ONEYOGAHOUSE

When you work toward refining your form in foundational poses like Chaturanga, you gain more than physical strength. These asanas build confidence, increase body awareness, and improve your overall focus and endurance. Mastering the basics lays the groundwork for a sustainable yoga practice that can evolve into more advanced poses as your body adapts.

Chaturanga builds strength in the arms, shoulders, and core, while also promoting alignment and control. It’s typically practiced as part of a Sun Salutation sequence and helps to unlock the door to strength-based poses, fluid transitions, and help prepare the body for more advanced poses like arm balances and inversions.

Performing Chaturanga with proper form requires core stability, shoulder integrity, and leg strength. Follow these step-by-step instructions:

• Start in a plank position, keeping your body in a straight line from head to heels, with your neck long
• Engage your core and squeeze your elbows into your sides
• Slowly lower your body, aiming for your elbows to form a 90-degree angle
• Keep your shoulders above your elbows, not dropping them below
• Engage your thighs and protect your lower back by squeezing your glutes and stacking your heels over the balls of your feet
• Inhale as you transition to Cobra, Upward Dog, or exhale to move back into Plank pose

To practice Chaturanga effectively and safely, be mindful of these common mistakes and make adjustments accordingly.

Whether you’re curious about proper alignment or how to modify the pose, we’ve got you covered.

How will I know if I’m doing Chaturanga correctly?

In Chaturanga, your body should be in a straight line from your head to your heels. Your elbows should stay close to your sides and bend to a 90-degree angle. Keep your core engaged and avoid letting your hips sag or your shoulders drop below your elbows.

My shoulders hurt when I do Chaturanga. What’s wrong?

If your shoulders hurt, it could mean you’re not using the right technique. Check that your elbows are aligned directly under your shoulders and not too far forward or back. Make sure you’re engaging your legs and core, and not relying solely on your arms.

What if I can’t lower my body half-way down to the ground?

It’s okay if you can’t lower yourself half-way; you can lower all the way down to the ground or perform Chaturanga from your knees to make it easier until you’re ready to try it in full. This reduces the intensity on your arms and core while you’re still working on building strength and technique.

Should I do Chaturanga in every practice?

While it’s a great strength-building pose, you don’t have to do Chaturanga every time you practice. If you’re still building strength or recovering, you can modify it by doing it on your knees, or lowering knees-chest-chin (Ashtanga Namaskara), or skipping it in favor of poses that work better for you.

ONEYOGAHOUSE’s on-demand content allows you to practice Chaturanga and other foundational asanas at your own pace. Whether you’re a beginner looking to build strength or someone looking to deepen your practice, our on-demand classes cater to all levels. Start with the basics, and gradually challenge yourself with more complex flows.

For those interested in pursuing a deeper understanding of the practice or teaching yoga, mastering foundational asanas like Chaturanga is essential. Our 200-hour yoga teacher training program is designed to guide you through the principles of yoga, including alignment, sequencing, and teaching strategies. By practicing foundational poses, you prepare not only your body but also your mind for the next steps in your yoga journey.

We offer a diverse range of classes suited to practitioners of all levels, from absolute beginners to advanced yogis. Our yoga teachers come from all lineages and studies, from Katonah and Iyengar, to Vinyasa and Ashtanga. Whether you’re drawn to a hot, vigorous flow, a gentle, restorative practice, or a meditative sound therapy session, there’s something for everyone. Each class is thoughtfully designed to cater to different needs and preferences, ensuring that you find the practice that resonates with you.

Our most popular specialty classes include:

Our pilates classes will challenge you in exercises that chisel your abs, tone your glutes, and sculpt long, lean muscles. You will use your own body weight, yoga blocks, magic circles, and resistance bands.

This class combines a gentle slow flow and restorative yin postures and closes with a deep meditation session to explore the quietude of your mind.

This is a heated Vinyasa flow experience that is intentional, fun, and guided by the rhythm of the breath. Expect lots of movement with a focus on functional exercises. It’s an open-level class that’s powered by radiant infrared panels and an air purification system to minimize airborne dust, pollen, and germs.

Taught by senior teachers, master classes are an opportunity for intermediate yogis and teachers to deepen their practice through an extended study of the asanas. You’ll incorporate more advanced postures, yoga philosophy, and anatomical education.

This class breaks down the fundamentals of key yoga postures for both people who have never taken a yoga class and practitioners who have some knowledge of the practice but would like to renew and strengthen their foundation.

Explore somatic movement exercises to help re-educate the way your brain moves, holds, and senses your muscles. You’ll commence class with an extended savasana and gradually enter into yoga asanas.

In this internal strength class using the Kinstretch® Method, focus on the determinants of your movement (i.e. ligaments, tendons, and connective tissue) rather than the external organization of movement (i.e. specific yoga poses). Through self-assessment, you’ll learn about your current range of motion and exercise more control.

Similar to The Fiery ONE, expect an open-level, but room temperature, Vinyasa class woven with elements of Hatha, Iyengar, Ashtanga, or Katonah Yoga. These yoga classes are intelligently sequenced at a slower, sweeter pace to ease you into the practice, allowing time for your body to adapt to movement. You are sure to break a sweat by building heat from within.

At OYH, you’re part of a supportive and inclusive community from day one. Whether you attend classes regularly or drop in occasionally, you’ll find camaraderie and encouragement from fellow practitioners and instructors alike. The studio fosters connections beyond the mat, offering workshops, events, retreats, and social gatherings to support local businesses (like brunch and oyster shucking) where you can connect with like-minded individuals and deepen your practice both on and off the mat.