Yoga Positions for Beginners for Daily Morning Practice – Kundalini Yoga Morning Wakeup Series
Beginner Yoga Poses for Daily Morning Practice
Kundalini Kriya #2 – Yoga Morning Wakeup Exercises
The following beginner’s Kundalini Yoga Set is also described in this post (Morning Wakeup Kundalini Yoga Set), but I am including here as part of the Kundalini Yoga Kriyas Book for the sake of completeness and better organization.
Even though this set of yoga positions and exercises is simple for the beginner yogi to do, it is not any less valuable than many advanced Kundalini Yoga Kriyas. It is an excellent yoga set with a wide range of great benefits. In fact, it is a set which encompasses many of the daily recommendations of Kundalini Yoga.
Video of Kundalini Yoga Morning Wake-up Series
(From Free Yoga Videos, yoga video #3, Beginner Kundalini Yoga Exercise Video)
The Pranayama (breathing exercise) used for most of this set is the Breath of Fire, which is described in Breath Control & Yoga Pranayama Book – Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise – Ch 1. Here is also a video demonstration of Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise to help make sure you doing it correctly.
Free Online Yoga Video of Breath of Fire
(From the Article: Breath of Fire Kundalini Yoga Pranayama Video)
Overview of Beginner’s Morning Wakeup Kundalini Yoga Exercises:
The yoga postures and exercises below, should be done in sequence without taking a break in between if possible. The set can be done anytime of the day, although it is best done in the early morning hours. Even though this set is designed for beginners, I still recommend reading the 10 Guidelines for Kundalini Yoga Practice post first before starting it.
This set is ideal for beginning a Kundalini Yoga practice and done regularly can help form a very good foundation from which to progress to more advanced work. It is also suitable for doing prior to a meditation session.
In addition, this set has the advantage of not requiring much time so can be perfect for those with a busy schedule. Overall, the set works on your respiratory, digestive, immune and nervous systems.
How To Do Beginner Morning Wakeup Kundalini Yoga Exercises:
1. Yoga Rowing Exercise:
a. Instructions for Yoga Rowing Exercise:
- Sit up with both legs extended straight out in front of you.
- Extend the arms and have the thumbs facing up towards the sky, fingers extended forward and keep the elbows straight.
- Lean back 20-30 degrees – Inhale. Then lean forward about the same distance and exhale.
- Continue at a moderate pace.
b. Duration for Yoga Rowing Exercise: 1-3 minutes.
c. Benefits of Yoga Rowing Exercise:
- Opens up the Solar Plexus.
- Promotes flexibility in hamstrings and hips.
d. Practice Tips for Yoga Rowing Exercise: Your knees may bend slightly but elbows should remain straight. Curl your toes back towards you to accentuate the stretch in the calves.
2. Yoga Single Leg Extensions:
a. Instructions for Yoga Single Leg Extensions:
- Sit up with both legs extended.
- Raise your left leg. Hold your toes/foot with both hands. Begin Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise.
- Switch legs halfway through the exercise.
b. Duration for Yoga Single Leg Extensions: 1-3 minutes / leg
c. Benefits of Yoga Single Leg Extensions:
- Stretches the Sciatic nerve and hamstrings.
d. Practice Tips for Yoga Single Leg Extensions: If you can’t hold your toes, hold as far up your leg as you can and curl your toes back towards you. Your leg should be straight and you should try to sit up. If you are just beginning your yoga practice, be careful not to over stretch and incur injury.
3. Yoga Bridge Pose: (also called Yoga Table Top Pose)
a. Instructions for Yoga Bridge Pose:
- Raise yourself on your palms and feet keeping your torso parallel to the ground. You should be facing the sky. The feet are hip distance apart while the hands are shoulder width apart. Your fingers point away from you.
- Begin the Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise.
b. Duration for Yoga Bridge Pose: 1-3 minutes.
c. Benefits of Yoga Bridge Pose:
- Helps the immune system.
- Strengthens the arms and back.
d. Practice Tips for Yoga Bridge Pose: Press your hips upwards towards the sky and try to keep your back straight. Rest your head on your collar muscles. For starters, take frequent breaks if the arms get tiered and then restart the pose again when ready.
4. Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose: (Article: Illustration of Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose)
Picture of Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose
Picture of Beginner Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose
a. Instructions for Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose:
- Lie on your back.
- Place your hands under your buttocks palms facing down (to support your lower back).
- Raise your heels 6 inches, point your feet and toes away from you, raise your head slightly and stare at your toes.
- Begin Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise.
b. Duration for Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose: 1-7 minutes.
c. Benefits of Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose:
- Builds the Navel Center.
- This exercise works on your Manipura Chakra (aka. Nabhi Chakra) which is the seat of willpower. It is recommended to build this center early in your Yoga practice as it will give you the strength and character to see things through.
d. Practice Tips for Kundalini Yoga Stretch Pose: To modify this yoga pose you can do this position with your legs bent or do one leg at a time. As a beginner, it may take you some time to develop your abdominal strength, but if you stick with this exercise it will go a long way in helping you develop this important area.
5. Kundalini Yoga Tuck Pose:
a. Instructions for Kundalini Yoga Tuck Pose:
- Lie on your back.
- Bend your legs and bring your knees towards your chest.
- Wrap your hands around your knees, raise your head and bring your nose between your knees.
- Begin Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise.
b. Duration for Kundalini Yoga Tuck Pose: 1-3 minutes.
c. Benefits of Kundalini Yoga Tuck Pose:
- Works on the digestive system.
d. Practice Tips for Kundalini Yoga Tuck Pose: If your back of neck hurts it means your digestive meridians need work. Often when starting a yoga practice, our weaknesses are exposed, look at this as an opportunity to get healthier and more fit.
6. Kundalini Yoga Eagle Pose:
Picture of Kundalini Yoga Eagle Pose
a. Instructions for Kundalini Yoga Eagle Pose:
- Sit in Easy pose (cross legged simple, also called Sukh Asana).
- Raise your arms out to the sides and up 60 degrees.
- Curl your fingers in towards your upper palm (not quite, but like a fist) then point your thumbs up towards the sky.
- Keep your head up and elbows straight.
- Begin Breath of Fire Breathing Exercise.
b. Duration for Kundalini Yoga Eagle Pose: 1-3 minutes.
c. Benefits of Kundalini Yoga Eagle Pose:
- Works on the Magnetic Field.
- Increases the power of your presence.
- Makes you charismatic.
d. Practice Tips for Kundalini Yoga Eagle Pose: Try to keep your arms up and elbows straight. Don’t give up at the first sign of discomfort. As you develop your yoga practice, try to hold this pose longer it will help develop your willpower and spirit, as a beginner don’t over do it.
7. Yoga Corpse Pose: (also called Shav Asana)
a. Instructions for Yoga Corpse Pose:
- Lie on your back and have your arms out to your sides about six to twelve inches away from your body.
- Turn your palms slightly upward.
- Relax your body and breath.
b. Duration for Yoga Corpse Pose: 5 minutes.
c. Benefits of Yoga Corpse Pose:
- Allows the body to consolidate the gains from the previous exercises.
- Helps the body heal and rejuvenate itself.
- Promotes relaxation and peace.
d. Practice Tips for Yoga Corpse Pose: Try to consciously relax your entire body. Release all your tensions and worries and stay in the present moment as best you can.
This concludes the Beginner Morning Wakeup Kundalini Yoga Exercises.
Namaste Poornima,
Good to hear you have started the online yoga classes. Most important thing now is to keep going!
Yes certainly, stamina is going to be the limiting factor early. Just take more breaks and build up your capacity slowly. The weight loss set especially requires stamina, as it is necessary to increase the heart rate in order to get the body to burn fat and calories. Being overweight will make this more challenging, but don’t get deterred, just do your best and the results will flow over time.
All Good Wishes,
Anmol
Hi Anmol,
Namaste.
Quest to learn yoga and also lose weight has led me to the right place, atlast. I have already begun my course as i write to you. Thank you very much for the insight and well designed courses for beginners like me . I hope, by god’s grace i will gain the will power to continue this classes and benefit from it.
I realized my stamina is quite poor, during the class of kundalini yoga! Does being overweight hv anything to do with this or practise can help me overcome it?
Thanks once again,
Poornima
Tom,
You can do the exercises with Long Deep Breathing instead. Not sure of the exact nature of the sinus issue you have, but you can look into Jal Neti as a possible treatment.
Best,
Anmol
Hello Anmol,
If there an alternative to the breath of fire for those of us with sinus problems that cannot breathe freely through their nose?
Thanks
Hi Luis,
Thanks for your inspiring feedback, it is great to hear the hard work is reaching others and proving to be beneficial.
Best,
Anmol
Thank you for sharing your knowledge. It is priceless and has helped me immensely.
Thank you so much!
Thank you for the prompt responses. Your experience and knowledge are priceless. I’ve been going around asking yoga teachers about sciatica and they all have turned out to be very incompetent. Even the naturopathic doctor I went to for acupuncture was too busy to get the next client’s money and just told me to do cobra and pigeon pose, but didn’t tell me that stretching hard in Cobra can actually aggravate sciatica instead of curing it.
I would really appreciate if you could point me to some good exercises to help me get over it. I have done a lot of progress with Cobra, Savasana and Qigong( it helps very much), but I can still feel it and I want to get rid of it for good, because it prevents me from doing a lot of asanas.
Thanks!
Hi Martin,
Often those 2 postures are interchangeable when it comes to doing the exercises. Some exercises though demand one over the other.
There are subtle differences between the two, as in sitting on your heels is excellent for digestion, while sitting cross legged conserves the most energy and is very stable.
Do not do the first 2 exercises if you are recovering from sciatica. When you do feel ready to start them, begin very gently and go from there.
Best,
Anmol
Hi,
what are the benefits of sitting cross legged vs sitting on your heels?
also, I’m trying to recover from sciatica, would the first 2 exercises here help or aggravate it?
Thank you.
Hey Martin,
1. For number 3 (bridge pose) support your head on your collar muscles.
2. More padding :-).
Thanks for your encouraging comments, they really do mean a lot.
Best,
Anmol
I have 2 questions here, on number 3 what is the exact position of the head.
And on number 5, when I roll into a ball my spine seems to hit the floor and it’s rather uncomfortable, does this mean m not doing it right or I just need more padding?
Thank you very much once again. This is the greatest resource on yoga I have ever found.
Hi Steph,
Eagle Pose is with eyes closed. In general it’s always eyes closed for Kundalini Yoga exercises, unless specified otherwise.
It’s a great pose.
Best,
Anmol
Hello again Anmol,
I have a quick question about the Eagle Pose…eyes open or closed. I can’t quite tell in your picture!
Thanks,
Steph
Hi Kalyan,
Needless to say your feedback warms my heart :-). Thank you for such kind and encouraging words. I am very happy that you are practicing and benefiting from the Kundalini Yoga sets and information on this website.
I will keep on sharing my knowledge, on the agreement that you keep on doing your daily sadhana :-).
Best,
Anmol
hi Anmol,
Yours is one of the finest website dealing with meditation and yoga – truly a gem.I feel so fortunate to come across it one day while idly surfing the net. I have been benefited tremendously both spiritually and materially by the practices you have published, specially Kundalini Yoga. Please keep up the great work that you started.
Dear Rosanne,
Depression is a complex condition. The only type of depression under which you should not do Breath of Fire in Stretch pose is if your depression is associated with a lot of anger. Otherwise it is fine to do. To combat depression you may also wish to do the So-Hum Meditation as that is most prescribed for this condition. Here is the link to that meditation. While you do it, with every inhalation visualize Joy and Peace entering your heart and filling each cell with happiness. Let me know your progress…
https://anmolmehta.com/2007/05/16/so-hum-mantra-meditation-technique-free-guided-meditation-book-for-daily-practice/
Best Wishes,
Anmol
I have started yoga. One of the cards I have which describes the breath of fire in stretch pose says not to perform if you have high blood pressure, diabetes, epilepsy, depression or insomnia or 3 months pregnant. I suffer from depression and insomnia. Why is it not good to do this pose if you have depression? I would think all poses would make one more centered and it would help defeat depression.
Glad you are finding it useful. I will try to keep the website updated with the kundalini yoga sets we do in class along with the meditations as well.
Thank you for giving simple,step by step guidence for this section. It is very helpful now,till we master it .