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Sometimes you want to practice yoga in a way that’s more creatively challenging than usual. Other times you need a yoga practice that stretches your body in ways that are tricky to target. The following 20-minute yoga practice blissfully addresses both your wants and needs through a mix of core strengthening and bending that targets a side stretch your oft-neglected obliques and IT bands.
By incorporating some unexpected side bending, or lateral flexion, into common poses that don’t typically move in that plane, you’re able to strengthen and stretch the body in unexpected and challenging ways.
20-Minute Yoga Practice for a Side Stretch
The following practice incorporates side stretches in some uncommon ways to maximize your time on the mat and ensure you’re prepared for the poses that follow. Expect to try Tree Pose in Side Plank and practice hand-to-foot grabs early in your 20-minute yoga practice prior to attempting a challenging expression of Half Moon Pose.
Opening Savasana
Begin lying on your back with your legs straight and relaxed. Place your palms on the lower part of your abdomen to create a connection with your breath. Slow your inhalations and your exhalations.
Constructive Rest
From Savasana, bend your knees and bring your feet slightly wider than your hips, letting your knees fall toward one another if that’s comfortable for you. Allow your gaze to soften or close your eyes and aim for a count of 4 or 5 with each inhalation and exhalation. Focus on lifting the space underneath your hands as you inhale and allow it to softly lower as you exhale. Ensure your lower back presses into the mat and your shoulders draw away from your ears.
Reclined Twist
Extend your left leg straight and draw your right knee toward your chest. Take an easy twist by guiding your right knee across your body. Rest your left hand on your right thigh and extend your right arm straight out from your shoulder, relaxing your right shoulder. If you like, bend your right elbow to make a cactus shape. Feel the stretch across your right rib cage, outer hip, and lower back. Breathe here.
Return to center and switch sides, bringing your left knee toward your chest and repeating the twist.
Straight-Leg Twisted Crunch
From your reclined twist, straighten your legs and lift them toward the sky. Interlace your fingers behind your head. As you inhale, lift your shoulders off the mat. As you exhale, lower your left leg while twisting your chest toward the right. If you want, you can reach your left arm outside your right thigh. Inhale as you lift your left leg again and come back to center. Exhale as you repeat on the other side. Focus on maintaining a steady breath throughout the movement. Repeat 5 times on each side.
Twisted Crunch
While still lying on your back, continue with the core engagement by bending your right knee and drawing it toward your chest as you point your toes forward. With your fingers still interlaced behind your head, inhale as you lift your shoulders off the mat. As you exhale, twist your torso and bring your left elbow toward your right knee. Inhale as you come back to the center and repeat on the other side. Repeat for 5 rounds on each side, keeping a controlled and rhythmic pace, emphasizing the engagement of your core.
Seated Side Stretch
Come to a seated position. Straighten through your spine and reach your arms alongside your head. Release your right hand to the mat a foot or so away from you right hip and extend your left arm up and overhead, feeling a stretch along your left side. Stay here and breathe. Repeat on the other side.
Seated Twist
Sitting tall, twist toward the right, place your left hand on the outside of the right knee, and reach your right arm behind you. Engage your core, ensuring your spine stays long. Switch sides and repeat, maintaining a smooth and deliberate twist.
Cat and Cow With a Side Stretch
Make your way to hands and knees and move into Cat and Cow, adding a side variation by bringing your left shoulder and left knee toward each other on the inhale, and then the right shoulder toward the right hip on the exhale. Take your time as you repeat. Continue with the classic cat and cow sequence, focusing on the flow of your breath and ensuring a fluid movement through the spine.
Tabletop With a Reach
From Tabletop, shift your weight into your right hand and lift your right leg as you reach for your right ankle with your left hand. Lift your leg higher, pressing the foot away from you into your hand. Feel a gentle arch in your back. Release and switch sides, maintaining a steady breath throughout.
Down Dog With a Side Stretch
From hands and knees, tuck your toes and lift your hips into Downward-Facing Dog. Pause here as you breathe and lengthen along your back body. Then lift your right leg toward the sky. Bend your right knee and reach your toes toward the left side of your mat. Option to shift your weight into your right hand and reach your left hand back to grab your right ankle, adding an extra stretch to the side body. Focus on a stable and aligned pose with your hips in line with one another. Release back to Downward-Facing Dog.
Low Lunge With Reaching Back
From Down Dog, step your right foot a few inches behind your right palm in a Low Lunge with your back knee lifted. Twist your entire body toward the right as you roll onto the outer edge of both feet to face the long side of the mat. Reach your right arm overhead and toward the back of the mat. Inhale as you lift your hips away from the mat and exhale as you lower them toward the mat, feeling the stretch along your left hip. Repeat a few times, engaging your core to help with stability.
Side Plank Tree Pose Variation
From your twisting lunge, straighten your bottom leg and make your way to Side Plank. Bring your right foot to your inner left thigh in a Tree Pose variation and bring your right arm overhead.
Wild Thing
From Side Plank, lift your hips higher as you lower your right foot behind you and transition into Wild Thing. Lift your hips and chest toward the sky and allow your neck to relax. Feel a deep stretch through the side body as you breathe here. Return to Side Plank with control before transitioning into Plank Pose and then Downward-Facing Dog.
Repeat the sequence on your other side, beginning with Scorpion Dog and ending with Downward-Facing Dog.
Standing Forward Bend With a Sway
From Downward-Facing Dog, walk yourself to the top of the mat and come into a Standing Forward Bend with your knees slightly bent. Hold opposite elbows, relax your neck, and gently sway from side to side. Come back to center and slowly bring yourself to a standing position in Mountain Pose, hands at your side. Pause here for a free breaths.
From Mountain, take yourself through a vinyasa by exhaling as you move into Plank Pose and lower yourself to Chaturanga, then inhaling as you come into Upward-Facing Dog, and exhaling as you shift your hips up and back into Downward-Facing Dog.
Reverse or Peaceful Warrior
From Down Dog, lift your right leg and step it forward. Spin your back heel down and inhale into Warrior 2. Transition into a Reverse or Peaceful Warrior by releasing your left hand along your left leg and reaching your right arm overhead. Feel the stretch along the left side of your body. Return to Warrior 2.
Triangle Pose
From Warrior 2, straighten your right leg and hinge at your hips as you reach your right hand to the ground or a block. Bring your right arm overhead, fingertips reaching toward the top of the mat and lengthen through the left side of your body in Triangle Pose. Keep your tailbone reaching downward and maintain a slight bend in your right leg.
Half Moon Pose
From Triangle Pose, transition into Half Moon Pose by shifting your weight into your front foot and lifting your left leg. Engage your glutes and hamstrings and reach your left arm upward.
Half Moon Pose With a Bind or Sugarcane Pose
Move into Sugarcane Pose by bending your lifted knee and reaching your left arm behind your back and grabbing the ankle. Lift your chest as you stay here and breathe.
Release with control and come back to Half Moon Pose, then step back into Warrior 2 followed by Reverse Warrior, and then exhale as you come back to Downward-Facing Dog.
Side Plank Variation
From Downward-Facing Dog, shift your shoulders forward over your wrists and stack your right leg over your left as you come back into Side Plank Pose. If you like, float your right leg for an extra challenge. As you did earlier when releasing Wild Thing, transition into Plank and take a flow before you return to Downward-Facing Dog.
Repeat your flow on the second side, beginning with Reverse or Peaceful Warrior.
Half Splits
From Downward-Facing Dog, step your right foot forward, lower your left knee, and start to straighten your right leg as you come into Half Splits. Flex your right foot and square your hips toward the front of the mat. Breathe here. Then release into Plank Pose.
Forearm Side Plank Dips
From Plank, transition into Forearm Plank on your left side, engaging your core for stability. As you exhale, dip your hips toward the mat. As you inhale, lift them. Then transition between these movements. Return to Plank and lift your hips into Downward-Facing Dog.
Reclined Spinal Twist
From Down Dog, lower your knees to the mat and sit back into Child’s Pose. Breathe here. Then transition onto your back and draw your knees into your chest. Bring your arms straight out to the sides and gently guide both knees over to the right in a twist, releasing your left shoulder toward the mat. Take your time as you breathe here. Switch sides.
Crescent Moon Stretch
From your twist, continue to lie on your back and straighten your legs. Shift your hips slightly to the left. Cross your left ankle over the right and extend your arms overhead, grabbing opposite elbows. Create a crescent or banana shape with your body by shimmying your upper body and then your lower boy toward the right, lengthening along your left side. Gently hold onto opposite elbows. To intensify the stretch, cross your left ankle over your right. Stay here for 10 to 12 breaths. Return to center and switch sides.
Savasana
Come into Savasana and allow your feet to fall outward and your arms to rest at your sides. Close your eyes and bring your awareness to your breath and to any bodily sensations. Savasana is a final relaxation pose, offering a moment of stillness and integration, allowing the benefits of the practice to settle in.
About Our Contributor
Kassandra Reinhardt is an Ottawa-based Yin Yoga and vinyasa yoga instructor whose YouTube channel, Yoga With Kassandra, has grown to 2.2 million subscribers and has more than 230 million views. Kassandra recently released her guided yoga journal, My Yoga Journey: A Guided Journal, her daily affirmation card deck, I Radiate Joy,and her book, Year of Yoga.
