A gentle seated practice
A whole practice done sitting — on the floor or on a chair — for anyone who does not want to get up and down.
Getting to the floor and back is the barrier for a lot of people, and it has nothing to do with whether the practice would be useful. Every pose here happens seated. If the floor is difficult, do all of it on a firm chair with both feet flat — the shapes are the same and so is the work.
The sequence
Every pose name links to its full page — steps, muscles worked, common mistakes and who should skip it.
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1
Easy Pose Sukhāsana
2 minutes
Sit tall — on a block, cushion or chair — and take ten slow breaths.
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2
Seated Mountain Pose Parvatāsana
5 breaths, three times
Arms overhead, fingers interlaced, palms turning up.
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3
Swaying Palm Tree Pose Tiryaka Tāḍāsana
30 seconds each side
Side bend to each side with the seat staying down.
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4
Easy Seated Twist Parivṛtta Sukhāsana
45 seconds each side
Seated twist, hips facing forward, turning from the ribs.
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5
Cow Face Pose Gomukhāsana
45 seconds each side
Cow-face arms with a strap between the hands.
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6
Eagle Pose Garuḍāsana
45 seconds each side
Eagle arms to open between the shoulder blades.
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7
Bound Angle Pose Baddha Koṇāsana
1–2 minutes
Soles together, sitting up on a block.
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8
Head-to-Knee Pose Jānu Śīrṣāsana
1 minute each side
Fold forward over one leg, or both, resting on a cushion.
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9
Staff Pose Daṇḍāsana
1 minute
Sit tall again and notice the difference in the spine.
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10
Corpse Pose Śavāsana
4 minutes
Rest — lying down, or leaning back in the chair with the eyes closed.
Before you start this sequence
- Read the cautions on the individual pose pages. Between them, the poses here rule themselves out for pregnancy, high blood pressure, glaucoma, and neck, knee, shoulder and wrist injuries — the details differ pose by pose.
- A sequence is an order, not a prescription. Leave out anything that hurts and the rest still works.
- If you are pregnant, recently post-surgical, or managing a health condition, get your doctor's view before starting, and learn from a qualified teacher in person.
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.
Notes on practising it
This is a real practice, not a lesser one. Held with attention, seated work does more for an upright spine than a fast standing sequence done badly.
The energy figure above uses the standard ACSM relationship — MET × 3.5 × body mass in kilograms ÷ 200 kcal per minute — with the MET value taken from the nearest published code in the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. The full working is on the method page, and the wider activity dataset is at BurnLab.
Questions
How long does the Gentle seated practice sequence take?
About 20 minutes for 10 poses at the stay times listed. Suggested volume: once through. At 2.5 MET — the nearest published code in the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities — that is roughly 61 kcal for a 70 kg adult.
Do I have to do the poses in this order?
The order is the point. Sequences are arranged so that each pose prepares the next one and answers the one before it — a backbend followed by a forward bend, a long hold followed by something that unloads it. Reordering them is fine once you know why they sit where they do.
Is the Gentle seated practice sequence suitable for beginners?
Yes. Every pose in it is a beginner-level shape with an accessible version, though you should still read each pose's own cautions — a beginner pose can still be wrong for a specific pregnancy, knee or neck.
What do I need for it?
A mat, and for several poses a block and a strap — a folded blanket and a belt do the same job. Nothing here needs a studio.
Other sequences
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. Energy figures derive from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. 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.