Standing Yoga Postures for Fibromyalgia

Learn 13 standing yoga postures for persons with fibromyalgia. Hold each position for 5 slow, deep breaths or 20 seconds. Work up to holding each posture for 2 minutes or more, if you like. Or just stick with the 20 second hold.

If you've found this page first, please go back to the Fibromyalgia and Yoga Page for an introduction and instructions.


Disclaimer: These exercises are not intended to diagnose, cure, prevent or treat any diseases. The information here is not provided by a professional and is not intended as a substitute for professional instruction. Please consult your physician before beginning any physical exercise program. This website and it's owner are not responsible for injury or adverse effects when performing these exercises.

Warm-ups: (Helps prevent injury) Never stretch to warm up. Warm up your muscles first, then stretch. Pick your favorite sport and pretend you are a pro, but in slow motion. For instance, you can pitch a baseball (as shown in the picture), serve a tennis ball, swim the crawl, or swing a golf club. Do this for a minute or two to get the blood flowing.

Mountain Pose: (Improves posture and makes you feel grounded) Stand with heels and toes together, arms at sides. Feel yourself tall as a mountain, lifting your chest and dropping your shoulders. Imagine a string lifting the back of your head yet still with your feet firmly planted on the ground. This is the beginning position for all of the standing exercises. Return to this posture between each exercise. Hold for one or two complete breaths.

Reach for the Stars: (Great energizer and tension releaser) Stand with heels together and toes angled out in a V-shape, arms at sides. Inhale while raising up onto your toes and slowly bringing arms out to sides and then up over your head. Breathe while holding this posture. Balance while focusing on a spot in front of you. Stretch your whole body up from the waist, reaching high but keeping shoulders down and relaxed. Feel a string pulling up through the middle of your head from the top of your spine. Slowly release back down while exhaling. Repeat two times or more.

Forward Bend: (Promotes spine flexibility and slenderizes hips) Inhale. Bend forward at the hips while exhaling, keeping your back straight but not locking the knees. If you have lower back problems, keep your knees bent. Your goal is to put your stomach to your thighs first, then work at getting your head to your knees, then work at straightening your knees if it doesn't cause pain. Hold. Repeat two more times.

Dancer's Pose: (Improves poise and balance, relieves back and shoulder tension) Inhale. Shift your weight to one foot. Grab hold of the other foot behind you while raising your opposite hand above your head and exhaling. Hold this position while breathing. Lower arm and leg slowly. Practice 3 times, each side.

Arm Roll: (Strenthens arms, shoulders, chest, improves posture) Stand with feet about shoulder width apart. Place arms straight out to the sides from relaxed shoulders with palms facing up. Keep arms in this position while rotating hands and wrists as far forward as you can. Hold. Return to palms facing up. Repeat two times.

Foot Roll: (Strengthens feet, slenderizes ankles and improves circulation) Stand with feet slightly apart. Breathe normally for this yoga exercise. Move up onto your toes, then roll onto the outside of your feet. Continue rolling back onto your heels, turn inward to roll from heels to toes on the inside of your feet. Finish back on your toes. Repeat in a continuous roll ten times.

Standing Twist: (Slims waistline, strenthens arms and shoulders, promotes spine flexibility) Stand with feet one foot apart. Hold arms straight out to the sides with palms facing outward.

Twist the upper part of your body, keeping feet planted on the ground. Eventually, work up to facing the opposite direction of your feet. Twist each direction 2 or 3 times.

Abdominal Lift: (Stimulates digestive system and all internal organs) Always have an empty stomach for this exercise. Stand with feet 1 foot apart. Bend knees and rest palms on upper thighs, facing inward with thumbs pointing at hipbones. Breathe out completely, pulling stomach in as you push out all of the air in your lungs. Then, with breath still out, push out your stomach and then pull it back in. Repeat up to 5 times in rapid succesion without inhaling. Then take a breath and blow it out as you repeat. You may work up to 20 faster repetitions between breaths. Repeat 2 more times.

Lion: (Helps bring blood flow to sore throat and head cold for quicker recovery) Place hands on thighs with knees bent. Spread fingers as wide apart as possible. Open mouth as wide as you can, stick out tongue as far as you can, open eyes as wide as you can without blinking. Hold this posture until your eyes start to water, staring at one spot. Repeat until your eyes water a lot. (If your eyes don't shed tears, you're dehydrated or blinking too soon.)

Relaxation: (Ends your yoga session, relieves tension) Stand with feet shoulder width apart. Imagine you are under a waterfall and the water has just cascaded from your head to your feet taking all the tension with it. This is a 3-second relaxation exercise for anytime, anywhere.

If you'd like to purchase a yoga DVD, I recommend A.M. and P.M. Yoga for Beginners by Rodney Yee at Amazon.com

Here it is in VHS AM/PM Yoga for Beginners

To go along with this, you may like the CD A.M./P.M. Yoga Melodies.

I own Kathy Smith - New Yoga Basics for Beginners. I really like this one although it's almost an hour long. But even doing 20 minutes is beneficial.

I also own the book Power Yoga : The Total Strength and Flexibility Workout. This is my favorite style of yoga, but I do not recommend this style (ashtanga) for beginners or when you still have chronic pain from fibromyalgia.

Here's the video that goes with the Power Yoga book. Beryl Bender Birch Power Yoga The Practice. These are for more advanced practice but are the most effective form of yoga that I have found. Move up to these after you have mastered beginning yoga and are relatively pain-free through nutrition and/or other methods.

To Go to the Fibromyalgia and Yoga Introduction and Instructions Page, click here.

FibromyalgiaHope.com Home Page

Consult your doctor before starting an exercise program. And be careful. Sorry, I can't be responsible if you get hurt. Use your head and listen to your body. A qualified instructor is recommended.