A 5-Minute Yoga-Inspired Recovery Workout

Recovery workouts are an essential part of any fitness routine. They allow your body to repair, rebuild, and recharge. They also help reduce muscle soreness, improve flexibility, and prevent overtraining, which can lead to burnout or injury, per UC Health.

Yoga is an excellent recovery option because it combines gentle movement, stretching, and mindfulness. According to Johns Hopkins Medicine, it promotes blood flow to tired muscles, enhances mobility, and aids in stress relief, helping both your body and mind recover. Plus, its low-impact nature makes it suitable for all fitness levels, ensuring you stay consistent while giving your body the care it deserves.

To help you relax and unwind from tough training sessions, Or Artzi, CPT, a lead group fitness instructor at Equinox and creator of the fitness platform Orriors, created this yoga-inspired recovery workout.

Join the club

If you’re following along with our January 2025 Good Moves Club Winter Challenge (sign up here if you haven’t already!), this is the workout for day 17, week 4. You can follow along with Artzi and the full-length workout below.

The workout

You’ll need a doorway to complete this routine. Do each exercise for 30 to 60 seconds. Complete one round.

1. Doorway stretch

1. Stand about an arm’s length from a doorway. 
2. Take a step back with your right leg. Bend your left leg slightly. 
3. Place your right palm on the door frame at waist height, holding the frame gently and elbow bent to 90 degrees. Place your left hand on your left hip.
4. Shift your weight forward until you feel a stretch in your right shoulder. 
5. Hold for the allotted amount of time, then switch sides.

2. Standing quad stretch (left side, then right side)

1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart and arms by your sides. 
2. Shift your balance to your right foot, and catch your left foot with your left hand, bending your knee, and pulling your left foot toward your glutes. Focus on keeping your hips squared and not twisting.
3. You can either lift your right hand above your head or use your right hand to hold a chair or other stable surface for support. 
4. Hold for the allotted amount of time, then repeat on the opposite side.

3. Foldover

1. Stand with your feet hip-width apart, a slight bend in your knees. Roll your shoulders back, and extend your arms behind your back. 
2. Hinge at your hips to bring your torso and arms forward and down toward your legs. Bend your knees as much as you need to.
3. Grab your left elbow with your right hand and grab your right elbow with your left hand. 
4. Rock to the left, then to the right, then back to center.
5. Slowly roll up to standing position, then release your arms back to the starting position.
6. Repeat.

4. Cat-cow pose (Marjaryasana Bitilasana)

1. Start on all fours with your hands and knees on the floor. Align your elbows and shoulders over your wrists and your hips over your knees.
2. Slowly arch your spine, dropping your belly toward the floor. Look up as you draw your tailbone toward the ceiling (cow pose).
3. Slowly transition into a rounded-spine, tucking your chin toward your spine as you tilt your pelvis forward (cat pose).
4. Continue alternating between cow and cat poses.

5. Figure-4 stretch (single side)

1. Lie faceup with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor.
2. Cross your left ankle over your right knee.
3. Press your left knee down as far as it can comfortably go.
4. Grab the back of your right thigh with both hands and lean your torso back so your upper body is flat on the floor.
5. Hold for the allotted amount of time, then switch sides.

6. Spinal twist

1. Lie faceup with your left leg straight, right foot flat on the floor, and your arms extended to your sides.
2. Let your right leg gently fall across your left leg and to the floor.
3. Look to the right and gently press on your right knee with your left hand to deepen the stretch.
4. Hold for the allotted amount of time, then switch sides.