Chair to Forward Fold

How to do it

Stand tall, feet together or hip-width. On the inhale, bend the knees and sit the hips back as the arms sweep overhead into Chair, weight in the heels, chest lifted. On the exhale, straighten the legs and hinge forward, sweeping the arms down and out into a Forward Fold, head hanging heavy. On the next inhale, bend the knees and rise back up into Chair, arms overhead. Flow between the two, one breath each way — a steady standing swing.

Why it's good for runners

This is the simplest heat-builder in the warm-up vocabulary: the Chair fires the quads and glutes while the Forward Fold lengthens the hamstrings and lower back, and moving between them on the breath raises the core temperature and primes the big running muscles without any pounding. It comes straight out of Sun Salutation B, distilled to one repeatable wave — a single thing to learn and follow before a run.

Common mistakes

Don't let the knees collapse inward in Chair — track them over the toes and keep the weight in the heels. Don't round and yank up out of the fold with a locked back; bend the knees as you rise so the lift comes from the legs, not the lumbar. And keep the arms relaxed — the sweep is for rhythm, not a shoulder workout.