10-Minute Morning Yoga to Ease Tension in Your Hips and Back

This 10-minute morning yoga practice is designed to help you release that tightness and tension that you feel in the morning. The following poses focus on your hips and lower back through seated hip-opening stretches and then progressing into some twists that support your back. There’s also strengthening work for your core in some unexpected variations on everyday poses.

If you find that you can’t stretch very far in these poses, don’t worry. Your body will release throughout the 10-minute morning yoga practice.

10-Minute Morning Yoga for Lower Back and Hips

Each practice we work with a different affirmation. Today, we’re working with, “I deserve to be loved and respected.” So throughout your practice and your day, keep this thought in mind and keep coming back to it.

There are no props required in this morning yoga class although you’re welcome to use them.

Turtle Pose

You’ll start in a variation of Butterfly or Bound Angle Pose. Normally in this seated forward bend, your feet are pretty close to your hips. Although in Turtle, you’ll slide your heels much farther away and keep your knees bent at a little more than a 90-degree angle. This makes the pose much easier for your lower back. As you tilt forward and release down, you’re simply relaxing down. You want it to be a passive fold, so let gravity do the work.

If your chest is close toward the mat, an option is to thread your forearms underneath your legs, palms facing up. Breathe here.

Slowly lift back up, going really slow here. Help your knees come back to center and place your feet on the mat. Hold onto your feet, ankles, or shins as you round your back, contract your core, and lower your chin toward your chest. You’re looking for a big stretch along the spine. Then come back to sitting upright.

Seated Pigeon Pose

Straighten your legs and cross your right ankle over your left knee in a seated version of Pigeon Pose. You can bring your hands behind you for a little support. Maybe you start to sway a little, side to side, as you stretch through your right hip and glutes. This is also a stretch for the low back. See if you can lift your chest a little higher and stay here for a few breaths.

Slide your left leg straight, uncross your legs, and then repeat on the other side.

Downward-Facing Dog

As you come into your first Downward-Facing Dog of the day, your hands are shoulder-distance apart, your feet are hip-distance apart, and you want to lift your hips up and back. Bend your right knee a lot, keep your left leg straight, and push into your left heel to stretch along the back of your left leg. Then switch sides.

Three-Legged Dog

From Downward Dog, lift your right leg and stretch it toward the sky, bend your knee, open your hip, and stretch here.

Low Lunge

Bring your right foot forward to the top of the mat in between your hands. Lower your back knee down to the mat and lift up into a Low Lunge with your arms reaching alongside your head.

Low Lunge Twist

You’re going to integrate a twist here by taking your hands together at the heart and cross your left elbow to your right knee. You’re trying to push your elbow into your thigh with your hands together as you turn your chest toward the right. Keep sinking your hips toward the mat while trying to lift your chest away from your thigh.

Seated Twist

Come back to center and as you bring your fingertips down, look to the mat and then step or slide your left knee behind your right foot. Sit yourself back so your sit bones are grounded and your right foot is crossing over your left thigh. Lift yourself tall and wrap your left arm around your right leg and bring your right fingertips behind you as you broaden across the chest in a seated twist. You’re emphasizing lifting out of the lower back and lengthening along the spine. No slouching. No rounding.

Happy Baby Pose

Come back to center, bring both legs straight in front of you, and reach your arms forward as you slowly lower yourself all the way back to the mat. You want to engage your abdominal muscles and take your time lowering down all the way to the mat. Draw your knees toward your belly, give it a squeeze and maybe rock a little side to side.

Come into Happy Baby Pose by catching hold of your feet, ankles, or shins and stacking your ankles over your knees. You can rock a little here side to side massaging your low back.

One-Legged Bridge Pose

Release your feet and bring them flat on the mat while your knees stay bent. Push your heels into the mat and lift your hips into Bridge Pose. Lean onto your left side and see if you can lift your right leg and straighten it on a diagonal, keeping your thighs parallel so your right leg is reaching forward. Then switch sides.

Come back to Bridge Pose and let your hips come all the way down to the mat.

Downward-Facing Dog

Come back into Downward-Facing Dog and hold here or you can inhale as you shift forward into Plank, exhale into Chaturanga, inhale into Cobra or Upward-Facing Dog, and then exhale back into Downward Dog.

Then repeat the sequence on your left side, beginning with Low Lunge Twist and then coming into Happy Baby, and Bridge Pose. You can skip the Downward Dog.

Constructive Rest

From Bridge Pose, take your feet as wide as the mat and let your knees rest together. Breathe here. Come back to your affirmation. We’re not coming into a full Savasana because it can be tempting to fall back asleep although do pause here for several moments.

Then let your knees drop from side to side in a windshield wiper motion. When you’re ready, turn to one side and use your arms to push into the mat and lift yourself. Come to sit, nice and tall, and close your eyes. Take a few breaths here. Pause here and see how you feel after your 10-minute morning yoga for lower back and hips practice. This class is part of a 30-Day Morning Yoga Challenge, which features more short morning practices and allows you to start anytime.