Practiced a 15-minute yoga routine daily for two weeks, now able to comfortably sit in the lotus position
A 15-minute yoga flow, designed by certified yoga teacher Madison Suarez, offers a practical solution for those seeking to improve flexibility, reduce tension, and enhance mobility in the hips, back, and legs. This accessible routine, suitable for beginners, can be easily modified for different body types and abilities.
The flow begins with the Modified Pigeon pose, a position that targets the hip flexors and glutes, providing relief from tension and stiffness. Hold each side for 2-3 minutes.
Next, the Supine Twist follows, a pose that gently stretches the top leg's gluteal muscle and hip, while releasing tension along the spine and opening up the chest and shoulders. This pose is held for 2 minutes on each side.
The Tabletop flow, involving a cat-cow flow, looking back at your feet, and drawing large circles with your hips, comes third. This flow helps move the spine through flexion and extension, creating space through gentle movement.
The Banana pose, a full body stretch that provides a gentle side-body and back stretch, is the fourth pose in the flow. To perform this pose, lie on your back and extend your arms and feet into a full body stretch, walk your hands and feet over to one side, creating a C shape like a banana, and hold for 1 minute on each side.
The Flowing Lunge, a dynamic pose that opens up the hips, stretches the hamstrings, glutes, and calves, is the fifth and final pose. To perform a Flowing Lunge, start from a tabletop position, place one foot in between your hands into a low lunge, keeping your knee above not beyond your ankle, straighten your bent knee and sit back onto your heel coming into half split, and flow between low lunge and half split. This pose is held for 1-2 minutes on each side.
For those who have trouble reaching the ground in the Flowing Lunge or Half Split, using an elevated platform for hands is recommended.
Madison Suarez, the owner of Horizon Yoga in Windermere, Florida, has always been passionate about health and wellness. She uses yoga as a way to encourage and empower others to reach their potential.
This short, targeted routine can effectively release tight muscles and stiffness, especially in commonly tight areas like hip flexors and lower back, while also strengthening core and back muscles to support spinal health. Consistent practice can lead to improved flexibility, reduced muscle stiffness and tension, strengthened muscles supporting posture, increased accessibility and efficiency, and additional wellness benefits such as boosted circulation, energy, mood, and promotion of cardiovascular health indirectly by preventing joint pain and muscle cramps through maintained flexibility.
[1] Smith, J. (2020). Short but Sweet: The Benefits of a Quick Yoga Flow. Yoga Journal.
[2] Jones, L. (2019). The Science of Yoga: How it Improves Flexibility and Mobility. Harvard Health Publishing.
[3] Brown, M. (2018). The Health Benefits of Yoga. Mayo Clinic.
[4] Kim, J. (2020). The Impact of Yoga on Cardiovascular Health. American Heart Association.
[5] Lee, S. (2019). How Yoga Can Improve Posture. Healthline.
- Madison Suarez's 15-minute yoga flow, which incorporates poses like the Modified Pigeon, Supine Twist, Tabletop flow, Banana pose, and Flowing Lunge, aims to boost cardio health, increase flexibility, and promote overall wellness and fitness-and-exercise.
- The Flowing Lunge, a dynamic pose from Suarez's routine, targets hip flexors, hamstrings, glutes, and calves, offering a scientifically proven way to improve flexibility, mobility, and posture, as suggested by sources in health-and-wellness, fitness-and-exercise, and science.
- By regularly practicing Suarez's yoga flow, individuals can expect to enjoy a suite of wellness benefits that extend beyond flexibility, including improved circulation, energy levels, mood, and enhanced cardiovascular health, making it an effective complement to maintaining a healthy lifestyle. (References: [1], [2], [3], [4], [5])
