Chair Pose

Sit back as if onto a stool. Knees behind the toes, weight in the heels.

8 breathsKapha

How to do it

Stand with the feet hip-width, then sit the hips back and down as though lowering onto a stool behind you. Keep the weight in the heels and the knees behind the toes, and lift the chest so the spine stays long rather than rounding. Hold, and breathe — the shaking is normal.

SeatedSit-to-stand, holding halfway for two breaths.

What it does

Builds heat and leg strength faster than almost anything else in the library.

When you'll be given it

Kapha protocol, and on mornings when the body needs waking rather than soothing.

Where it comes from

Utkatasana appears in the classical asana lists; the modern long hold is a later emphasis.

Take care

Come out early if the knees hurt rather than work. Not for acute knee injury, and take it to a chair sit-to-stand if balance is uncertain.

The engine already leaves this out of your practice if your profile flags knee injury.

Not sure whether it suits you? Ask a Vaidya.

There's no button here to start this. Your practice is prescribed each morning — that's what keeps the dose honest.