
Health Writer & Editor
Health Writer & Editor
Kristine is a author, editor, and editorial guide who lives in Long Beach, CA.

Image through Andreas von Scheele
June 02, 2025
If you are brand-new to yoga, welcome! It’s an exquisite observe that mixes breathwork, meditation, and motion—which is able to do wonders on your well-being.
Whether you are attracted to yoga for the bodily, psychological, or non secular advantages, having a elementary figuring out of commonplace postures could make your observe drift a lot smoother.
While there are lots of varieties of yoga, you can see quite a lot of identical usual poses in each and every observe.
Below, now we have compiled 17 elementary yoga poses—with each their English and Sanskrit names—demonstrated through yoga instructors Phyllicia Bonnano and Juanina Kocher.
Flow thru those poses to familiarize your frame and thoughts with each and every one, and they are certain to change into 2nd nature very quickly.
1.
Mountain pose (tadasana)
- Stand up tall, and make allowance your shoulders to drop again.
- Feel grounded as your crown stretches towards the sky.
- Take a deep breath in; succeed in your palms upward.
2.
Forward fold (uttanasana)
- Stand up tall together with your palms attaining as much as the sky.
- As you exhale, hinge at your hips and fold your higher frame ahead, bending your knees if wanted.
- Inhale, and are available right into a part carry. Then exhale and decrease backpedal.
3.
Child’s pose (balasana)
- From a tabletop place, take a seat again onto your heels.
- Peel your knees open. Reach and lengthen your fingertips ahead, permitting your chest to leisure in your mat.
4.
Cat-cow (chakravakasana)
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- Place your fingers in your mat, entering a tabletop place.
- As you inhale, convey your abdominal towards the bottom, bend your again, and make allowance your gaze to return up.
- Exhale as you curl and spherical your backbone, bringing your gaze towards your abdominal button.
5.
Downward canine (adho mukha svanasana)
- Come right into a plank place in your mat.
- Inhale as you hinge at your hips, and raise them up top, entering a downward-dog place.
- Ground down in the course of the soles of your toes and your fingers, permitting your hips to be the easiest level. You too can pedal out your canine right here, lifting one heel, then the opposite.
6.
Plank (phalakasana)
- Place your fingers and toes at the mat, emerging up so your shoulders are stacked over your wrists.
- Engage your core, and grasp for a few breaths.
7.
Chaturanga (chaturanga dandasana)
- Come into your plank pose, enticing your core to stabilize your frame.
- Slowly bend your elbows, hug them in towards your ribs, and decrease down for your mat.
8.
Chaturanga (chaturanga dandasana)
- Start through mendacity in your abdomen.
- Inhale, press your fingers into the bottom, and your push chest ahead.
- Exhale as you slowly unlock again to the mat.
9.
Cobra pose (bhujangasana)
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- Start through mendacity in your abdomen.
- Bring your fingers beneath your shoulders. Pull your elbows in towards your frame.
- Keeping your elbows bent, carry your chest up. Slowly decrease again to the mat.
10.
Low lunge (anjaneyasana)
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- Plant one foot between your fingers at the mat. Bring your different knee right down to the bottom.
- Rise to an upright place, together with your fingers resting in your entrance thigh.
- Extend your palms, attaining them as much as the sky.
11.
Crescent lunge (ashta chandrasana)
- Bring one foot in between your fingers, retaining your different leg prolonged backward.
- Ground down thru your entrance foot, and raise onto your again feet.
- Slowly stand up right into a top lunge, bringing your palms overhead and retaining the gaze in entrance of you.
12.
Warrior 1 (virabhadrasana I)
- From a top lunge, pivot your again foot down, and raise your torso up, entering a warrior 1.
- Bend your entrance knee, and raise your palms towards the sky.
13.
Warrior 2 (virabhadrasana II)
- From a top lunge, pivot your again heel down, and open your frame to the facet. Your again foot must be became in reasonably. Your entrance knee must be proper over your ankle.
- Energetically stretch your palms in reverse instructions, retaining a comfortable gaze over your fingertips.
14.
Peaceful warrior (viparita virabhadrasana)
- From warrior 2 pose, turn your entrance palm, convey the left hand down at the back of you, and make allowance it to leisure at the again of the left thigh.
- Keeping the suitable biceps through your ear, succeed in your arm backward. Gently bend your backbone, watching towards your fingertips.
15.
Triangle pose (utthita trikonasana)
- From non violent warrior, straighten your entrance leg.
- Bring your palms right into a “T” place, then shift your frame ahead and produce your proper hand to leisure in your proper foot or shin.
- Lift your left arm up towards the sky.
16.
Tree pose (vrksansana)
- Start in a status place.
- Ground down thru your left foot. Bend your proper knee, and produce your proper foot for your left ankle, decrease a part of your leg, or thigh (no matter you like).
- Stretch your palms as much as the sky, or convey your fingers to the center heart.
17.
Pigeon pose (kapotasana)
- Start in a downward-dog place, then succeed in your proper foot as much as the sky.
- Bend your knee and produce it in step with your proper arm. Bring your proper foot to the left facet, and make allowance your shin to leisure at the floor.
- Bring your again leg right down to the mat, and raise your chest.
- Hold for a breath, then slowly decrease your torso to the bottom so it folds over your proper leg.
- You have the ability to convey your brow to the mat.
- Hold for as many breaths as you would like, then peel your frame again up. Come again right into a downward canine, then repeat at the reverse facet.
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