Yoga Poses

Timothy McCall, MD, takes a look at the validity of scientific proof behind yoga's various benefits.

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Therapists are catching on to what yogis have always known: Yoga for anxiety is one of the best ways to ease your mind. Melanie Haiken talks about how yoga has helped her overcome anxiety.

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Learn the intricacies of the yoga pose, Headstand or Salamba Sirsasana

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Try your hand at this pose to increase flexibility in the legs, spine, and hips.

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Headaches? Try these 13 poses to relieve tension.

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Use self-care techniques based on Traditional Chinese medicine to maintain health and energy through the winter.

So many poses, so little time: It's easy to get overwhelmed just trying to figure out which asanas might calm you down.

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Practice dream yoga to transcend fears, boost creativity, and move closer to enlightenment.

There's more to yoga than just the asanas themselves. Judith Lasater talks about the benefits of asanas and how they can create awareness in the body.

Feeling weak in the knees? These yoga poses and modifications can help.

Overworked? Overwhelmed? Meet four people who made radical and not-so-radical changes to ease their job stress—and along the way, transformed their lives.

Relieve stress with these three tenants of yoga practice.

Yoga can be a source of knee pain or the ideal therapy. Here's a primer on keeping the joint healthy on and off the mat.

This sequence creates balance in your pelvis and can unlock even the most stubborn hips.

The smartest way to pain-free backbends? Just use props. Here's a sequence to help you bend over backward with ease.

Going upside down makes you stronger and more flexible. Plus it changes your perspective. Use this sequence to build a Forearm Balance and watch your body and mind transform.

No matter how advanced your practice is, surely there are asanas you'd just as soon avoid. Here, five top teachers divulge their nemeses and what they've learned by practicing them.

Accepting our physical sensations—whether pleasant or not—is one of the most challenging and liberating of practices.

Twisting Poses will help restore your spine's natural range of motion, cleanse your organs, and stimulate circulation.

Twists can be heaven for a bad back—if you don't push too hard. Learn how to do these 9 stretches for the spine to ease pain in your back.

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Ujjayi is the beginner-friendly springboard for all other formal pranayama.

Learn one of three important "bonds," key for pranayama breath retention.

Sometimes considered a preparation for pranayama, other times a formal practice in itself.

Using yoga props can help you find balance and alignment. We break down basic poses to reeducate and still the mind by awakening the body's intelligence.

The Fire Log Pose stretches the outer hips intensely, particularly the piriformis, which is often the main culprit of sciatic pain.

Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya II tones the belly and spine, strengthens the arms and wrists, and gives your self-confidence a big boost.

A cross between Child's Pose and Downward-Facing Dog, Extended Puppy Pose lengthens the spine and calms the mind.

Practice this pranayama technique for increased breath awareness and control.

Learn the two versions of Single Nostril Pranayama: Surya Bhedana (Sun-Piercing Breath) and Chandra Bhedana (Moon-Piercing Breath).

An excellent facilitator of good pelvic floor health, Garland Pose, called Malasana in Sanskrit, stretches the ankles, groins, and back while stimulating proper digestion. No worries if your heels don't reach the floor—simply rest them on a folded blanket.

In Extended Hand-to-big-toe Pose, maintaining solid grounding through the standing foot helps keep you steady.

Can you practice Wheel with straight arms and Headstand without strain? Then, you're ready.

Eka Pada Koundinyasana I or Pose Dedicated to the Sage Koundinya I has a lot going on—the twist, the legs going their separate ways, oh, and the arm balance. Master it.

Kapotasana invigorates your body and gives your spirits a lift. This extremely deep backbend is appropriate for advanced practitioners only.

Sphinx Pose is the infant of backbends. It can be practiced with either an active or passive approach.

This pose gently lengthens and strengthens even stubbornly tight hamstrings.

Ease up into Half Frog Pose, called Ardha Bhekasana in Sanskrit. This pose strengthens the back while gently opening up the shoulders, chest, and thighs—a loving treat for the entire body.

Learn how to guide your students to bear weight on their hands with mindfulness and hand positioning tips so they avoid injury and gain upper-body strength.

Dolphin Pose strengthens the core, arms, and legs, while also nicely opening the shoulders.

Do happiness and peace sound like worthy goals? You may be surprised how enlightened you'll feel if you just "pretend."

Kumbhaka is the central practice of traditional Hatha pranayama; there are two types of retention: after an inhale (antara), and after an exhale (bahya)

Quiet your racing mind and tune in to the stillness that resides inside you by practicing mantra meditation.

Through the practice of yoga, you can learn to hear—and follow—your inner guidance.

Kapalabhati is a traditional internal cleansing technique (kriya), and can be used as a simple warm-up for formal pranayama

Learn this traditional hand seal or gesture used for controlled pranayama.

This four-part meditation clears the heart and quiets the mind.

Jalandhara Bandha is one of three important "bonds" for pranayama breath retention, the other two being Mula and Uddiyana.

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Begin experimenting with how to integrate Mula Bandha into your asana practice.

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Just as you can practice heart opening in your thoughts and emotions, you can also experience opening the heart space in your physical body.

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