Six-week summer body countdown | Yoga warm-up

Specially created for our six-week summer body countdown by ESPA Senior Trainer and Yoga Teacher Nicola Baillie, spend five minutes warming up your body with these three exercises.

Nicola Baillie, ESPA Senior Trainer

Upper body warm-up 

Upper body warm-up | Mountain Pose

Standing in Mountain Pose.

1. Inhale, press your feet down, stretching your arms out and up above your head.
2. Exhale, release the arms back down, keeping your body soft and your legs strong.

Repeat this at least four times, keeping in time with your breath.

Warm up your hamstrings and activate your back

This is a mini Vinyasa.

1. On the last repetition of the upper body warm up, as you reach your arms up and out, hold your arms over your head for a breath. Pressing into your feet and reaching up.
2. Exhale, swan dive down into a Forward Fold, keeping your knees bent at first, easing your body slowly into the fold.
3. Inhale, reach your heart forward, extending the spine. Come up onto your fingertips or bring your hands to your shins, into a Half Standing Forward Bend.
4. Exhale, drawing back down into a Forward Fold.
5. Inhale, press your feet down, coming back up, stretching your arms back and up. Repeat this at least two times.

Warm up sides of body

1. Coming into Child’s Pose, extend your arms out and walk them to the left slightly.
2. Take your right hip and shoulder back. Inhale as you come back to centre and repeat on the other side.

Mobilize your spine

Nicola in Cat Pose

1. Coming onto your hands and knees move into a Cat/Cow
2. Inhale, lift your heart, your gaze and tailbone.
3. Exhale, round the spine. Repeat a few times.

Read our six-week summer body countdown | weeks 1-2 here