Yoga Sun Salutation Sequence for Beginners: Video of Poses

Learn the yoga Sun Salutation poses sequence with video step-by-step instructions. The Sun Salutation sequence is a must workout for yoga beginners. Get to know the key yoga poses of Sun Salutation.

Yoga exercises are a discipline to manage your mind and body simultaneously. Yoga workout is a series of postures, also known as asanas, that allow you to increase your body awareness to become healthy on multiple levels. Yoga benefits include health and flexibility body, weight loss, muscle toning, stress relief, and glowing skin.

What is a yoga salutation?

There are many different types of yoga postures practiced worldwide but Sun Salutation (Sun Salute, Salute to the Sun, Sunrise Salutation) is one of the best yoga poses. Actually, sun salutation yoga sequence is a set of multiple functional poses that offers a full body workout. It’s a specific stretching routine that enhances flexibility to allow opting for more complex and challenging postures.

Sequence of poses in Sun Salutation

Surya Namaskar, Sun Salutation or Salute to Sun detoxifies almost all body organs and stretches whole body. It is one of the basic set of poses that beginners have to learn. Sun Salutation is a series of twelve different poses to perform in one continuous movement. One can customize the poses according to individual needs but primarily it consists of 12 specific poses:

1. It starts with mountain pose, known as Tadasana in Sanskrit. It’s a specific soothing posture that usually precedes and ends yoga practice. Stand straight with hands together over your heart.
2. Lift the hands up over the head while bending the knees a little. Hold the “Hands Up” pose for a few seconds.
3. Bend forward gently from your waist to make the “Hands to Knee” pose. Try to put your palms on the floor or if needed on a yoga brick. Try to keep your back neutral throughout the moves.
4. You can bend your knees if needed then make a lunge with one leg and lift your head up. Rest for few seconds.
5. Take the other foot back in bending elbows at a 90 degree angle. Straighten legs along the floor. Form an upside V while lifting your hips up towards the sky.
6. Support your upper body on hands and make an upward facing dog pose. Lower your body down to a push up position. Rest your knees, chest and forehead all on the ground.
7. Lift the body on your hands. Bend at your waist and stretch forward to up your body while curling you head back. Arch your back as long as it feels comfortable. You can bend your arms.
8. Go again towards making an upside V. Push your hips in the air. Pull your right foot in between your hands to make a left forward lunge. Then lift your upper body and raise your hands up making a circle in the air. You should use alternate legs while repeating the sun salutation.
9. Join both the legs while bringing back foot up then straighten you legs. Here you have to do the first four steps backward. Make a lunge with one leg and lift your head up.
10. Bend gently to make the hands to knee pose while putting your palms on the floor or a yoga block.
11. Lift the hands over the head towards sky and hold the hands up for few seconds.
12. Ends with the mountain pose while putting your hands palm to palm together over your heart.

This is one full Sun Salutation circle. It begins and ends on the same mountain pose. It needs continuous practice to master the pose. Its benefits over mind and body are worthy of efforts to do it correctly. Doing gracefully and gently is the key for Sun Salutation. It enables muscles to stretch, contract and fold for enhanced flexibility and strength.