Easy-Print Class Notes from Yoga Teacher Central

Surya Namaskar B All – Mini

Option: teach a slower flow w/ extra

breaths for students to find proper
alignment, particularly in challenging
transitions such as Down Dog to
Warrior 1.
TADASANA
1. - Exhale >> Pranamasana Mountain
Beginner Variations & Alternatives:
+ Anjali Mudra
feet hip width; hands on thigh, just
above knees; squeeze block
between thighs to align & activate
legs; arms straight out from
shoulders.

"With each inhalation, draw breath

and energy up from the earth into
UTKATASANA the center of the body. With each
2.
- Inhale exhalation, use the support of the
breath to drop more deeply into the
pose". – Joseph LePage

Beginner Variations: bend knees

UTTANASANA until chest to thighs, fingers to floor
3.
- Exhale in front of feet; hands to one or two
blocks.

Ardha Uttanasana variations: bend

ARDHA UTTANASANA knees, bring hands to legs, or come
4.
- Inhale up so that torso is parallel to floor,
drawing arms into "Cactus" arms.

Chaturanga Dandasana (4 Limbed

Staff Pose) is a common area of
misalignment and unsafe practices;
moving into Plank prior to
CHATURANGA DANDASANA
Chaturanga Dandasana can give
5. - Exhale >> or Plank and lower to
greater opportunity for safe transition
floor
and alignment; dropping knees in
Plank is another option prior to
Bhujangasana (Cobra) and the next
step for Knees-Chest-Chin.

In Urdhva Mukha Svanasana, watch

out for:

• Sinking in low back

URDHVA MUKHA SVANASANA • Not distributing backbend through
6.
- Inhale >> or Bhujangasana Cobra whole spine

Bhujangasana (Cobra) is an
alternative to Urdhva Mukha
Svanasana (Upward Facing Dog).

powered by sequenc ewiz.c om

 Easy-Print Class Notes from Yoga Teacher Central

Surya Namaskar B All – Mini

Start on hands & knees; knees hip-

width; move hands forward of
shoulders; roll over & curl toes of
either one foot at a time or both feet
at once; lift hips up & back; reach
chest back toward legs; slowly
straighten legs (as appropriate).

Kat Heagberg’s Tips:

• Your heels don’t have to touch the

ADHO MUKHA SVANASANA floor in Down Dog.
7.
- Exhale • Err on the side of lifting your hips
in Plank.
• Make every Chaturanga a well-
aligned Chaturanga.
• Avoid leading with your chin during
Cobra and Up Dog.
• Learn the difference between Cobra
and Up Dog and choose wisely.
• Support your lower back as you
transition back to Down Dog.
• Avoid rocking back onto your
wrists in Down Dog.

Legs 3 to 5 feet apart; turn front leg

out so foot is at 90° angle; turn back
foot in 45 to 60°; different alignments
are taught from different sources &
for different students including: align
front and back heels; align front front
heel with arch of back foot; or take
feet wider as needed; hands can be
VIRABHADRASANA I at hips or arms extended up.
8.
- Inhale
“Identify breath as the source of
movement and the very core of our
existence. Ride it as you would a
wave in the ocean or respond to it
the way your body responds to
music… Feel the air move across
your body as you move through
space.” – David Swenson

For Chaturanga squeeze elbows into

side body; keep shoulders at elbow
CHATURANGA DANDASANA
level (not lower); root shoulder
9. - Exhale >> or Plank and lower to
blades down & in; keep core
floor
engaged; extend back through
heels.

powered by sequenc ewiz.c om

 Easy-Print Class Notes from Yoga Teacher Central
Surya Namaskar B All – Mini
URDHVA MUKHA SVANASANA
10.
- Inhale >> or Bhujangasana Cobra
ADHO MUKHA SVANASANA
11.
- Exhale
VIRABHADRASANA I
12.
- Inhale >> Second Side
CHATURANGA DANDASANA
13. - Exhale >> or Plank and lower to
floor
URDHVA MUKHA SVANASANA
14.
- Inhale >> or Bhujangasana Cobra
ADHO MUKHA SVANASANA
- Exhale >> 5 breaths
15.
- Not shown: Pause or Beginning to
Inhale – Transition Feet Forward
For Cobra press palms, pubic bone,
thighs, tops of feet to floor; Option:
keep hands off floor or light with
tented fingers; or place hands on
floor & pull as though sliding floor
backward; lift & press chest forward
through shoulders (movement is
forward & up); keep chin level.
Have a firm foundation in hands;
spread fingers, press equally into
both sides of hands & into root of
fingers; extend spine & sit bones
toward ceiling; activate quadriceps.
"Down Dog very clearly puts you in
touch with the inherent isometric or
push-pull dynamics of yoga asanas,
where a movement in one direction
is balanced and enhanced by an
action in the opposite direction. This
has deep philosophical and spiritual
significance, corresponding to the
meaning of hatha yoga as the union
of the sun and moon, the masculine
and feminine.” – Shiva Rea
In a more advanced variation one
option is to deepen Warrior 1 with
more of a backbending effect.
Arms & legs support lifting &
opening chest; draw sacrum down &
forward, feeling low back long;
traditional pose has neck released
back but avoid overextending it.
• Press down into knuckles of
thumbs, index & middle fingers.
• Stretch into knuckles of ring & little
fingers, right through fingertips.
"Think of a golden retriever in the
back of a jeep with its hair blowing in
the wind. See if you can bring that
kind of receiving quality to Down Dog
in the midst of its challenges."–
Shiva Rea
powered by sequenc ewiz.c om
 Easy-Print Class Notes from Yoga Teacher Central

Surya Namaskar B All – Mini

An advanced option is to jump

ARDHA UTTANASANA Forward from Adho Mukha
16.
- Inhale Svanasana (Down Dog) to Ardha
Uttanasana (Half Lift).

"[In full pose], draw your body

toward your legs and down toward
the floor. The challenge is to draw
UTTANASANA yourself deeply into the pose without
17.
- Exhale feeling congested in your abdomen
or throat. Round your spine evenly
as you search for full extension." -
Rodney Yee

"Feel the vigor of your arms, the

extension of your torso, the power of
your legs, and the receptivity of your
UTKATASANA
18. mind. Can you find a place where
- Inhale
the breath whistles through your
body like a beautiful clear note
through a flute?" – Rodney Yee

"If you adjust a student in Tadasana,

she will be aligned for a moment, but
if you teach her how to feel
Tadasana, she will be aligned for a
lifetime. Tadasana is the root of all
TADASANA
yoga postures, so improving it can
19. - Exhale >> Pranamasana Mountain
revitalize a student's entire practice.
+ Anjali Mudra
Although it's simple in concept—just
stand up straight—it's often a
challenge for beginners because
they can't see themselves in the
pose." –Roger Cole

powered by sequenc ewiz.c om