Sun Salutation - Surya Namaskar

SUN SALUTE – ‘SURYA NAMASKAR’

IMPORTANT CAUTION:

If you are pregnant, menstruating or have any structural injury/weakness (lower back, knees etc), you should not commence Sun Salutes before consulting a doctor or qualified yoga teacher.

Guidelines & Tips:

The Postures Explained

1. Sunrise posture (Exhale Breath)
Begin by standing tall with your feet hip width apart, parallel and pointing straight ahead.
Stand evenly on both feet and lengthen your spine upwards.
Placing your palms together in front of your chest, and look straight ahead.

2. Raised Arm Posture (Inhale Breath)
As you inhale slowly extend your arms over your head. Reach up and slightly back as you continue
to lengthen your spine, while allowing your head to look upward.

3. Hand to Foot Posture (Exhale breath)
As you exhale, bend your body forward and down lengthening you spine, arms and neck.
Let your knees soften and slightly bend, and take your hands towards the floor.
Keep your elbows and shoulders relaxed and keep your knees slightly bent.

4. Equestrian Posture (Inhale breath)
Inhale extend your left leg back and drop your left knee to the ground.
Your front knee is bent and your supporting foot remains flat on the floor.
Keep your leg at a 90 degree angle to the floor. At the same time extend or lift
your spine and open your chest. Look up at the ceiling.

5. Mountain Posture (Exhale Breath)
Exhale and take your right foot back to meet your left foot.
Position your feet about hip width apart, and have your hands about shoulder width apart.
As you raise your buttocks and hips, press down with your hands.
Stretch your heels down towards the floor and feel the stretch through the backs of your legs.
Relax and gently flex your head and neck. Your body will form an inverted ‘V’ from your hands to your feet.

6. Eight limbs posture (Briefly hold breath)
As you finish exhaling gently take both your knees to the ground and slowly
slide your body down at an angle as you bring your chest and chin to the ground,
keeping your hips off the ground. All ‘eight limbs’ – feet, knees, hands, chest and chin will be touching the floor.
Hold this posture very briefly and then slowly move into the next posture.

7. Cobra Posture (Inhale Breath)
Inhale and pull your chest up using your spinal muscles.
Keep your elbows close to your body and continue to extend your spine upward.
Make sure you initiate this movement with the muscles of your spine as opposed
to lifting the body with your head or neck.

8. Mountain Posture (Exhale Breath). This is the same as Posture 5.
As you exhale raise your buttocks and hips, press down with your hands and
allowing your spine to release upward and back. Stretch your heels down towards the
floor and once again lengthen through the back of your legs and experience a comfortable stretch.
Relax and gently flex your head and neck.

9. Equestrian Posture (Inhale Breath). This is the same as Posture 4.
As you inhale, bring your right leg forward, bending the knee and
positioning your foot flat on the floor between both your hands. Drop your left knee to the ground.
At the same time extend your spine and lift your chest forward and up.
Allow your head and neck to lengthen as you look up toward the ceiling.

10. Hand to Foot Posture (Exhale Breath). This is the same as Posture 3.
As you exhale bring your left leg forward and continue to bend your body forward and down.
Bring your hands to the front of your body, keeping them on the floor if possible.
(Don’t worry if you cannot touch the floor with your hands. That will come with practice.) Allow your entire spine to lengthen and slowly raise your buttocks and hips until
you feel a comfortable stretch through the back of your legs.
Allow your knees to soften and stay slightly bent. Keep your elbows and shoulders relaxed.

11. Raised Arm Posture (Inhale Breath). This is the same as Posture 2.
As you inhale lift your arms, using the muscles of your upper back,
from the floor and extend them over your head, reaching slightly back.

12. Sunset Posture (Exhale Breath). This is the same as Posture 1.
As you exhale lower your arms and bring the palms of your hands together in front of your chest.
Stand tall with your feet hip width apart and parallel, pointing straight ahead.
your chest and expand your ribs, as you look straight ahead.

That completes one cycle or half of one set.

Key Points to Remember:

1. Let your knees be supple or slightly bent in postures 3 and 10.

2. During the first cycle of the set, move your left leg back in posture 4 and move your right leg
forward in posture 9. During the second cycle of the set, move your right leg back
in posture 4 and move your left leg forward in posture 9.

3. In posture 7 focus on using the muscles of your back to pull yourself off the ground as opposed
to using your arm strength.

4. Posture 6 is held momentarily as your breath is temporarily suspended until you move
into the Inhalation to begin posture 7.

5. Move into each posture in a slow, controlled manner to the point of maximal comfortable stretch.

6. Inhale and exhale maximally, completely filling and emptying your lungs with each breath.
Finish each breath as you finish each posture.

7. Breathe through your nose only.

8. The Sun Salute Routine is recommended only after activity.
The reason for this is that it has been shown to be a very powerful
technique for releasing stress and purifying the body and if used before activity
can give rise to a feeling of roughness or discomfort during activity.

9. Don’t rush. Enjoy the experience of combining slow deep comfortable breathing with activity,
and let your breathing dictate the pace of moving from one posture to the next.

SUN SALUTE - THE BENEFITS: