6 Yoga Poses for Hiking & Backpacking
Spending time in the great outdoors this season? This yoga sequence is for you.
Autumn is upon us and with it comes perfect hiking weather and beautiful changing leaves. If you’re planning to spend a lot of time outdoors this season, whether it be hiking, camping, or mountain biking, you’ll want to check out this yoga sequence. The poses below are specifically designed to help your body stay trail-ready through the cooler fall and winter months so you can keep on enjoying everything nature has to offer!
Standing Forward Fold
As an inversion (any pose which positions the head below the level of the heart) this posture is a great way to begin reversing the impacts hiking can have on our bodies. Gear or not, as one ascends a trail there is a lot of demand upon the quadricep muscles and the hamstrings. These two groupings work hand in hand with each step we take.
Warrior I
This closed-hip posture helps strengthen and stretch many of the muscle through the legs, abdominal and sacral (hip) areas. It helps improve stabilizing skills from the foundation of the feet all the way through the crown of the head.
Wheel Pose
As a heart opening and spinal bending posture, the wheel pose can be both revitalizing and overwhelming. This is why, if it is in your practice (and therefore comfort zone), I encourage entering into this posture after a healthy amount of warm-up or exercise.
Malasana
In this posture our digestive systems may be kick started as alignment is achieved because it brings the intestines in a handy position for easy release of wastes. Though I draw the focus to digestion, this asana also resemble surrender in yoga philosophy.
Lord of the Dancers Pose
This last pose is a challenging one, so don’t feel discouraged if you wobble and fall, I’ve had my fair share and trust me, they teach you something every time! P.S. In this photo I am using an advanced variation (and which took me more than a year to figure out with my personal limitations).
All images courtesy of www.savatgy.com.
