Looking to lose 10 pounds in your first week of keto? 

 Well, it is totally possible to lose 10 pounds in your first week on keto. 

However, I should point out some of the weight you lose will be water weight. But not to worry, you’ll still lose fat as well.

A typical recommendation for a healthy, safe weight loss to be 1-2 pounds a week. 

But with the keto diet, you’ll be limiting your carbs intake to force your body into ketosis. When you are in ketosis, your body burns fat instead of glucose, resulting in you losing a lot of fat, not just water weight. 

This is why the keto diet is one of the most popular diets for weight loss.

Going on keto and getting into a metabolic state, ketosis, is a way to burn fat, lose weight, and keep it off for good. 

Studies show keto diet can not only help you lose weight but also improve your overall health (1, 2).

How Do You Lose Weight on a Keto Diet? 

The diet is unique because it uses fat to fuel your body.

This is unique to the keto diet and it’s one reason why weight loss on keto works so well. 

This alteration of dietary macros forces your body to enter ketosis. It’s a metabolic state where your body is depleted of its primary energy source, glucose. It’s a derivative of carbohydrates that are produced in the body. 

Drastically cutting carbs results in less glucose your body has to burn to fuel itself. Essentially, when your body enters ketosis, it begins to break down fat instead of carbs for fuel.

Replacing carbs with fats enforces this switch in fuel source and turns your body into a fat burner. It’s what happens in ketosis and when your body produces ketones. Your body becomes extremely efficient in burning fat, both from stored fat and new fat intake. 

Because your body is constantly breaking down fat to use as fuel, you’ll naturally lose weight. 

This is how you lose weight on keto.

Another way weight loss happens on keto is through a filling diet. Ketogenic diet tends to be filling and satisfying, thanks to a decent intake of protein and loads of fat. 

By feeling fuller and having fewer cravings your calorie intakes, naturally decreases. 

Whenever you take in fewer calories, you lose weight. 

What Is the Fastest Way to Lose Weight?

The fastest way to lose weight on keto is to force your body into ketosis.

So your goal is to reach this metabolic state and start using the ketones as your body’s main energy source. 

That being said, reaching the state of ketosis and turning your body into a ketone body is a process. It also requires some work and planning. 

Here are 5 steps to get into ketosis fast, to lose 10 pounds in a week.

1. Limit Your Carb Intake

The core of a ketogenic diet is its low-carb diet. It’s the most important aspect of achieving ketosis. 

And this can only be caused by carb deprivation. 

In natural, carbohydrates or glucose serves as the body’s primary fuel source. But when glucose is lacking, the body turns to other energy sources like ketones, the fatty acids. 

When carb intake is low, your body releases fats stored in your body to be used as fuel. This is where fat burning happens and weight loss occurs. 

To induce ketosis and make this switch in energy source, the carb intake needs to be as low as 20-50g a day. 

With that said, the level of carbs to reach ketosis is different for everyone. 

Some need to go as low as 20 grams a day or even fewer, while others can tolerate 50g or more of carbs.

To lose weight fast, it’s best to start as low as you can to guarantee ketosis. Once your body becomes a ketone body, add back some carbs gradually.

Promoting weight loss on keto requires an alteration of your body’s metabolic state. Consult with a specialist near you to find your best keto macros before starting the diet. 

2. Add Healthy Fats to Your Diet 

A low-carb ketogenic diet is supported by a hefty dose of healthy fats. And that’s for a reason. 

Consuming lots of healthy fats helps boost your ketone production. 

A successful keto diet meal plan for weight loss gets as many as 80% of calories from fat. A keto diet for epilepsy or therapeutic keto can see calories from fat as high as 90%. 

But more fat does not necessarily translate to more ketones. 

A study shows eating 79% or 90% fat did not make a difference in the ketone levels produced (3). 

Rather, focus on eating enough of quality, healthy fat for ketosis. 

If you don’t know where to start, aim taking 80% of calories from fat. 

Some of the good keto fat sources are coconut oil, avocado oils, olive oil, and butter. Olives, coconut milk, avocados, and fatty fish and nuts can also help you boost your fat intake. 

One thing to note here is, for your weight loss, you need to still remain within your calorie budget. Don’t fall short of fat intake but also, don’t go overboard and break your calorie budget. 

3. Exercise to Speed Up Weight Loss In Ketosis

One question people always ask is this. 

Does exercise speed up weight loss in ketosis?

The short answer is yes. 

Exercise helps speed up weight loss in ketosis by depleting the body’s glycogen. They are normally replenished when you eat carbs, which glycogen is derived from. 

Studies have shown that physical activity can help deplete your glycogen (4, 5). 

With glycogen supply being kept at low on keto, this only forces your body to tap out on glycogen stores. In response, your body produces more ketones to fuel your muscles and cells. 

Another study has shown a remarkable increase in ketone levels with exercise. They recorded a 137 to 314% increase in ketones when exercising before a meal. In other words, exercising in a carb fasted state (6). 

For the best results, exercise before you eat to encourage more ketone production.

4. Try Intermittent Fasting With Keto

One way to speed up weight loss on a keto diet is to go on a short-term fast. 

By that, you go a portion of your day without eating. 

This type of short-term fast is known as intermittent fasting or IF diet. And when it’s combined with keto, it’s called keto fasting. 

Intermittent fasting is not a diet in itself. Rather, it’s an eating schedule that involves a period of fast to simulate your body’s fasted state. 

Fasting on keto is an effective way to induce ketosis and boost the production of ketones. 

It does that by depleting the body’s primary energy source, glycogen.

Lack of food intake for a period of time allows your body to use up its glycogen stores faster. Moreover, it forces your body to tap into your fat stores as an energy source, boosting your fat loss. 

This process is known as lipolysis. It’s about your body breaking fats to produce free fatty acids, which help create ketones.

The longer you fast, the more of those fatty acids will be released and the more ketone body you get to create.

So how does intermittent fasting and keto work? 

Intermittent fasting on keto helps your body get into ketosis faster. 

They both deplete glycogen supplies and add demands for ketone production. 

The way to do keto fasting is to incorporate fasts while eating keto meals. It’s that easy. 

A sample keto fasting plan would have you fast for 16 hours and eat in the remaining 8 hours. 

Since you can incorporate your sleep time in the fasting period, it’s as effortless as can be. 

If your goal is to lose 10 lbs in a week or something similar, try keto fasting. Its effectiveness for weight and fat loss is seen in many studies, and it is easy to start. a

5. Keep Track of Your Calories

If you caught me saying “you don’t have to track calories on keto” earlier in this post, you read it right.

And it’s true.

Keto is one diet that primarily focuses on burning fat by reaching ketosis. Calories take a back seat and in many discussions, they don’t even get brought up.

But there is also another truth.

Weight loss is directly related to the number of calories that go in and out of your body.

When trying to lose weight, it’s critical to create a calorie deficit.

This is true even for a keto diet, especially when you are aiming to lose 10 lbs in a week.

You can help foster weight loss by creating a calorie deficit on keto.

On the other hand, if you switch to a keto diet and don’t watch your calorie intake, you’re less likely to drop pounds.

With keto diet being full of fatty foods like avocados, nuts, and dairy, it helps to watch calories. Without your watchful eye, they can add up quite fast and lead to weight gain.

The best way to cut calories is by skipping snacking. If you are not particularly hungry, don’t snack. Also, this is where keto fasting can help.

By limiting the eating time, you can limit your overall daily calorie intake.

Keeping a food journal as well as downsizing your portion can help limit calories.

The bottom line is this. When following any diet, it’s important to create a calorie deficit to promote weight loss.

How Much Weight Can You Expect to Lose In a Week On Keto?

Weight loss results on keto can vary greatly from person to person.

With that said, the first week of following a keto diet can bring significant weight loss. And more often, the drop in weight is greater on a keto diet than other conventional diets. 

In a more conventional weight loss diet with an exercise plan, losing 2 lbs a week is the norm. On a keto diet, dieters can see up to 10-pound weight loss within the first week. 

Some dieters have even reported a loss of 7, 10, or even 12 pounds immediately after starting a keto diet. 

But again, weight loss results on any diet including the ketogenic diet can vary. And you may lose more or less depending on many personal factors. 

To shed light on what’s possible, here are some crazy keto results. 

These are weight-loss transformations that happened by following the keto diet. 

These positive keto reviews really highlight the effectiveness of the keto diet. And more likely than not, you can see weight loss results right from the start. 

Despite that, keto weight loss doesn’t come easy on some. 

So if you’ve been on a keto diet for a week or more and not seeing any drop in weight, it’s time to take a look at why. 

Why am I not losing weight on the keto diet?

Based on the effectiveness of the keto diet for weight loss, it is very unlikely you are not losing weight on keto. 

But of course, that’s if you are doing the keto diet correctly. 

Some keto dieters may find that they are not experiencing any drop in weight on keto. 

Too often, this can happen when you actually never hit ketosis despite following the diet. 

In general, here are possible reasons why you are not losing weight or reaching ketosis. 

• Eating too many carbs. Eating too many carbs on keto is a common mistake on keto. And it’s a top reason for dieters not losing weight on keto. Without minimizing carbs to where it needs to be, it becomes that much harder to reach ketosis. To avoid this pitfall, keep your carbs low to the minimum. Carbs shouldn’t represent more than 10% of your calorie intake. 
• Eating too many calories. Even on a keto, it’s essential to create a caloric deficit to enforce weight loss. You can achieve this by reducing your overall calorie intake or upping your exercise. 

If you start a keto diet and don’t watch your calorie intake, you’re unlikely to drop pounds.

It’s essential that you pay attention to your portion size. And choose keto snacks and meals that are filling without excessive calories. 

By avoiding these common keto mistakes, you should be on your way to reaching your weight loss goal. 

Take-Home Message

Following the above tips will help you lose 10 pounds in 1 week while following a low-carb ketogenic diet.

                                       CLICK HERE TO WATCH SHORT VIDEO

Losing weight can take a lot of time, discipline and sometimes a lot of sweat. There are however a lot of simpler ways to see your pounds and inches drop on the scale and in your waist without having to do HITT workouts three times a week, counting calories, or restricting yourself to a cabbage soup diet.

So, if you don’t want to feel like your world’s falling apart just to lose weight, here are 10 little tricks that you should incorporate daily into your routine that will help you lose weight – and if you’re consistent enough, it can even lead you to lose up to 20 pounds in a matter of 2 weeks. The best part of all this is, there is no gym or diet required.

1. Always start a meal with a glass of water.

You’ll stay hydrated and feel fuller instantly, which will help keep you from overeating.

2. Make a few simple swaps at every meal.

Going for a vinaigrette dressing instead of a ranch dressing at lunch can save you 80 calories, while opting for fresh fruit instead of dried can save you dozens as well.

3. Have a piece of dark chocolate for dessert.

Instead of opting for the cookies in the break room, quiet your sugar cravings with a piece of dark chocolate.

It may not feel quite as satisfying the first few times, but as you wean yourself off your sugar addiction, you’ll be glad you’re saving calories while having a healthy yet decadent treat.

4. Be diligent with portion control.

If you want to lose weight, sticking to the right portions at every meal is important. Measure out snacks beforehand instead of eating from the bag, use smaller plates to visually signal that your meal will satisfy, and put away leftovers so you’re not tempted to go back for seconds.

5. Move more.

Even if you’re not dedicating an entire chunk of time to a workout, you can burn a few extra calories by making an effort to move a little more during the day. Taking breaks to walk around the office, opting for the stairs instead of the escalator, and parking a little farther from the office entrance are all simple ways to up your calorie burn.

6. Don’t drink your calories.

It’s a common reason you’re not seeing results — those empty calories from a daily soda, morning juice, or large glass of wine at dinner can really add up.

Stick to water or if you really need some flavor, add fresh ingredients like cucumber, lemon, or mint. They’re calorie-free and taste amazing!

7. Don’t starve yourself.

A little hunger can be good for you, but starving yourself all day in order to “splurge” on dessert at night is both unhealthy and will sabotage even the strictest lean diet.

Eat well-timed meals and snacks in order to avoid low blood-sugar levels that cause you to crash and binge eat.

8. Snack on high-protein, high-fiber foods.

When it’s time to snack, make your food work for you. Steer clear of the empty, high-calorie options like chips and crackers, and go for protein- and fiber-rich foods that taste good and fill you up too.

You’ll be able to eat fewer calories while still feeling satisfied.

9. Steer clear of simple carbohydrates

Simple carbs are the white stuff—white bread, most pastries, refined sugars (the kind in soda and candy). What makes them simple, you ask? These foods provide energy, but lack the same nutrients (vitamins, minerals, and fiber) as complex carbohydrates. The body also breaks down simple carbs quickly—meaning your blood sugar will spike, and your tummy might be rumbling sooner than you imagined.

Choose whole grains instead, which your body will break down slower, keeping you feeling fuller longer. They will also reduce dangerous excess abdominal fat buildup.

So, make that switch to whole-wheat pasta, whole grain bread, or try grains like brown rice, quinoa, or millet. You will get used to them quickly and the days of simple carbs will be long gone.

10. Eat a light, early dinner.

Try to keep your dinner to about 25 percent of your daily food intake, and have it at least two to three hours before going to bed.

Eating too much too late can cause digestion and sleep issues that make it hard to stick to a healthy routine.

11. Get longer, more consistent sleep.

Lack of sleep can cause you to eat more throughout the day and not have enough energy to stay focus. So aim for seven to nine hours of sleep every night.

It’s an easy and effective way to keep your weight-loss goals on the right track.

12. Try this odd “carb trick” that burns up to 1 pound per day

If you’re like most women trying to lose weight… you diet, you count calories, you tear up the treadmill, and…nothing.

That’s how 40-year-old Carly Donovan, an overweight mother with prediabetes was feeling…

She did “everything right” and never lost an inch.

Until she stumbled on this strange “carb-pairing” trick and burned away an unheard of 22lbs pounds in just 13 days.

And because of this one simple shift in her eating, she shed pounds and inches from her body without starving herself and without a lick of exercise!

With the same “carb-pairing” trick Carly dropped a total of 37lbs in the FIRST month and she shocked her doctor by completely reversing ALL pre-diabetes symptoms!

If you’re a woman over the age of 25 who wants to reclaim her life inside the body she DESERVES, you should check it out for yourself.

                                      CLICK HERE TO WATCH SHORT VIDEO

How One Woman Discovered the Female Fat-Loss Code Missed by Modern Medicine And Lost 84 lbs Using a Simple 2-Step Ritual That 100% Guarantees Shocking Daily Weight Loss

MORE INFORMATION WATCH THIS VIDEO CLICK HERE

The coronavirus, also known as COVID-19, While this has got in the way of many diet and exercise plans, slimmers do not need to give up hope altogether. A personal trainer revealed the best ways to stay fit while at home.

RELATED ARTICLES

Speaking to she shared five tips on how to stay fit and healthy during this time.

Exercise

There are plenty of at-home workouts available for free online no matter what level you are at which dieters can take advantage of

Stay motivated

It can be difficult to stay motivated with everyone adapting to a drastic change in their routine, but doing so is important for keeping fitness goals on track.

“The importance of motivation is pivotal right now with personal trainers around the globe championing that narrative by recording ‘home workouts’ to access online,” she added.

Create a routine

Creating a new routine and sticking to it can be a great way not to lose any fitness progress.

The expert said: “Try and add these home workouts into your daily routine.

MORE INFORMATION WATCH THIS SHORT VIDEO CLICK HERE

Her “Carb-Pairing” Trick Melted Away 22lbs in Just 13 Days If
you’re upset about your weight and want to lose a little more, get
this… An overweight mother with pre-diabetes has just
SHOCKED the medical community by losing an unheard of 22lbs
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total of 37lbs in the first month!
…Even without exercising, she went on to burn off 84lbs (almost a
pound a day) and eliminated any sign of diabetes or any other
life-ending diseases. And the amazing thing is… All she did was
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weight-loss hormones to drastically accelerate fat-burning while
still eating the foods you love.

D.I.Y. 10-Second Carb Ritual Strips Away Fat!

So my 43-year-old cousin Sara ended up losing 19 pounds last
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counting “points”, gym memberships, pills…whatever she does,
she loses 10lbs and then gains back 12lbs. But I was SHOCKED
when I saw her this weekend…. Instead of gaining the weight
back, she doubled her weight loss in the second month!
She credits it all to this breakfast “Flavor-Pairing” trick. The weird
thing is that it only works for women because it reconditions the 3
female fat-lose hormones to eliminate any possibility of storing
fat. And best part is: Flavor-Pairing’s weight-loss-doubling
response signals the rapid-release of fat deposits from your hips,
legs and stomach by using the carbs you crave the most.

HARVARD MEDICAL: “Weight-Loss Doubling” Trick for
Women!

WOMEN ONLY: 1-Step Weight Loss Doubling Stop dieting and
try this 1-step trick before bed to lose 6 pounds a week for 5 weeks
straight like Kelli…. You could do it before breakfast like Carly and
lose 84lbs…. Or if you want to lose 2 dress sizes in the next 12
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only catch is that you have to be a woman over 20 years old with
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21,748 Women, 374,701lbs lost- This Changes
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As I’m sure you know already….. Almost 100% of diet and exercise
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weight loss failure rate at about 98%…. But what about that 2%?
…..That tiny 2% of rapid, reliable and safe solutions that literally
work for every single woman who try it…. It turns out they all have
one thing in common and it’s referred to as “Flavor-Pairing”.
Actually 21,748 “Flavor-Pairing” success stories have been
recorded since August of last year.
The frustrating part about this Female-Only ritual is: It’s been
hiding in plain sight for centuries…. we’ve just been looking in all
the wrong places! It was only until dieting almost killed her, that
one woman stumbled onto the secret that saved her life and
transformed her body in record time.
Instead of dieting, counting calories, popping pills and doing
cardio…. She began Flavor-Pairing her favorite foods and lost
84lbs in 6 months! Are you weight-loss resistant? Did diets stop
working a long time ago? Want to join the 2% Club and lose the
weight forever? Do yourself a favor…you deserve this: Flavor
Pairing: Trigger Your Total Body Transformation TONIGHT.

Odd carb trick burns up to 1LB per DAY!

If you’re like most folks… you diet, you count calories, you tear up
the treadmill, and… Nothing… That’s how one overweight mother
with prediabetes was feeling… She did “everything right” and
never lost an inch. Until… She stumbled on this strange “carb
trick” and burned away an unheard of 22lbs pounds in just 13
days…
And because of this one simple shift in her eating, she did it
without starving herself…! … and without a lick of exercise! Now
get this… with the same carb trick she dropped a total of 37lbs in
the FIRST month! … and shocked her doctor by completely
reversing ANY pre diabetic symptoms! You won’t even believe her
final result so I won’t bother telling you. However you can see it
for yourself on this pag.

BEST WEIGHT LOSE PLAN - CLICK HERE

Do you ever wonder how some people are just so flexible, and you’re, well…not?

It can be very intimidating when you’re new to yoga, and you see someone do a full split while you’re sitting there wondering how to even begin to conquer that pose.

Well let me be frank with you for a moment. Some people are just naturally flexible, and some people (me included) just need to work a little bit harder to get to those results.

Don’t think that naturally flexible people have it easy, they still have their own challenges they are trying to overcome, just as you will when you conquer this one!

But some of the people you think that are just naturally bendy really aren’t… they have just put hard work and dedication into reaching their goals.

The key to obtaining the results you want is consistency and focus.

You can’t just give up after trying one time and failing. Give yourself more credit than that!

I know you too can reach your goals, and I know it is overwhelming when you first start out. I had no idea which yoga poses were best to start with to improve flexibility before moving onto more advanced poses.

So I’ve created a list of the top 20 beginner yoga poses to improve flexibility. I have organized them into four groups: Shoulders, Hips, Hamstrings, and Back. I tried to provide as many variations for beginners as I could to help you safely and effectively improve your flexibility!

To start, I would hold each pose for about 5 to 10 slow breaths (this equals about 15 to 30 seconds), and then you can increase as time goes on.

20 beginner yoga poses for flexibility:

• SHOULDERS
• • Eagle (Garudasana)
  • Bow (Dhanurasana)
  • Bridge (Setu Bandha Sarvangasana)
  • Cobra (Bhujangasana)
  • Fish (Matsyasana)
• HIPS
• • Pigeon (Kapotasana)
  • Cow Face Forward Bend (Adho Mukha Gomukhasana)
  • Wide Legged Seated Forward Fold (Upavistha Konasana)
  • Crescent Lunge (Anjaneyasana)
  • Three Legged Dog (Eka Pada Adho Mukha Svanasana)
• HAMSTRINGS
• • Straight Legged Seated Forward Fold (Paschimottanasana)
  • Legs-Up-the-Wall (Viparita Karani)
  • Pyramid (Ardha Parsvottanasana)
  • Plow Pose (Halasana)
  • Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
• BACK
• Cat and Cow (Marjaiasana & Bitilasana)
• Camel (Ustrasana)
• Reclined Spinal Twist (Supta Matsyendrasana)
• Child’s Pose (Balasana)
• Standing Forward Fold (Uttanasana)

SHOULDERS

It is very common for people to hold tension and tightness in the shoulders due to poor posture and prolonged sitting. The following poses are great for opening up the chest, shoulders, and surrounding areas, such as the neck.

1. Eagle Arms Pose (Garurasana)

Eagle arms provide a great stretch for both shoulders. The pose shown here is a seated variation of Eagle.

You don’t need to have stacked legs if you have tight hips, you can simply sit in a comfortable seated position or stand while just practicing eagle arms.

How to do Eagle Arms:

1. Start by standing or sitting, and place your arms in a goal post position, forming 90 degree angles on either side. Make sure your elbows are inline with your shoulders.
2. Start to bring your arms in towards each other and place your right arm behind your left arm, so that your right elbow is resting on the inside of your left elbow.
3. Now wrap you left arm as much as you can around your right arm, trying to touch the inside of your right hand. If you can’t completely touch it all the way that’s okay.
4. Squeeze your arms in towards each other and actively bring them up to shoulder level.

Modification: If you are unable to do eagle arms, that’s okay. Instead of reaching for your hands to touch, simply allow your hand to grab your wrist or forearm, as long as you feel the stretch!

2. Bow (Dhanurasana)

Bow pose stretches the entire front body, and is especially great for those that sit at a desk all day and tend to hunch, as this pulls everything backwards while strengthening your back.

This pose may seem intimidating when first looking at it, but there are is a simple tool you can use to do it properly and safely that I’m going to show you so you can obtain the amazing benefits.

How to do Bow Pose:

1. Start on your stomach with your hands along your sides with palms facing up. Bend your knees and bring your heels in as close as you can to your butt.
2. Reach back with your hands and grab onto your ankles.
3. If you are unable to reach back with your hands, get a yoga strap (these are the ones I recommend) or if you don’t have one, you can use a sheet or thin towel.
4. On your next inhale, slowly lift your thighs off the floor and pull your heels away from your butt. This will naturally lift your chest and pull back your shoulders.

Although Bridge Pose is widely known for the positive effects it has on treModification: If your shoulders are too tight to bring your hands together, feel free to leave them pressed into the mat, or grab a yoga strap and use it to gradually bring your arms together by gripping the strap.

 4. Cobra (Bhujangasana)

Cobra Pose is a mild backbend that is perfect for beginners trying to improve their shoulder flexibility and open up their chest.

It’s important to make sure you do not overdo the backbend, as doing so could strain your back.

How to do Cobra Pose:

1. Start belly down on the floor, with forehead facing down and hands spread underneath your shoulders. Hug your arms into your sides.
2. Your legs should be spread out behind you, inner hip width distance apart and the tops of your feet flat on the ground.
3. Take a deep breath, then on your next exhale, push up with your hands while lifting through your chest.
4. Make sure to push through your pelvis, legs and feet to keep them grounded and distribute the backbend evenly.

Modification: If you feel tension in your back while doing this pose, spread your legs out wider. You do not need to come into full cobra- if you feel a stretch in Baby Cobra, stay there.

 

5. Fish (Matsyasana)

Fish pose is used as a counter pose for inversions such as Shoulder Stand and Plow Pose because of how great it is at stretching the shoulders.

How to do Fish Pose:

1. Start on your back with legs flat on the floor and hands by your sides.
2. Slightly lift your pelvis and slide your hands underneath your butt.
3. On your next exhale, press your forearms into the floor and pull your scapulas into your back while lifting your head and torso off of the floor.
4. You can make the backbend as mild as is comfortable for you, but make sure to keep your forearms planted to get the shoulder stretch.

Modification: Feel free to place a block underneath your back for extra support. In this case, you would spread your arms out wide instead of keeping them by your sides.

HIPS

Tight hips are one of the most common complaints from people first starting with yoga. They don’t realize they have tight hips until they see they are unable to do certain poses such as yogi squat or pigeon pose.

6. Pigeon (Kapotasana)

Pigeon Pose is great for stretching your hip flexors, and it is also a great way to reli

7. Cow Face Forward Bend (Adho Mukha Gomukhasana)

This is a great pose to give you a nice deep stretch in your hips, and is a great pose for those suffering from sciatica.

You can choose to bind your arms (as shown above) or just simply place your hands on the ground in front of you as you fold. The key here is the legs.

How to do Cow Face Forward Bend:

1. Start in a seated Staff Pose position.
2. Cross your right leg over your left and then bend both knees and slide both feet back towards your hips.
3. Your right knee should be stacked on top of your left now.
4. Sit tall and place you hands by your sides. At this time you can choose to clasp your hands behind your back, or you can slide them in front of your legs and you slowly fold over your legs.
5. You will feel a deep stretch in one of your hips. Make sure to repeat this pose on the opposite side to maintain balance in your body.

Modification: Do not feel the need to bring your arms into a bind, you can simply bring them out in front of you. Also, if you cannot stack your knees due to tight hips, try stacking your calves instead.

 

8. Wide Legged Seated Forward Fold (Upavistha Konasana)

Folding yoga poses have so many benefits in themselves, but Wide Legged Seated Forward Fold is especially great at targeting the hips due to the wide stance.

How to do Wide Legged Seated Forward Fold:

1. Start in Staff Pose. Spread your legs out as wide as you can while still maintaining a comfortable seat.
2. Flex both feet and make sure they are facing directly up at the ceiling by rotating your thighs.
3. With a straight back, lift your arms up overhead before you slowly fold over the middle and reach your hands towards opposite feet.
4. It’s okay if you can’t grab your toes here, you can grab onto your ankles or shins as well.

Modification: Use a pillow or bolster in front of you to provide more support if you find it hard to fold your torso forward.

9. Crescent Lunge (Anjaneyasana)

This is one of my favorite poses to do when my hips are feeling extra tight. You feel the stretch instantly and the best part is you can control the severity of the stretch by how much you lean forward.

How to do Crescent Lunge:

1. Start on your knees, then bring your left leg forward with your foot flat on the ground. Untuck your back toes.
2. With control lift your arms overhead as you start to push your hips forward, sinking into your left knee.
3. As you do this, slightly arch your back and lift through your chest.
4. If this is too much for you, try placing both hands on your left knee and using them to slowly push forward.
5. Make sure to repeat this stretch on the other side. Remember, take it slow and breathe into the discomfort to release all of your tension!

Modification: Place your hands on your front knee for stability and to allow yourself to better control the intensity of the stretch. Pulsing in this pose also helps if you find it very uncomfortable.

10. Three Legged Dog (Eka Pada Adho Mukha Svanasana)

This is similar to Downward Facing Dog, except you are lifting one leg into the air, hence the “Three Legged” name. It is also sometimes referred to as “One Legged Dog” because you are only using one leg.

How to do Three Legged Dog:

1. Start in Downward Facing Dog.
2. Make sure you are distributing your weight properly throughout your entire body. You will know you aren’t if you feel an intense amount of weight on your arms.
3. If this happens, try engaging your core and pushing more through your heels.
4. Once you feel grounded, on your next exhale, lift your right leg straight up into the air as high as you can.
5. You will immediately feel your right hip open up. For an even deeper stretch, try bending your right leg and opening your hip up to the right side of the room by moving your foot foot towards the left side of your body.

Modification: If you find all of the weight coming onto your upper body, try using two yoga blocks under your hands to elevate the upper body and allow you to focus more on the hip opening portion of this pose.

I hope you enjoyed this list of poses and they serve you well 🙂 I have created an infographic to help you remember all the poses!