lower-body-yoga-workout

 

Yoga is a great way to tone and build endurance in the muscles of the core & legs. If your butt, legs & abs need no toning whatsoever, you can stop reading now. Still with us? Steal these 3 baby-friendly lower body yoga moves from Belly Bootcamp YogaFlex and create your own at-home lower body blast! Hold each pose for 30 seconds. Use a timer on your smartphone with a jingle sound so you know when 30 seconds are up, then reset and move quickly to the next pose to burn maximal calories & keep your heart rate up. Focus on breathing deeply in each pose and contracting the abs inward to support the spine.

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Aim for 3-5 circuits of all 3 moves, with little to no rest, for a 10-15 minute workout you can do every other day, or on rest days between your BB and BB YogaFlex classes!

Namaste!

 

chair-pose

chair-pose

Chair Pose

 

Begin standing with feet hip width, or closer if possible. Shift weight to the heels as you sink into a squat position, spreading across the collarbones and making as much space as you can in both sides of the torso.  The spine is long, the quads are as close to parallel to the floor as you can manage. Use your breath to stay low and to keep the knees facing forward, not pointing inward. Tiny babies may be held on the chest. No baby? Extend arms overhead, aligned with ears, instead.

 

warrior-2-pose

warrior-2-pose

Warrior II Pose

 

* complete 30 seconds on each leg. 

Stand with feet wide, then turn the front leg out 90 degrees all the way to the hip.  The back foot turns 45 degrees, so the back foot’s arch is aligned with the heel of the front foot. Inhale the arms up to shoulder height and then exhale to bend the front knee until front thigh is parallel to the mat, making sure the knee isn’t coming any further than the ankle.  Press deeply into both feet, paying particular attention to the outer edge of the back foot. A great pose for developing stamina. No baby? Extend both arms at shoulder height.

 

bridge-pose

bridge-pose

Bridge Pose

 

Lie on your back and plant the feet into the mat a little way from the buttocks.  Press deeply into the feet as you float the hips up towards the ceiling.  Making sure not to hold any tension in the neck, engage the glutes, while continuing to lift the quads up towards the ceiling. Continue contracting glutes and keep knees pointing upward. Tiny babies may lie on the chest. No baby? Extend arms overhead, keeping shoulders planted on mat.