Everybody can benefit from a mid-day mental reset! If you’re not keen on coffee or want to reduce your intake but still feel alive and ready to go after a break at work, try yoga. If you would normally work in an office and have taken up residence in your front room armed with a laptop, notebook and your tv remote, at home yoga is a great option in between tasks, on your lunch break or after a drearily long zoom call. 

Try these 5 yoga stretches to re-energise your limbs with blood flow, get rid of back cramps and reduce mental fogginess that comes with a busy day at work. 

1. Standing Forward Fold

This move can stretch your calves and feel great. Get a new perspective on things with your head by your knees (or as close as you can get). To do this pose stand tall with your legs apart, exhale and bend at your hips to place your hand on the group in front of you, do this with your knees slightly bent for comfort. 

2. Garland Pose

Tightness in your hips from sitting at a desk all day long? Release tension and stretch your muscles in the garland pose holding for 5 breaths. Stand with your feet wider than your hips (but not too much, just enough so that it’s comfortable to squat). Now bend your knees into that squat positions and sink your hips back towards the ground. Draw your hands to your heart for balance and push your shoulders back, engaging your core throughout. 

3. Cow/Cat Pose

This pose is ideal for a stiff back from uncomfortable makeshift desk areas. Kneel down on the floor placing your hands in front of you. Now curl your head under and your shoulders out into the cow position (your back should be like a bridge). Hold this for 3 breaths. Now invert this pose into the cat position with your bottom in the air and your back dipped down, hold again for 3 breaths. 

4. Child's pose

To stretch any stiffness in your shoulders, arms, hands and fingertips from typing all morning you will need to get into a child's pose. Kneel down and sit into yourself, now upon exhale stretch your arms out as far as you can and bend at the hips so your head is almost touching the floor. Really stretch your arms, right through to your fingertips and hold for 5 breaths. 

5. Corpse pose 

To finish off any yoga session, it wouldn’t be complete without the corpse pose. This is where you lay flat on your back with your arms by your side and legs comfortably placed shoulder width apart. Close your eyes and focus on your breathing, if you need to, place a pillow under your back if you feel it strained in this position. Hold for 5 breaths.

And there you have it, a quick and easy 5 minute yoga session to get your blood circulating and your limbs feeling mobile again!