Slim Calm Sexy Yoga: 210 Proven Yoga Moves for Mind/Body Bliss

starting from your belly and count 1, move up through your ribs and count 2, 3, and finally through your upper chest and count 4. Hold for 2 counts and slowly exhale. Nice, right?
      FOCUS YOUR MIND. Alignment doesn’t stop with the body. When your mind is in the right place, everything else falls into position. Keeping your mental focus sharp and reining in wandering thoughts is essential.
    Try it: Try setting an intention—or focus—for yourself each time you practice. An example of an intention is “I will try to focus on my breath instead of my thoughts during the whole class. This will help me focus in my life and control impulses so I can reach my weight-loss goal.” It sets a mood for your practice that keeps you on target.
      KEEP YOUR ELBOWS SLIGHTLY BENT. Locking your elbows during weight-bearing poses such as plank and down dog is another recipe for wrist and shoulder injury. This is especially the case if your elbows tend to hyperextend. Aim to keep your arms slightly bent (they’ll be closer to straight than you think) and you’ll get strong and toned even faster.
    Try it: Come to all fours. Spread your fingers and bend your elbows out to the sides. Slowly start to straighten your arms, and stop when your upper arms and forearms are in a straight line. If you hyper-extend naturally, they’ll feel bent but will actually be straight.
      SPREAD YOUR FINGERS. Many poses—plank, down dog, handstand—place your weight on your arms, so it’s important to have a solid base. Spreading your fingers helps build strength by engaging your arms and shoulders; weak, passive fingers can overstress your wrists and shoulders, leading to injury.
    Try it: Practice spreading your fingers while doing a common pose like down dog: Come to all fours with your knees under your hips and hands under your shoulders. Bend your elbows slightly and spread your fingers as if you were digging into wet sand. Straighten your arms, keeping your fingers spread wide. Tuck your toes under, lift your hips, and extend your legs. Press your shoulders toward the floor and relax your neck. Press your palms against the floor a few inches in front of your feet. Walk your feet back, lift your hips, and press your heels toward the floor. Relax your shoulders and head.
      KEEP YOUR FEET UNDER YOUR HIPS. Take notice of your foot placement habits in standing poses. You are the most efficient when your feet are directly under your hip bones and your heels are aligned behind your toes.
    Try it: Stand naturally at the front of your mat. Now take a look at your feet. See if they are set wider or narrower than your hip bones. Are your toes pointing out or in, or straight forward? Make sure your feet are parallel to each other. They can be together or slightly apart.
    UNLEASH YOUR POTENTIAL
    Kundalini yoga, brought to the West by Yogi Bhajan in 1969, is a practice of awakening an enormous reserve of untapped potential within each of us. It is normally depicted as a coiled or sleeping serpent, located in the area at the base of the spine. Kundalini practice works to raise the energy up through the spine and employ its power to attain benefits of elevation in consciousness, physical well-being, and expansive awareness.

CHAPTER 03
essential
poses
Master these moves for a sound body and mind

    In this chapter, you’ll find a how-to primer on every single pose that makes up the 15-minute routines throughout the rest of the book. To keep things simple, they are divided into categories as follows: Standing Poses; Seated Poses; Arm Balances and Inversions; and Other Poses (Lying-Down Poses, Back Bends, and Partner-Supported Poses).
    Within each category, specific moves are designated as Main Poses. Master these basic versions and you’ll be able to do all their variations with superior form—and get the most benefits. In some cases, there is no Main Pose; instead, I’ll give you a sequence for achieving a pose that may take you some time to get good at, such as a headstand or handstand. Pay close attention to the alignment tips on every page—the better your form, the better your yoga.
    The pictures here are for basic reference. Even when a pose is shown from just one side (with the right leg forward, for example), you’ll need to practice it on both sides to work your body evenly. But later in the book, when you start practicing the 15-minute routines, I’ll give you specific directions for when to switch sides and how long to hold each pose.