Since a couple of months I've been feeling restless. My job is somewhat stressful and with the move to our new place I was having difficulties to unwind. I turned to yoga to calm me down. I didn't want to follow lessons because of the price and the lack of time. I wanted something I could do when I had time, even if it was just for 10 minutes. So a thought came to mind to search for an app that was easy to use and had enough variation. I was so happy I quickly found the perfect app for me and perhaps for you too ?
Meet Down Dog, the perfect app for yoga that's also free !
xoxo
From beginner to advanced
The great thing about this app is that you can start your practices at any level. Starting at Beginner 1 and ending at Advanced in a total of 5 levels. If you like your practice so much you want to do it again, be sure to save it !
Beginner 1 - a great place to start!
Beginner 2 - after a few sessions on Beginner 1, move up to Beginner 2 to pick up the pace and get many more poses mixed in.
Intermediate 1 - get the most of the poses in the app and begin to play with your first arm balances.
Intermediate 2 - turn up the challenge from Intermediate 1 and play with even more arm balances.
Advanced - get an opportunity to work on a "peak posture" in every practice.
Choose your own flow
One of the best parts is the 3 different sequences you get to choose from. A sequence type lets you define the overall structure of your practice an determines hat types of poses you'll get.
Full practice - Work through every part of a Vinyasa Yoga practice - a gentle warmup, a mix of standing poses, a cool down on the floor focused on deep stretching, and a final resting savasana.
Short practice - In case you don't have time for a Full practice you can go as low as 10 minutes
Quick flow - this practice gets you working right away. Start on your feet, move quickly into lunges, and keep working hard right up to the end.
Restorative - Focus on stretching and relaxation. A perfect practice as a bedtime ritual.
Visual and vocal Guidance
My favorite thing about this app is that you have visual and vocal guidance at your disposal. Movements are shown on your phone and you will hear a soothing voice that tells you when to switch poses and when to breath in or out. In the background you'll also have music playing. The app allows you to mute the voice or background music. I find the music perfect everytime but it's possible to adjust your playlistis somewhat. You'll find the settings when you go to 'more options'.
Free
Yes you read it right. Down Dog is free. However it is possible to 'boost' a specific practice area, adjust the pace of the practice, change te music style or decrease the amount of spoken instructions. These and other options are available for 8,99 €/ month or 54,99 € / year. Personally this isn't necessary for me, I'm just a beginner but perhaps my opinion will change over time.