Hi everyone!

Here are my top favourite yoga poses for detoxing the body. These poses are suitable for everyone, and can be done anywhere!

Sometimes after a hectic day, or a long holiday, it can be nice to give the body a little bit of a boost. These can be done separately, or together in one session. There are many different detox poses, but these I have found work the best.

Pose 1: Wide Leg Forewardfold Twist

This one is pretty easy to do, and is a good one to start with if you are planning on doing all of these together.

What to do:

• Start off in Tadasana (Mountain pose) with your feet hip distance apart, and arms extended. Press the feet firmly into the ground and fold forward from the hips.
• Walk the feet out as wide as what feels comfortable and place both hands firmly on the ground.
• When you feel comfortable, take a deep inhale and lift the left hand straight up, in line with the right hand to make a "T" shape. Twist from the waist, drawing the chest towards the ceiling and keeping the hips straight.
• Exhale and bring the left arm down, and then inhale and do the same thing with the right arm.

And the other side!

(Apologies for the fact that my top arm is cut off, I tried taking these about 12 times and it just wouldn't come out right!)

keep the movements nice and slow, keeping each arm extended for two or three breaths. Repeat three or four times.

Pose 2: Triangle pose

For this one, it is important to remember to take it slow and twist from the waist!

What to do:

• Starting off with the legs apart, (if you are doing all of the poses, all you have to do is come up from pose 1.) and take the left foot and turn the toes to point towards the left. the toes of the right foot are still facing forward. Make sure that the heel of the left foot is in line with the middle of the inner sole of the right foot.
• Take the arms out into a "T" shape, and hinge the weight towards the left foot,inhaling, and bringing the left hand down towards the left foot or ankle as you exhale. The right arm is still in line with the left arm and is pointing straight up.
• Open up the chest, twisting and drawing the ribs towards the ceiling, look up if you can.

from here,

• Inhale and come up, standing exactly how you were and now bringing the right hand down to the left foot as you exhale, coming into a Revolving triangle. The chest presses into the knee and the left arm reaches straight up. Twist open towards the ceiling again.
• Inhale and come up again, then swap sides by turning the left toes to face forward and the right toes to face the right. Repeat all of the steps on the right hand side.

Again, take it slow and try to sync the movements up with your own pace of breath.

Pose 3: Seated Spinal Twist

This is the most intense out of the three twists, and the most confusing! It takes time to figure it out and the majority of my students look at me like "Huh?" the first time I explain it, but it really is simple once you get the hang of it.

What to do:

• Start off seated, with both legs extended in front of you. Keep the legs straight, and the spine tall.
• From here, take the left foot and place it on the outside of the right knee.
• You can either leave the right leg extended the way it is, or you can fold it around, bringing the right foot next to the left hip.
• Extend the arms straight up as you inhale, keeping the spine nice and lifted, then,exhale, and take the right elbow and place it on the outside of the left knee. Let the left arm come down behind you, twisting from the waist to face the left, or if you can, behind you.
• Hold for 5 slow breaths, and then coming out of the pose in the same sequence as you got into it. Ending up back in a seated position with the legs extended out in front of you.
• Repeat the process on the other side, swapping the lefts and rights around.

This can be super confusing at first, but after a while it makes sense.

Pose 4: Legs Up The Wall pose

Yes, that is the actual English name for the pose. And, you can do it without a wall!

What to do:

• Start off lying on your back, and then extend both legs straight up. Try to keep them as straight as possible. You don't really want to be using your core here, so make sure the legs are perpendicular to the torso.
• And that's it! Let the arms be relaxed, and stay in this position for 15-20 slow breaths. You can even do this one in bed!
  when done, release the legs down gently and stay lying down for another few breaths until you feel ready to get up.

Simple, but effective!

Why Are These Poses Beneficial?

With the first three poses, we are actively twisting the mid section, and in turn wringing out the internal organs, helping them to release toxins.

And with the last pose, reversing the normal flow or blood by having the feet higher than the heart is very good for the body. Not only is it good for the cardio vascular system, and flushing stagnant blood and lymph from the legs, but it can help to relieve stress and anxiety, and it is super easy to do!

There you have it!

4 Poses to help detox the body. Other good ways to detox include getting a workout going that will make you sweat,(sweating releases toxins and waste!) and drinking lots of water. Go ahead and check out an awesome post by @heavenlydoms, where she talks about the importance of drinking water, and you can also check out her page for lovely, down to earth articles detailing her fitness journey and helping with motivation.
https://steemit.com/health/@heavenlydoms/drink-yourself-to-a-new-person-or-or-water-challenge-are-you-with-me

Her posts have helped me get more on track with drinking water, so hopefully it'll help you too!

Anyway, have an awesome day further, and let me know in the comments if you try these out, or have any other tips for detoxing the body!

Namaste