Get Started with Yoga: Try this 3-Week Beginner Yoga Challenge

The desire to be as relaxed as an iced chai tea latte, as dynamic as an inflatable air-dancer, or long for a life of greater comfort could be fulfilled with yoga. Associated with coordinating breath and movement, the merits of yoga in terms of health and fitness are numerous, according to Ashley Galvin, a yoga instructor at Alo Moves. “Yoga can ease the tension within your body, strengthen it, enhance your flexibility, alleviate anxiety and depression, and help you to remain anchored in the present moment," Galvin notes.

Simply put, adding yoga to your regular routine is an obvious choice. So how do you transition from aspiring to be a yogi and yearning to reap these benefits to actually becoming a yogi? Participating in a 30-day yoga challenge is one approach. That's why Shape teamed up with Galvin to design a month's worth of yoga routines designed for beginners to kick-start your yoga journey. "Yoga challenges are structured to make it as effortless as possible to incorporate yoga into your routine," Galvin emphasizes. Importantly, it takes 21 days to establish a habit, therefore undertaking a 30-day challenge aids in overcoming that initial habit-formation hurdle.

The beauty of this challenge is that it only incorporates three beginner-friendly yoga routines per week, meaning a total upheaval of your exercise regime is unnecessary to glean the benefits. It's designed to be seamlessly integrated into your existing activities. "While some people might opt to do these yoga exercises on their rest days, others might prefer to incorporate it into their warm-ups or cool-down sequences," suggests Galvin. "The primary thing with yoga is that it doesn't prescribe to any strict rules - the key element is that it can adapt into your lifestyle to foster sustainability."

Even infrequent yoga practice, such as once a week, can yield benefits. "You may notice mental health benefits during and after your initial session," Galvin notes. However, she also states that more frequent practice is generally more beneficial. "In order to realize the physical and strength benefits, it's suggested that individuals should aim to incorporate yoga into their routine around three days a week," she advises.

Regular yoga practice helps individuals to grasp poses more quickly, Galvin explains. Once you've grasped the essence of a pose, you can start honing in on the deeper supporting muscles, activate them, and foster a greater mind-body connection, she illustrates.

To simplify things, Shape has again collaborated with Galvin to devise the 30-Day Yoga Challenge outlined below. Each week of this 30-day challenge builds upon the progress of the previous week. You'll begin the first week mastering a basic five-movement flow, which incorporates foundational yoga movements such as the standing forward fold, downward dog, and warrior two. You'll repeat this same flow for each of the three designated yoga days this week.

In the ensuing weeks, you'll be presented with the chance to experiment with marginally more challenging variations and extensions of the original beginner yoga routine. During the second and third weeks, you'll add extra poses to the flow. Then, in the final week, you'll step up to the challenge of trying a slightly more advanced version of this flow.

This beginner yoga routine, courtesy of Galvin, begins with the standing forward fold and concludes with the pigeon pose. The core of the flow consists of a classic yoga vinyasa. The duration can vary from 5 to 50 minutes, based on how long each pose is held and how many repetitions are carried out. So, let's get started.

The standing forward fold is a soothing way to start your flow after a long day of sitting. Initiating your flow with this movement that opens up the posterior chain facilitates better motion during following movements such as the downward-facing dog. "The goal of the standing forward fold pose is to stretch out your lower back and hamstrings," Galvin explains.

The high plank pose, the initial step in a yoga vinyasa, "strengthens your entire body, including your midline and core," according to Galvin.

During the first week, Galvin recommends noting how long you can maintain this pose with correct form. By the end of the challenge, aim to hold the pose for 60 seconds.

Known as the yoga push-up, the chaturanga demands considerable upper body strength. If you find doing a full yoga push-up challenging, then Galvin suggests modifying by dropping onto your knees.

As you advance throughout the challenge, Galvin advises focusing on "reducing the bend in your knees while bringing your heels closer to the ground," to enhance the stretch in your ham-string muscles.

The pigeon pose provides intense stretch to the bent leg, Galvin explains. It stretches hip flexors, quadriceps, the psoas muscle, groin and back. "Let your current flexibility dictate the length of time you hold the pose in the initial stages," she says.

Twenty to 30 seconds is a great goal for the first day, but you can add more and more time as you move through the challenge. Also, don’t shy away from using props to help you access the position, Galvin adds. “A folded blanket or pillow under the front hip or back knee can help reduce the intensity of the pose.'

During this week's version of the vinyasa flow, you are going to add a warrior two after the downward-facing dog. Once again, you will start with the standing forward fold to warm up your body. Then, you will move through a vinyasa flow. 

“From the warrior two position, you will cartwheel your hands into a high plank position,” explains Galvin. Then, you will repeat the flow a second time. The difference is that when you get to warrior two, you will change the lead leg, she explains. 

Here's how to do the warrior two pose from the downward-facing dog position.

By this point, you’re more than halfway through the yoga challenge! During the third week, you are going to add warrior three into rotation. Specifically, you’ll add it in between the downward-facing dog and warrior two.  

As a balancing pose, warrior three will give you the opportunity to test out your increasing midline strength, as well as activate your entire lower body. Here's how to add it to your flow.

“From here, you will cartwheel your hands down into a high plank, then repeat the exact same sequence,” says Galvin. The only difference is that you will switch leg leads for warrior three and warrior two. 

You made it to the last week. During your three days of practice you are going to get to show yourself just how strong your side-body and core have become by giving the half-moon pose a try at the end of each flow, says Galvin. “This challenging balance pose requires a lot of side-body and midline strength, as well as strengthens them further.' 

So there is no confusion, this is the exact sequence you’ll be following: 

Here is how to incorporate the half-moon pose into your flow.

In yoga, your body — not the instructor nor the challenge — is your ultimate guide, says Galvin. “You are your own best teacher. You know what you and your body need for the day better than anyone else.” That’s why she recommends tuning into your body and using that to guide how deep into every stretch and pose you go. “If at any point you start to experience any pain or discomfort, stop.'

Discomfort is your body's way of letting you know that it does not (yet!) have the prerequisite strength, mobility, or body awareness needed to safely complete the pose, she says. Rather than pushing yourself, stay within your realm of comfort. If you need to, you can return to the previous week's variation of the flow and use that to help yourself develop baseline ability.  “Yoga is here to help heal our bodies, not hurt our bodies,” says Galvin.

But for that to happen, we as yoga practitioners need to support our bodies in that goal, she says. At the end of the day, the goal of this challenge is to help you add yoga into your movement practice in a way that is both safe and sustainable.

As you move through this 30-day yoga challenge, remember that longevity — not perfection nor intensity — is your number one goal. Do that, and at the end of the day, you’ll reap all the mental and physical benefits of yoga you’ve been hearing about and desiring for so long. On your mark, get set, flow.