While the upper chakras may seem more exciting to work on, the power of returning to your root chakra and some yoga basics is essential in building your yoga practice and balancing all of your chakras.
These yoga poses for your root chakra will bring you back to the most important thing: yourself. Through these simple poses you will feel grounded in just a few breaths.
Come back to these Muladhara yoga poses again and again, whenever you’re feeling like your head is in the clouds and you want to come back down to Earth, when you feel uncertain or like nothing is working out, when you need to feel fully supported and safe just as you are or when you just need to secure your foundation in life and on the mat.
Root Chakra Basics
Location: Base of spine
Element: Earth
Colour: Red
Meaning: The root chakra is connected to safety, security, confidence, acceptance and comfort. It’s the chakra responsible for your sense of belonging, connection to Earth and your foundation.
Other names: Muladhara, first chakra
Translation: Root support
How Does Yoga Help Balance the Root Chakra?
Some of the most common imbalances of the root chakra when it is blocked can cause you to feel sluggish, tired, stressed, stuck, abandoned, worried, hateful towards your body and yourself and often an overall feeling of not feeling good enough just as you are.
But when your root chakra is open you can feel a deeper connection and sense of self, you feel wanted and loved, you’re content with your body, yourself, where you’re at in life and most importantly, you feel safe and secure.
Yoga is a great way to help you feel more secure, both physically and mentally. It’s through grounding poses that you will feel fully supported and come back to yourself, your body and your breath. When you concentrate on where you are, focus on the moment and be present, your sense of security and self are clear, thus balancing your root chakra and leaving you feeling grounded, content and safe.
READ MORE: Root Chakra Affirmations for Grounding
Yoga for Root Chakra Sequence
Flow it out with this root chakra yoga class that combines all of the poses listed below into a grounding and centreing class focused on your root chakra.
Prefer something more relaxed today? Try this root chakra yin class instead!
Root Chakra Poses for Instant Grounding
Never underestimate the power of simplicity. There’s a reason why these simple poses are used the most often in yoga, without them your foundation would be shakey! When your root chakra is imbalanced, your solid foundation for life could feel like it’s cracking both on and off the mat.
Taking a few minutes to ground can do wonders quickly though. Ready to feel a sense of security, return to yourself and get grounded? Repeat these poses as many times as needed!
The poses detailed below are part of a more active, vinyasa sequence. But I’ve also got root chakra yin yoga poses for those days you need something a bit more relaxing.
Child’s Pose (Balasana)
Come down onto your knees and sit back on your heels, toes untucked. Spread your knees wide, to the edges of your mat and with a straight spine slowly walk your hands towards the top of your mat.
Bring your forehead to touch the mat, allowing your forearms to rest on the mat in a relaxed child’s pose.
Take deep breaths in and out, allowing your belly to fill and empty with each breath. Take 3 breaths in through your nose and out through your mouth, as forcefully as you need to or with a sigh, feeling your body relax further into the mat.
Feel your spine elongate with each breath and the space between your ribs open.
Allow yourself to fully let go, feel completely supported by your mat and Mother Earth. Stay for a minimum of 5 breaths.
Option: If you have tight hamstrings which don’t allow your bum to touch your heels and it’s uncomfortable, use a bolster or a rolled-up towel or blanket and place it between your thighs and calves so you’re sitting on it.
Mountain Pose (Tadasana)
Stand with your feet hip-width apart, or whatever distance is comfortable and feels strong with your feet pointing towards the top of your mat.
Lift all 10 of your toes, spread them apart and place them back down on the mat for extra support. Gently rock back and forth, side to side to feel into all 4 corners of your feet, your roots.
Have a micro-bend in your knees and your tailbone slightly tucked so that your spine is straight. Pull your belly button to your spine so that your lower back is supported.
Roll your shoulders up to your ears, back and then down your spine, opening your chest so that you’re standing tall. Allow your palms to shine forward and the crown of your head to reach towards the sky.
Close your eyes and allow yourself to just be. Hold for a minimum of 3 breaths.
Forward Fold (Uttanasana)
Stand with your feet hip-width apart. Bend your knees generously and allow your upper body to fold over your thighs.
Let your tummy come to rest on your thighs, completely supported to release any tension and use of muscles from your lower back.
Let your arms hang to the ground, with the option to hold opposite elbows with opposite hands.
Nod your head yes and no to release any tension in the neck, and if it feels good allow your upper body to gently sway from side to side.
Hold for a minimum of 3 breaths.
Yogi Squat (Malasana)
From standing, turn your feet out and step them so that they come to the edges of your mat or further. Drop your bum down to the mat so that you come into a squat.
Rock back and forth of your feet until you find the spacing between your feet that’s comfortable for your hips.
Bring your hands to your heart-centre in prayer and use your elbows to gently push on your inner thighs. Close your eyes, lengthen your spine, reaching the crown of your head to the sky and the base of your spine to the ground.
Take 5 deep breaths.
Corpse Pose (Savasana)
Lay down on your back and allow yourself to feel completely supported by your mat and the ground below you. Bring your heels to the edges of your mat or further, whatever feels comfortable. Allow your arms to fall away from your sides, palms facing up.
Take a deep breath in through your nose and with a deep exhale let it out through your mouth.
Let your eye sockets be soft, your lips to part and your jaw release. Let your limbs be heavy. Breathe deeply for 10 breaths or for however long feels good.
Let all thoughts go.