In Sivananda yoga, sun salutation is practiced right at the beginning of our class. Sun salutation is a sequence of 12 poses in motion. A series of right plus left sequence will form one round. We were advise to practise between 4-6 rounds in each class.
When teaching Sivananda beginners course, I notice many people find difficulties in familiarizing with Sun Salutation due it's sequence and lots of points to note while practicing. Therefore I have created a couple of videos before to help students in their home practise if they like to have a revision after class.
This video below shows you the slowest form of practise. We can pause for a while in every of the 12 poses or action and breath deeply to open the joints. The main objective of the video is to highlight some common areas where most people tend to neglect. The video is in silent on purpose so that viewers can concentrate more on the actions.
Sun salutation can also be practise in normal and fast speed. The video below will showcase the different speed of practise. When practise slightly faster, sun salutation is also like a pranayama (breathing exercise).
You should try to breath with one breath, one motion. When the momentum of practise have picked up rather well, you can even speed up the practise into a fast sun salutation. Similarly, you should try to breath with one breath one motion. Due to the fast motion, your breathing will naturally be faster, the heart will also pump faster too. Therefore fast sun salutation is a bit of a cardio exercise.
Sun salutation is a simple and yet powerful practise. If you have no time for a full practise, few rounds of sun salutation will quickly give you all the stretches a body need. If you observe, this exercise literally stretch from toes to head. Every part of the body gets a chance to stretch and strengthen.
One last video to show. This is a demonstration of Sun Salutation by a fellow Sivananda Yogi friend, Kalyani. She has a perfect back bend and graceful movements. However, it is important to note that we all have different anatomy and experience. We shall try our best in the practise will do. Do not over bend yourself when your body is yet to be ready.
Hope photo and videos will help you in your practise.
Om. Om