Before jumping right into any advanced yoga posture, warming up is essential. It is essential because you want to be able to check in with your body and warm it up so that you don’t pull any muscles or hurt yourself.

1. Start by sitting up and taking a few deep belly breaths
2. With the hands on the knees, begin to move the shoulders up back and down circling them around and feel your shoulder blades moving along your back. Remember to reverse your direction here.
3. Coming back to center, begin moving your neck around in circles. Take your time and really feel it. Remember to reverse directions.
4. Lift the arms to the sky, twist to the right taking your right hand behind you and left hand to the right knee, look past your right shoulder. Inhaling come back to center and switch sides.
5. Come to your hands and knees, begin with some cats and cows on an inhale, open the heart and arch your back (cow pose), exhale round your spine and bring the chin to the chest (cat pose). Do a couple of these to arm up your spine.
6. Back to table top, Move your arms back up and around 3 circles, and reverse it, switch sides.
7. Do at least 3 sun salutations to get the body fully warmed up.

Muscles that are targeted in this asana are:

Back: Spinal Extensors

Arms and Shoulders: Infraspinatus and Triceps

Chest: Pectoralis Major and Serratus Anterior

Core: Rectus Abdominis and External Obliques