Free tool
Sun salutation timer
The sun salutation timer shows one step card at a time for Sun Salutation A or B and moves on automatically. Choose A or B, set how many seconds each step lasts, from 2 to 10, and press start. Each card names the pose and tells you when to breathe in or out.
Sun Salutation Timer
Press start. Each step shows for 4 seconds.
- Mountain Pose: Stand tall, feet together or hip-width, palms at the chest. Breathe out.
- Upward salute: Breathe in and sweep the arms up overhead.
- Standing forward bend: Breathe out and fold forward, knees soft.
- Half lift: Breathe in, hands to shins, lengthen the spine.
- Chaturanga or knees down: Breathe out, step back and lower halfway, or lower with knees down.
- Upward-facing dog or cobra: Breathe in and lift the chest.
- Downward-facing dog: Breathe out, lift the hips. Stay for five breaths.
- Half lift: Step to the front of the mat, breathe in and lengthen.
- Standing forward bend: Breathe out and fold.
- Upward salute: Breathe in and rise with the arms overhead.
- Mountain Pose: Breathe out, hands to the chest.
How does the sun salutation timer work?
Pick Sun Salutation A or Sun Salutation B, then use the slider to set the seconds per step. Press start and the first card appears with the pose name and a breath cue, such as “breathe in and sweep the arms up”. When the time runs out, the next card follows. At the end you will see “round complete”; press restart for another round. The full list of steps sits under the timer, with the current step in bold, so you can glance ahead.
Sun Salutation A has eleven steps: Mountain Pose, upward salute, forward fold, half lift, chaturanga or knees down, upward-facing dog or cobra, downward dog, and back up to standing. Sun Salutation B has thirteen steps and adds Chair Pose and Warrior I on the right side, then the left. For the history and alignment of each version, read the sun salutation guide. If you prefer paper to a screen, the printable Sun Salutation A and B cards show every position with its breath.
How do you use the timer well?
Let the breath set the pace and the timer follow it. If a card changes before your breath is finished, slow the timer down. Downward dog is the one place to stay longer; the card suggests five breaths there. If you need to pause, press stop and start the round again when you are ready.
Each pose name with a link opens its own page. The downward-facing dog guide and the chaturanga guide are worth reading first, as those two shapes take the most load through the wrists and shoulders.
What are the limits?
The timer keeps time; it cannot see your form. Bend your knees in the forward folds, lower with knees down if chaturanga is new, and choose cobra over upward dog if your lower back feels pinched. Stop if anything hurts, and see a doctor or physio if pain persists.
If you are pregnant, ask your OB or midwife before practising and skip the lowering and lying on your belly. For a fuller practice that starts with sun salutations, try the wake-up yoga sequence.
What this tool draws on
Each count in the timer follows a pose in the salutation. These are the pages behind every step.
It is one of 28 free tools on the site, and none of them needs a sign-up.
Sources: Mayo Clinic, Fitness program: 5 steps to get started; NCCIH (US National Institutes of Health), Yoga: Effectiveness and Safety; NHS, Exercise in pregnancy; CDC, Pregnant & Postpartum Activity: An Overview; Canadian Family Physician (Chan et al., 2014), via PubMed Central, Hot yoga and pregnancy: Fitness and hyperthermia. Last reviewed 2 October 2026.
Questions
What pace suits the sun salutation timer?
Start at four or five seconds a step while you learn the order. As the shapes become familiar, slow your breath rather than speeding up the timer. The aim is one breath per movement, not a race.
How many rounds of sun salutation should a beginner do?
Two or three rounds of Sun Salutation A is a fair start. Add a round at a time over the following weeks, and stop early if your wrists, shoulders or lower back complain.
What is the difference between Sun Salutation A and B on the timer?
A has eleven steps built around a forward fold, a lowering and downward dog. B has thirteen steps and adds Chair Pose and Warrior I on each side, so it takes longer and works the legs more.
How long does one round of Sun Salutation take?
At four or five seconds a step, a round of Sun Salutation A, with eleven steps, takes about a minute, and Sun Salutation B, with thirteen steps, a little longer. Staying for five breaths in Downward Dog adds some time. Let the breath set the pace: one breath per movement matters more than finishing quickly.
Updated