3 Yoga Poses For Recovery
| Pose | Duration |
| Balasana: Child’s Pose | 5 deep breaths |
| Marjaryasana–Bitilasana: Cat–Cow | 5 reps |
| Adho Mukha Svanasana: Downward Facing Dog | 5 deep breaths |
⊕ Perform these restorative poses consecutively to create a gentle active-recovery or postworkout flow.
Balasana: Child’s Pose
Hold for 5 or more deep breaths.
Full Instructions
- Begin by kneeling on your mat.
- Separate your knees hip width apart and keep your big toes together.
- Lower your seat onto your heels and your torso toward the floor, resting your forehead on the mat.
Make it easier: Place a block beneath your seat.
Make it harder: Extend your arms forward and press your palms firmly into the mat for a more active stretch.
Marjaryasana–Bitilasana: Cat-Cow
Repeat 5 times, synchronizing breath with movement.
Full Instructions
- From child’s pose, transition into table pose: shoulders over wrists and hips over knees.
- Inhale, and on your exhale round your back upward, tucking your chin to your chest and reaching your midback toward the ceiling; this is cat pose.
- On your next inhale, slowly arch your spine, lowering your belly and lifting your tailbone, shoulders, and head. Look up slightly, creating a gentle stretch in your neck; this is cow pose.
- Repeat while synchronizing your breath with the movement.
Make it easier: While gazing upward, hold cow for five breaths; then round down into cat and hold for five breaths.
Make it more challenging: Point your fingers toward your knees to create a greater stretch in your wrists.
Adho Mukha Svanasana: Downward Facing Dog
Hold for 5 or more deep breaths.
Full Instructions
- From cat–cow, neutralize your spine to return to table pose.
- Then curl your toes under and lift your hips up.
- Keep your spine flat and lower your heels toward the mat, as far as your hamstrings allow.
- Separate your fingers wide and look toward your feet.
Make it easier: Raise your heels slightly to ease the sensation.
Make it harder: Gently bend and straighten your knees to feel a greater hamstring stretch.
Illustrations by: Kveta