A bad morning can follow you throughout the entire day — raise your hand if stubbing your toe on your bed frame and spilling your coffee all over your new white shirt snowballed into unnecessarily snapping at your partner and an overall foul mood.
While we can’t do much about your furniture placement, we can help you out with a 10-minute yoga practice — curated by Katie Davidson, a California-based certified yoga instructor — that puts positivity and productivity on the forefront.
“One thing to understand is that yoga involves subtle energy in the body,” Davidson says. “Moving and releasing stagnant energy right when we wake up is a great cleansing practice, while synching our breath with our movement is one way to align our bodies with our minds, essentially getting all parts of ourselves on the same page before we start our day. It also sets our priorities straight.”
While Davidson admits it’s tempting to sit up in bed and simply begin, she recommends getting out of bed and carving out a special place for your practice — even just a corner of your room works! “There are already so many distractions; a warm, cozy bed doesn’t need to be one of them. Set your space up ahead of time, perhaps with a cushion or blanket for the first meditative posture, and anything else that might help you anchor, or commit to, your practice,” she says.
Then, check out Davidson’s yoga sequence and pro tips, below. While she notes that it’s suitable for all levels and can be done in succession, remember to take breaks as needed and listen to your body’s cues.