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Pose collection · 14 poses

Gentle yoga poses for stiff bodies and slow days

By the YogaPhilippines.com editorial teamPublished Updated

Easy yoga poses are low-effort shapes close to the floor, such as Child's Pose, Cat-Cow, Sphinx, a lying twist and Legs Up the Wall. They need no balance or strength, suit stiff or tired bodies, and can be held for five slow breaths or longer with cushions under you wherever something feels strained.

Beginner

A woman in an oat set rests in Child's Pose, hips on her heels, forehead on the mat and arms stretched forward.

Child's Pose

Balasana
Kneel, sit back towards the heels and rest the forehead on the floor or a cushion. Stay for a minute.
A man on hands and knees holds a flat-backed Table Top Pose in a bright room with trees in the window.

Table Top Pose

Bharmanasana
Hands under shoulders, knees under hips. The starting point for most of the floor shapes below.
A woman on hands and knees rounds her spine toward the ceiling in the Cat shape of Cat-Cow, head dropped, in a bright oak-floored room.

Cat-Cow

Marjaryasana Bitilasana
Round the back on the out-breath and soften the belly down on the in-breath, six slow rounds.
A woman in a sage set melts her chest toward the mat in Puppy Pose, hips over knees and arms stretched forward.

Puppy Pose

Uttana Shishosana
From all fours, walk the hands forward and lower the chest towards the floor, hips over the knees.
A woman in a stone set lies on her belly propped on her forearms in Sphinx Pose in an open-air Siargao shala.

Sphinx Pose

Salamba Bhujangasana
Lie on your front and prop up on the forearms. A gentle backbend with very little effort.
A woman in an oat set kneels sitting back on her heels in Thunderbolt Pose, hands resting on her thighs, in soft window light.

Thunderbolt Pose

Vajrasana
Kneel and sit on the heels, with a cushion between heels and hips if the knees complain.
A woman in a sage set sits cross-legged in Easy Pose on a folded blanket, hands on her knees and eyes closed.

Easy Pose

Sukhasana
Sit cross-legged on a cushion high enough for the knees to drop below the hips.
A woman in an espresso set sits tall in Butterfly Pose, soles together and knees open, hands around her feet, on a Manila condo rooftop.

Butterfly Pose

Baddha Konasana
Soles together, knees falling open onto cushions. Sit tall rather than folding deep.
A woman in a sage set stands tall in Mountain Pose, arms by her sides, on a mat in a sunlit Makati condo studio with towers through the window.

Mountain Pose

Tadasana
Stand with the feet hip-width apart and the weight even. The simplest standing shape.
A man folds forward in Standing Forward Bend with knees bent and palms on the floor beside his feet.

Standing Forward Bend

Uttanasana
Fold from the hips with the knees well bent and let the head hang. Roll up slowly.
A woman in a cream set lies in a Supine Twist, knees dropped to one side and arms open wide, seen from above.

Supine Twist

Supta Matsyendrasana
On your back, let both bent knees fall to one side and rest there for five breaths each way.
A woman in a cream set lies on her back holding the outsides of her feet with knees wide in Happy Baby Pose.

Happy Baby Pose

Ananda Balasana
On your back, hold the outer edges of the feet or the backs of the thighs and rock gently.
A woman lies on her back with her legs resting up a plaster wall and a folded blanket under her hips, arms open.

Legs Up the Wall

Viparita Karani
Lie with the hips near a wall and the legs resting up it. Stay a few minutes.
A woman in a cream set rests in Savasana on her back, legs apart and arms open, head on a folded blanket, under palm-leaf shadows.

Corpse Pose

Savasana
Lie flat, arms by your sides, and let everything go for three to five minutes.

These easy yoga poses ask for no balance, no strength and no flexibility you do not already have. Most of them happen on the floor, where there is nowhere to fall, and every one can be made softer with a cushion, a folded blanket or a wall.

They are chosen for days when you feel stiff, tired or simply new to all of this. New to yoga rather than just tired? Begin with the yoga poses for beginners. This page goes gentler still.

How do you put easy yoga poses together?

Work from the floor up and back down. Start in Child’s Pose, move to all fours for Cat-Cow and Puppy, lie on your front for Sphinx, then sit in Easy Pose or Butterfly for a minute of slow breathing. Stand for Mountain and a soft forward fold if you feel like it, then come down to your back for the twist, Happy Baby, Legs Up the Wall and a long rest.

Five slow breaths in each shape gives you a session of fifteen to twenty minutes. On a short day, choose four poses and stay longer in each.

The seated shapes have their own page of seated yoga poses you can do on a cushion or a chair, and when you are ready to spend more time on your feet, the standing yoga poses, one card each, are the natural next set.

Which easy poses suit which kind of day?

How you feelTryWhy it suits
Stiff back after sittingCat-Cow, Sphinx, supine twistMoves the spine in three directions without effort
Heavy, tired legsLegs Up the Wall, Happy BabyThe legs rest above or level with the hips
Wired before bedChild’s Pose, Butterfly, SavasanaSupported shapes with slow breathing
Tight shoulders from the phonePuppy, Table Top shoulder rollsOpens the arms and upper back
Want to feel more awakeMountain, standing forward bend, Cat-CowUpright and moving, but still gentle

A ten-minute morning set to print

  1. Child’s Pose, 1 minute.
  2. Table Top to Cat-Cow, 6 slow rounds.
  3. Puppy Pose, 5 breaths.
  4. Sphinx, 5 breaths.
  5. Easy Pose, 1 minute of slow breathing.
  6. Mountain Pose, 5 breaths.
  7. Standing forward bend, knees bent, 5 breaths, then roll up slowly.

No props? Use what is at home

A firm sofa cushion works as a block for Easy Pose and Butterfly. A rolled bath towel goes under the knees in Thunderbolt or behind the knees in Savasana. A folded blanket softens a tile floor for kneeling shapes, which matters in many Philippine homes where the floor is hard and cool. A pillow on a chair seat makes Child’s Pose easier if getting to the floor is difficult.

How long until these poses feel easier?

Most people find getting down to the floor and back up becomes smoother within a couple of weeks of practising a few times a week, and the floor shapes start to feel like rest rather than effort. Keep the same short set for a month before adding anything new.

What makes a pose feel easy?

Three things: your weight is supported, the breath stays slow, and nothing pinches. If any of the three goes, the pose has stopped being easy for you today, whatever it looks like on paper. Bend the knees more, add a prop or come out.

Gentle shapes can feel good for people who sit a lot, older bodies and anyone easing back after time away. For a calm evening version, the bedtime yoga sequence uses several of these in order, and on days when the belly feels full and tight, the gentle yoga poses for bloating pair the same shapes with slow breathing. To learn one pose a week instead, cut out the printable pose cards, each with a line drawing and two cues.

If a pose causes sharp pain, numbness or pain that stays afterwards, stop and see a doctor or physio before you continue.

Safety noteYoga is not medical care. Stop if anything feels sharp, pinching or numb, and see a doctor or physiotherapist about pain or an injury before you practise. Read the health and safety note.
Sources: Mayo Clinic, Fitness program: 5 steps to get started; NCCIH (US National Institutes of Health), Yoga: Effectiveness and Safety. Last reviewed 2 October 2026.

Questions

What is the easiest yoga pose of all?

Corpse Pose, Savasana, asks the least of the body: you lie on your back and let the floor hold you. Child's Pose comes a close second, and both are places to rest at any point in a practice.

Can easy yoga poses still be worth doing?

Yes. Gentle shapes move the spine and hips and give you time to breathe slowly, which is what many people want on a tired day. An easy session done often tends to be more useful than a hard one you avoid.

How do you make a yoga pose easier?

Bring the floor closer. Put a block under the hand, a cushion under the hips or a folded blanket under the knees, bend the knees in any fold, and shorten the time you stay. If it still feels strained, choose a different shape.

How many easy yoga poses should you do in one session?

Five to eight poses held for several slow breaths each make a calm 10 to 20 minute session. Start with something that moves the spine, such as Cat-Cow, add a few floor stretches, and finish lying down. A short session you enjoy is better than a long list you skip.

Can you do easy yoga poses before bed?

Yes. Slow floor poses such as Child's Pose, a lying twist, a supported butterfly and Legs Up the Wall suit the evening well. Keep the lights low, breathe slowly with a longer exhale, and leave out anything energising like deep backbends.

Are easy yoga poses suitable for seniors?

Many of them are, especially with a chair or wall for support and cushions under the knees or hips. Move slowly when getting up and down from the floor. If you have a heart condition, joint replacement or balance problems, check with your doctor first.

Keep reading

Yoga poses lying down, on the mat or in bedSeated yoga poses, from Easy Pose to BoatYoga poses for beginners: twelve shapes to learn firstYoga for seniors, from the chair to the mat

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