Yoga for two: easy and difficult poses for beginners and advanced, benefits of paired yoga, precautions

In this article we will tell you:

1. Yoga poses for two: couples yoga for beginners 5 easy asanas for couples yoga
2. 5 challenging yoga asanas for two

Vladimir Tsarevsky spoke about how to properly do yoga for two and how to perform asanas .

In regular yoga, your mental and physical state depends only on you. You are left alone with your body and thoughts, so you are focused only on your sensations. During paired yoga, a second person appears, on whom the stability of the asana, your comfort and emotional background depend.

In pair yoga, people work as a team: they support each other and help perform difficult asanas. Exercises in pairs will help you open up to your partner, teach you to trust and support him. You will become closer and will be able to build trust more easily.

The main difference between couple yoga and regular yoga is the connection between people: a person’s sense of self is influenced not only by himself, but also by his partner.

The benefits of couples yoga

The basis of the practice is the most famous hatha yoga asanas, adapted to be performed together. This simplifies the physical component of classes, but the spiritual one takes on a new meaning.

The purpose of the practice is to achieve harmony and unity in a couple. Yoga for two is especially recommended for couples whose relationships are mired in routine, as it allows you to look at your partner differently. Benefits of couples yoga for loving people:

• strengthening the spiritual connection with a partner;
• better understanding of feelings and emotions;
• developing trust;
• building harmonious relationships;
• the knowledge of pure and deep love.

In addition, couples yoga effectively eliminates emotional tensions, allows you to resolve conflicts and let go of grievances, because it reveals a person’s spiritual potential, which means it makes him better. Do not forget that in hatha yoga the main emphasis is on asanas that work the whole body, so such training will be an excellent form of joint leisure. Exercising in pairs will benefit the body, soul, and strengthen relationships.

Easy poses for beginners

Yoga for two has one interesting feature: here you need to feel your partner’s energy and direct yours towards him. All asanas are simplified since both partners support each other during execution, but the spiritual component is often difficult to understand. Thus, paired yoga for beginners requires the qualified help of an outsider who can explain, correct and guide you in the correct execution of all asanas, so it is best to practice with an instructor.

• Note! Despite the fact that couples yoga harmonizes relationships, your loved one should not be the object of close attention during classes. It is necessary to learn to perceive your beloved during training as a separate bundle of energy, but not a person or a loved one.

You can try to master simple poses on your own. They are easy to repeat and the risk of injury is minimized. In addition, these positions do not require special physical training:

1. "Inverted Triangle" This asana is performed standing. Partners should stand facing each other at arm's length, legs bent at the knees, relaxed and wide apart. Stretch your arms up and stay in this pose for 1-2 minutes. Then spread your arms wider and turn your body so that you can reach your toes with one hand. At this time, the second hand reaches behind the head. The partner stands in the same position, pressing his back to the back of the second tandem participant. This asana can serve to exchange energy with a partner if you hold hands.
2. Downward-facing dog for two. One person spreads his legs wide, raises his arms and places them on the floor. There is no need to bend the lower limbs at the knees. The second participant places his hands approximately 40 cm from his hands on the floor, then places his feet on the pelvic area of ​​the person standing in the asana and repeats it, leaning on his partner’s back.
3. "Boat" for two. Both partners sit on the floor facing each other, legs spread wide and feet pressed together. Then you should bring your legs together, without lifting them from your partner’s feet, and raise them to chest level, while simultaneously spreading your arms and connecting them with the palms of the second person.

These poses prepare the muscles and can be used by advanced practitioners to warm up. You need to stay in each position for several minutes, feeling the movement of energy.

Safety precautions

Communication between partners is important for the practice to be safe.
What do you need to know about couples yoga to practice without injury?

• Talk to your partner. “Should I help you go deeper into the pose?”, “How are you feeling?”, “Shall we try to perform this element?” – it is advisable to ask these and other questions during the practice of paired yoga. Be sure to tell your partner if in any position you feel: pain, discomfort, discomfort. And also if you begin to lose your balance and support.
• Listen to your body. Unusual positions and new poses can cause a feeling of euphoria. However, you should not lose your head and forget about safety rules. Make sure that while performing asanas you do NOT work at your maximum strength. Otherwise, there is a risk of overstretching the muscles or developing soreness.

Complex exercises for advanced

More complex asanas are suitable for experienced couples, however, they must be mastered with the help of video lessons or during classes with an instructor. The fact is that such exercises involve the whole body and increase the risk of injury if performed incorrectly.

Recommended positions for experienced people:

• "Headstand"
• "Airplane".
• "Double Cobra"

To perform a headstand, you must first assume a downward-facing dog position. Then the body weight is transferred to the upper back, the arms are placed under the head, and the legs are raised up. The emphasis is on the head and the arms bent at the elbows, which secure the neck. Partners stand in this position facing each other, and then extend one leg forward, bringing their feet together.

The Airplane asana is performed as follows. A physically strong partner lies on his back, raising straight arms and legs. The second partner rests his palms on his hands and rests his pelvis on his feet. In this case, you need to arch your back, straighten your legs, and point your toes back.

The Double Cobra requires one partner to lie on their stomach with their legs tightly closed. The second person positions himself so that his feet are pressed against the first person's thighs. Then he needs to bend down, take the hands of the lying person who has pulled them back, bend his knees and arch his back so that the back of his head rests on his partner’s legs.

There are a lot of asanas for two. Any hatha yoga exercise can be modified for a couple or repeated symmetrically. This could make an excellent yoga challenge for two to strengthen relationships: learn a new asana together every day for 7 days.

How to start doing yoga?

You need to start by studying the shatkarma technique (there are only six of them); for beginners, cleansing your body with the help of vegetarianism, mastering Yama and Niyama (the main spiritual and moral degrees) is suitable.

Pit

teaches us:

• Refusal of any violence, here, of course, it is worth noting the refusal to eat meat (ahimsa);
• Honesty to yourself and others (satya);
• Refusal to appropriate someone else's property (asteya);
• Abstinence from lust (brahmacharya);
• Refusal to concentrate on material wealth (aparigraha).

Niyama

teaches us:

• Cleanliness not only of the body, but also of thoughts (shaucha);
• Positive thinking, gratitude for one’s situation (santosha);
• Self-discipline (tapas);
• Self-development (svadhyaya);
• Altruism (isvara-pranidhana).

Yoga as a method of combating many negative aspects of every person’s life

Ancient teaching helps us in the fight against the following factors:

• stressful situations and depression. Stress is a person’s worst enemy; we cease to control our emotions, anger, lose the ability to sensibly assess daily situations, and, as a result, the quality and standard of life decreases. The body, in turn, reacts to stress by disrupting metabolic processes, early skin aging, and uncontrolled gain of extra pounds. The teaching of yoga is a universal and accessible way to relieve tension, feel your stress and learn to overcome it. In many cases, systematic exercise helps cope with pain (women often improve their menstrual cycle); • lethargy and apathy. Many followers note a surge of strength, energy, and vigor. Yoga lessons are a relaxation during which a person gains much more energy and strength than during an 8-hour sleep. For masters, 4 hours of sleep is enough to feel great;
• overweight. The figure becomes slender and acquires curves. The body becomes flexible, loses the hated fat layer and extra pounds. You just need to be patient, as the results will become noticeable in about 4-5 months.

Pair yoga for children

Simple yoga poses for two can be learned with your children. Such activities are a great way to bring kids and their parents together. Here it is important to present all the exercises to the child in a playful way, because otherwise he will quickly lose interest in this type of training:

1. "Airplane". The parent lies on his back, stretches his arms and legs up. The baby grabs his hands, rests his pelvis on the parent’s feet and pretends to be an airplane, stretching his legs back and raising his head.
2. "Mountain". The parent lies on his back, raising his pelvis and throwing his legs behind his head. At this time, the child lies with his back on the parent’s legs, wraps his arms around them, and bends his legs at the knees, resting on the floor.
3. "Tree". Both participants stand straight, then press one leg with the foot to the shin of the other. The parent lowers one hand, palm down, and the child raises his hand, touching the adult’s hand with his palm.

Children can do paired exercises with friends or siblings. According to instructors, joint activities with another child or parents strengthen family relationships.

Precautions and contraindications

When practicing yoga together, it is important to remember that body position must be changed smoothly so as not to disrupt the partner’s concentration. You should also take into account your physical fitness, because the second person in a pair may simply not be able to master complex poses if he has never played sports before.

You should not start classes feeling offended by your partner or immediately after a scandal. In this case, the practice will be of no use, but due to the general negative mood, the risk of injury increases.

Contraindications include any ailments, pregnancy, fever or muscle pain. If your health leaves much to be desired, it is better to refuse the activity that day.

It is recommended to complete a joint workout with the “corpse pose”, positioned in a “jack” position with your partner. Afterwards, you can meditate together or just go for a walk in the nearest park. It is recommended to choose a quiet time for classes, when neither partner needs to rush on business.

Source

What beginners need to know

What else is important to know before you start.

1. Yoga is a set of exercises (asanas), usually in a certain sequence. The class ends with a resting pose - shavasana: in it your body should be absolutely motionless for 10-15 minutes. This time is enough for the body to relax and rest as much as possible, and for the brain to overload (yes, like a frozen computer).
2. You should not experience any pain while practicing yoga at home. None at all! There is no need to specifically stretch your muscles (this is not a sport!), bend down with force, pull your legs - and at the same time endure. Even more so for beginners. You have just started working with the body, give it time, and you will soon see how you will become more flexible. Learn to listen to your body. If any unpleasant sensations arise, relax the effort or carefully exit the asana.
3. Before starting, it is better to do a short warm-up to warm up your muscles.
4. And breathe evenly, calmly in asanas! Control your breathing: there should be no delays, inhale and exit as deeply and slowly as possible. It is very important.