Buzz
Yoga is the ultimate workout for quarantine: Whether you prefer a calming session or an intense physical challenge, it caters to all needs. All you need to begin is your body and a somewhat cushioned surface. However, like any exercise, poor form can hinder your progress—so before you unroll your mat (or use your carpet) for the first time in a while (or ever), take a moment to assess your posture.
While you might have a general idea of how a pose should appear, understanding how to properly position your body is far more crucial. In yoga, this is referred to as alignment, and mastering it on your own can be tricky—the most effective way to learn is through hands-on adjustments from an instructor. With yoga classes currently on hold, Instagram might just be your best alternative for alignment guidance.
Alignment diagrams are available for every yoga pose, from beginner-friendly to highly advanced, and they’re incredibly easy to locate. I follow @inflexibleyogis and @howtopracticeyoga on Instagram, both of which primarily share content from individual yoga instructors. I save the most useful posts for future reference. It might seem unconventional, but diagrams like the one below have proven far more beneficial and motivating to me than any instructional video.
Let me be clear: I’m not a yoga guru, nor am I particularly fond of video workouts, which is likely why I find these diagrams so incredibly appealing. (If you are a fan of videos, nearly everyone I know highly recommends Yoga with Adriene on YouTube, especially for beginners.) The contrast between the left and right sides of the images is instantly clear to me in a way that verbal or written explanations never are, and they also stay in my memory longer. Since discovering that bending my knees is perfectly acceptable—and actually better than straining my back to reach the floor—I’ve gained much more from my forward folds. And who would have thought that the key to standing backbends is squeezing your glutes with all your might?
When I decide to introduce a new pose into my relaxed bedtime yoga routine, alignment diagrams are my go-to resource. You don’t even need to dive deep into yoga Instagram if it’s not your thing; simply search “[pose] alignment” on Google and explore the results. Whether you’ve been practicing yoga for years or just started recently, for once, the Internet might actually have some valuable advice to offer.
