Simple Seated Twistवक्रासन
Vakrāsana — a beginner twist that works the obliques, spinal erectors.
30–60SECONDS HELD · EACH SIDE
One line on the timetable. Simple Seated Twist is held 30–60 seconds each side, with the breath moving throughout — and it takes its place inside one of the practices posted on this site.
SOURCE·YogaPath sequence data — stay times as taught·one breath ≈ 5 s at an even pace·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How to do Simple Seated Twist
Read all of it before starting, and read the cautions further down before starting at all.
Sit with both legs stretched forward and sit up onto a folded blanket if the lower back rounds.
Bend the right knee and place the right foot flat on the floor beside the left knee, not crossed over it.
Set the right hand on the floor behind the right hip with the fingers pointing away.
Hug the right knee with the left arm and turn the ribs to the right on an exhale.
Keep both sitting bones loaded, hold, then unwind and change sides.
Hold: 30–60 seconds each side. Keep the breath moving throughout — if you are holding it, the pose is too much for today.
Muscles worked
Where the effort and the lengthening land. Primary groups do most of the work; secondary groups assist or are stretched.
What Simple Seated Twist does
Described mechanically — what the movement does to muscle and joint. Not a list of conditions it treats, because a pose does not treat conditions.
- Rotates the spine from a seated base without asking the hip for the deep range that fuller twists need.
- Loads the obliques of the front side as they draw the ribcage around.
- Teaches the difference between turning the ribs and shoving with the arm.
Simple Seated Twist is one of 25 twists in this library and one of 88 poses rated beginner. Poses that rotate the spine around its long axis with the pelvis anchored.
Who should skip Simple Seated Twist, or change it
- Pregnancy — the knee crosses the belly, so take an open twist away from the bent leg instead.
- Disc injury or recent spinal surgery: reduce the rotation sharply or leave it out.
- Sacroiliac irritation, which sitting asymmetrically can provoke.
- Recent abdominal surgery, which a compressed trunk position loads.
General information only — not medical advice. Some asanas are unsuitable during pregnancy, injury or specific conditions. Learn from a qualified teacher and stop if anything hurts. If you are pregnant, recovering from surgery or managing any health condition, ask your doctor before starting a practice, and learn the pose itself from a qualified teacher who can see you move.
Common mistakes in Simple Seated Twist
What tends to go wrong, and the specific correction — not "engage your core".
MistakeLevering hard on the back hand so the shoulder hitches and the chest closes.
FixKeep that hand light and lengthen up before turning.
MistakeLifting one sitting bone off the floor to gain a few more degrees.
FixWeight both sides evenly and accept the smaller turn.
How the energy figure on a yoga timetable is reached
- Nobody has measured a single asana in a metabolic cart, so no per-pose figure is published here — not by this site and not by anyone.
- The pose is matched to the nearest style of practice in the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. Simple Seated Twist sits at code 02150, yoga, Hatha, 2.5 MET.
- That MET value is put through the standard ACSM relationship for a stated reference adult of 70 kg.
- The result is the cost of a practice of that kind for as long as you practise — not the cost of holding this one shape.
- Scale it to yourself: the relationship is linear in body mass, so multiply by your own weight in kilograms and divide by 70.
kcal/min = MET × 3.5 × kg ÷ 200
= 2.5 × 3.5 × 70 ÷ 200
= 3.06 kcal per minute
The same practice, hour by hour
Read it the way you would read a timetable: pick the length of session you actually sit down for, and that is the figure.
| Time practising | 10 min | 20 min | 30 min | 45 min | 60 min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 31 | 61 | 92 | 138 | 184 |
SOURCE·2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities·code 02150 · 2.5 MET · 70 kg reference adult·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole activity dataset, including everything that is not yoga, is at BurnLab.
Asked before class
How do you do Simple Seated Twist?
Sit with both legs stretched forward and sit up onto a folded blanket if the lower back rounds. Bend the right knee and place the right foot flat on the floor beside the left knee, not crossed over it. Set the right hand on the floor behind the right hip with the fingers pointing away. Hug the right knee with the left arm and turn the ribs to the right on an exhale. Keep both sitting bones loaded, hold, then unwind and change sides. Hold for 30–60 seconds each side.
What does Simple Seated Twist work?
Primarily the obliques, spinal erectors, with the glutes, shoulders, abdominals assisting or lengthening. In mechanical terms: rotates the spine from a seated base without asking the hip for the deep range that fuller twists need.
Who should not do Simple Seated Twist?
Pregnancy — the knee crosses the belly, so take an open twist away from the bent leg instead. Disc injury or recent spinal surgery: reduce the rotation sharply or leave it out. Sacroiliac irritation, which sitting asymmetrically can provoke. Recent abdominal surgery, which a compressed trunk position loads. This is general information, not medical advice — if any of these apply to you, ask your doctor and learn the pose with a qualified teacher rather than from a page.
Is Simple Seated Twist suitable for beginners?
Yes. Simple Seated Twist is a beginner-level pose on this site, which means it is learnable in a first class and has a version that works for most bodies. The cautions above still apply.
How many calories does Simple Seated Twist burn?
The honest answer is that nobody has measured a single asana. The 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities publishes MET values for styles of yoga, not for individual poses. Simple Seated Twist sits closest to Compendium code 02150, yoga, Hatha, at 2.5 MET — about 92 kcal for 30 minutes of that kind of practice for a 70 kg adult. Holding one pose for a minute is a rounding error either way.
Sequences that use Simple Seated Twist
The rest of the twists on the wall
More twists — first at the same level, then the rest of the family.
Asana names are traditional. Every step, benefit and caution on this page is written for YogaPath rather than reproduced from any book, studio or other library — see how this site is written and what it is written from. General information only — not medical advice. Some asanas are unsuitable during pregnancy, injury or specific conditions. Learn from a qualified teacher and stop if anything hurts.
SOURCE·Published asana references·asana names, alignment and cautions as taught·REVIEWED JUL 2026
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