power to you. Whatever releases your inner zen.

Remember to breathe through all of your movements and poses. If you don't, you will find yourself struggling a lot more than necessary. When you get to your final Corpse Pose, stay in the pose for 10 minutes with your eyes closed and just relax. Take in all of the energy you built up in your Yoga workout.

Yoga is not only beneficial to your body, but also your mind and energy. If you cut your Corpse Pose short, you are not going to reap the full benefits.

If you don't know what these poses are, yogajournal.com is one of my favorite sites to reference. Google also has tons of images of the poses and variations of them. Remember to modify if you are not able to fully reach a pose!! Don't hurt yourself in the process. Yoga should NOT hurt!

Hope you all enjoy! Happy #workoutwednesday!