11 Essential Yoga Poses Everyone Should Practice

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Ancient yoga tradition describes thousands -- and by some accounts, tens of thousands -- of yoga postures. But chances are, with your likely packed schedule, fitting in enough time to practice even a fraction of those postures is nearly impossible. Most of us, however, can find 10 minutes a day in a quiet place to practice a few of them. In fact, even 10 minutes a day can help you reap the benefits of yoga, including increased strength and flexibility, more energy, improved respiration, enhanced cardiovascular and circulatory health, improved sports performance, injury prevention and lower stress levels. You can always progress to include more and different poses in your practice, but start by doing these 11 essential poses, and then add to your asana arsenal as time and your body allow.