how to personalize my yoga routine?

Question

i'm a beginner but i would like to know to personalize my own yoga pracitice. are there any significant guide lines that i should follow? is there anything else that i should take note of?

Answer 1

My yoga teachers have always talked about sequencing poses properly-- I think this comes from Iyengar-- so that each pose you practice is preparing you for the next and so that you are minimizing the risk of injury. I'm afraid I don't know much more than that about sequencing. When I want to do a more personalized practice at home I use 30 Essential Yoga Poses by Judith Lasater Hanson-- you might be able to find it at your library, and I know Amazon has it. She offers clear, detailed instruction with variations of every pose and good pictures. She also talks at length about the benefits of each pose and it's proper sequencing in your practice. At the end of the book she lays out 17 different practices for you to do at home-- which eliminates all the guess work on sequencing.

Namaste!

Answer 2

Just start off with the basics, and when you feel you have mastered them, go to the next level. If its too much, back down because you don't want to get hurt. Make sure you start with stuff you can do, then stuff you can barely do, then go to stuff you can't do. Take it slowly and peacefully, cus thats what yoga is!

Answer 3

Yoga should be practiced with a balance of different types of asanas (e.g. standing poses, inversion, back-bends), in a certain sequence. Therefore, a foundation of all of them would be required for home practice.

Answer 4

Try the follwing sequence:

BEGINNERS:
Sukhasana (Easy Pose)
Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose)
Surya Namaskar -- 3 Rounds (Sun Salutations)
Vrksasana (Tree Pose)
Utthita Trikonasana (Extended Triangle Pose)
Utthita Parsvakonasana (Extended Side Angle Pose)
Dandasana (Staff Pose)
Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Bend)
Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose)
Upavistha Konasana (Wide Angle Pose)
Navasana (Boat Pose) Salabhasana (Locust Pose)
Setu Bandha Sarvangasana (Supported Bridge Pose)
Viparita Karani (Legs-Up-the-Wall Pose)
Reclining Twist
Savasana (Corpse Pose)

ADVANCED BEGINNERS
Virasana (Hero or Heroine Pose)
Adho Mukha Svanasana (Downward-Facing Dog Pose)
Surya Namaskar (Sun Salutations)
Vrksasana (Tree Pose)
Utthita Trikonasana (Extended Triangle Pose)
Utthita Parsvakonasana (Extended Side Angle Pose)
Ardha Chandrasana (Half Moon Pose)
Adho Mukha Vrksasana (Handstand)
Ardha Navasana (Half Boat Pose)
Bhujangasana (Cobra Pose)
Salabhasana (Locust Pose)
Makrasana (Crocodile Pose)
Salamba Sarvangasana (Supported Shoulderstand)
Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose)
Janu Sirsasana (Head-to-Knee Forward Bend)
Paschimottanasana (Seated Forward Bend)
Marichyasana III (Marichi's Pose, Variation III)
Savasana (Corpse Pose)