Yoga for Focus Practice to Quiet Your Racing Thoughts

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The following vinyasa yoga sequence is intended to help you clear your brain fog and mental fatigue. The yoga for focus practice began with a little meditation to bring your focus to the present moment and sharpen your senses. And then you come into some fairly challenging balancing poses and transitions that require you to think about your coordination and proprioception, or where your body is in space, rather than go on autopilot. This is something that you can take with you into the rest of your day.

Even though it’s a full body vinyasa flow, we only have a few standing poses. But it’s a class that addresses every single muscle through a mix of hip openers, balance poses, backbends, forward folds, inversions, and twists. It also integrates poses as well as meditation and pranayama, or breathwork, techniques to sharpen your senses to help you tap into clarity and focus. If you are feeling a little lethargic, hopefully by the end of the practice, you’ll be feeling more like yourself.

30-Minute Yoga for Focus Practice

If you have a block or two at home, you might want to have them close by as you practice the following yoga for focus sequence. If you don’t have any props, that’s also fine.

Seated Meditation

Begin with a short seated meditation to anchor yourself. Sit any way that you are comfortable, whether cross-legged or otherwise, relax your shoulders away from your ears, and close your eyes. Bring your focus inward.

Use this time to do a little scan as you tune in, maybe starting from the crown of your head and working your way down through your extremities, checking in to notice what feelings are present, which areas of your body feel open and spacious, which feel a little more closed off or tight, and anything else that you might notice. Part of your practice for clarity is simply paying attention. Take about 10 more breaths here.

Then take 3 cleansing breaths before you start to move. So inhale through your nose and then exhale through your mouth as you let out a big sigh. Do that two more times.

Cat-Cow

Open your eyes and find your way to hands and knees. Pause here for a few rounds of Cat and Cow. Spread your fingers wide, push into your fingertips and knuckles, and as you inhale, lower your belly as you open through your chest in Cow Pose.

As you exhale, round through your spine and draw your lower belly toward your spine in Cat Pose. Keep going in and out of those two poses. Try closing your eyes here and as much as possible throughout the practice, if you are comfortable. Notice where you feel sensations in your body as you develop other senses, which is one way to increase your mental focus.

Thread the Needle

Come back to a neutral Tabletop position and thread your right arm underneath you, palm facing up, as you lower your right shoulder and ear to the mat. Then straighten your left arm as you reach toward the front of the mat. You can keep your left palm flat on the mat or come onto your fingertips.

Stay here or add a challenge by straightening your left leg and lifting your foot off the mat, which requires complete concentration. Try to feel the energy go all the way out through your left big toe in one straight diagonal line. Even then you may roll over and fall. It’s no big deal. Keep your breath steady as you pull your lower belly in, keep your gaze steady, and find your drishti or single point of focus.

Bring your left knee down and draw your left hand beneath your shoulder. Push into your palm to lift yourself and then repeat the pose on the other side.

Downward-Facing Dog

Walk your hands out in front of you and lift your hips up and back as you come into your first Downward-Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana). Stretch here, still pushing into your fingertips and your knuckles, and feel your neck release here.

Standing Forward Bend

Walk your feet forward to the front of the mat, maybe widen your stance a little here, and hug your lower belly toward your lower back as you come into rag doll or Standing Forward Bend. You can bend your knees as much as you want, holding onto your elbows. Maybe sway a little side to side.

Take those same 3 rounds of cleansing breath like at the beginning of class, inhaling through your nose and letting out a big exhalation through the mouth.

Mountain Pose + Breath of Joy

Release your hands, bend your knees even more, and push your heels into the mat as you roll, inch by inch, all the way to standing in Mountain Pose.

This energizing breathing technique is done in a few parts. First, inhale, inhale, and inhale as you reach your arms alongside your head.

Before you let out a big exhalation through your mouth. You’re building on that cleansing breath that we’ve been doing. Practice this breath of joy five times.

Downward-Facing Dog

Come back to your rag doll and step back into Downward Facing Dog and stretch it out here. Lift your right leg, bend your right knee, and feel the stretch in your hip. Maybe see if you can come onto your right fingertips so you’re intentionally unbalancing yourself so that you are forced to pay attention during your yoga for focus practice.

Eagle Pose

Step your right foot in between your hands and as you lift up transition into Eagle Pose. Start with your hands at your heart and wrap your left thigh over your right. Stay here or you can loop the toes behind your calf. Both knees should be bent. Then bend your elbows in front of you at a 90-degree angle. You’re going to wrap your left arm underneath, maybe also wrapping your forearms and wrists to try to bring your palms to touch.

Imagine you’re looking past your forearms and try not to dig your toes into the mat.

Warrior 3

You’re going to keep Eagle arms as you transition into Warrior 3 (Virabhadrasana 3). So you’re going to lift your left leg up and extend it back as you tilt your chest forward and parallel to the mat. Try to find your inner stability, as if you were pushing your lifted foot against the wall behind you, as you explore this yoga for focus pose.

Mountain Pose

From Warrior 3, lift yourself to standing in Mountain Pose with your feet about hip-distance apart, palms facing forward, eyes closed, and breath steady.

Shift your body weight into the balls of your feet so you’re leaning forward, and then shift the weight all the way over to the right so you’re leaning to the side, then all the way back into your heels, which is a lot harder to do, and then lean all the way over toward the left. Now find that middle point between those four extremities. This is your true center of gravity and point of balance. This sense of body awareness and how you’re responding in the moment is also part of practicing yoga for focus.

Sun Salutation A

From here, take a Sun Salutation A. Inhale as you lift your arms overhead. Exhale as you fold forward. Inhale as you lift halfway with a flat back. Exhale as you plant your palms and step back to Plank and lower all the way to your belly. Inhale as you come into Cobra. Exhale as you come back to Down Dog and stretch it out. Keep your yoga for focus theme by bringing your awareness to your breath as well as your body.

Then repeat the sequence on the second side, beginning by lifting your left leg and bending your knee. As you complete your Sun Salutation, you can opt to take Upward Dog in place of Cobra.

Warrior 2

From Down Dog, lift your right leg and step it in between your hands. Spin your back foot parallel to the short side of that mat and extend your arms into Warrior 2. So your right knee here is bending and trying to push toward your little toe. We’re going to move in and out of the pose here. Inhale and straighten your front leg as you bring your hands together overhead and look up. And then exhale as you bend your front knee and sink into Warrior 2. Repeat four more times, pushing evenly into both feet.

Triangle Pose

Straighten your front leg and narrow your stance a little and then shift your hips go back as you lean your right arm forward and down. Stretch your left arm toward the ceiling and try to stack your left shoulder over your right one in Triangle Pose. Keep your yoga for focus theme by challenging yourself to look up at your thumb in single-pointed concentration.

Half Moon Pose

Bring your left hand to your hip and look down at the mat to help with stability. Then bend into your front knee and bring your right hand about six inches in front of your right foot. Then kick off by lifting your back leg and try to roll your left hip and left shoulder back so you’re not leaning toward the mat. Eventually you can lift your left arm up. Turn your head to look wherever is appropriate to you here in Half Moon Pose (Ardha Chandrasana).

If you’d like, add to the challenge of your yoga for focus practice and maybe add a bind by bending into your top knee, grabbing hold of the foot behind you, and pushing your foot away from you into your hand in Sugar Cane Pose (Ardha Chandra Chapasana).

Dancer Pose

You’re not done yet. You’re going to try to come into Dancer Pose (Natarajasana) from here. Keep hold of your foot and very slowly try to lift yourself up to standing on your right leg and facing the front of the mat. You might need to change your grasp on the foot so you’re holding the inside of it. Then stretch your right arm in front of you as you keep pressing your lifted foot away from you. Keep your focus. After you take another breath here, go ahead and release your left foot to the mat and shake it out.

Take your vinyasa flow, inhale and find your way back to Downward Facing Dog. When you’re ready, do this on the other side.

Shoulder Stand

From Downward-Facing Dog, start to slow things down as you lower your knees to the mat. Come down on your back and, from here, set yourself up into Shoulderstand. Kind of shrug your shoulders underneath you slightly, and then lift your hips and support them by propping your hands beneath your lower back for support. Take some folded blankets beneath your shoulders if that’s more comfortable. Lift your legs straight up toward the ceiling.

Try to relax your jaw. Most of the weight is in your shoulders and in your upper back, not in your neck or your head.

Plow Pose

Stay in Shoulder Stand or, if you’d like, slowly transition into Plow Pose (Halasana) by lowering your legs behind your head. You can flatten your upper arms against the mat and keep your hips lifted while still supporting your lower back and hips. Continue with that support as you slowly come out of Plow Pose and let your spine and your hips come back in contact with the mat. Pause with your feet on the mat and your knees bent or hug your knees toward your chest.

Reclined Pigeon Pose

From here, take a Reclined Pigeon Pose by crossing your right ankle over the top of your left knee and pull that thigh toward you. Notice if you’re leaning over onto one side more than the other. Keep your head and shoulders on the mat so you’re not using more effort than is necessary.

Reclined Twist

Keep the figure-four shape as you find a deeper stretch for the IT band in a twist. Let your left foot come back flat to the floor and rotate those legs over to the left so your left thigh and your right foot make contact with the floor. I like to reach my right arm straight out to the side or use my left hand to push my knee away from me, so I’m getting a nice opening onto the outer right hip. Maintain a slow, steady breath, inhaling all the way down into your belly and starting to observe and notice the effects of your practice on your mental state.

Release, come back through to center, uncross your legs, and take your Reclined Pigeon on the second side.

Savasana

Let’s release and come into Savasana. Straighten your arms and your legs, palms facing the sky. Once again, close your eyes so that you’re turning inward. You’re not rushing to the next thing but staying present and maintaining this connection that you’ve cultivated throughout class. Let yourself rest here for a few minutes.

When you’re ready to close your 30-minute yoga for focus practice, bring some energy back into your body and begin to refocus here with a little movement and a big stretch before rolling to one side and coming to a seated position. Just notice the space you’ve created and carry this change with you into the rest of your day.

About Our Contributor

Kassandra Reinhardt is an Ottawa-based Yin Yoga and vinyasa yoga instructor whose YouTube channel, Yoga With Kassandra, has grown to 2.2 million subscribers and has more than 230 million views. Kassandra recently released her guided yoga journal, My Yoga Journey: A Guided Journal, her daily affirmation card deck, I Radiate Joy, and her book, Year of Yoga.