Lifestyle: Living Well

Beauty In Motion

Yoga guru Hilaria Baldwin demonstrates a series of poses that
can help you feel better from the inside out.

Spending time with Hilaria Baldwin feels like switching on a warm, soft light in a cold, dark room. Her presence is simultaneously energizing yet calming. And in today’s crazy world of nonstop communication and seemingly endless deadlines, we knew she’d be the perfect person to help us take a step back, check in with ourselves, and channel beauty from the inside out. (Though that’s not to say that a nice, bright lipstick—Baldwin favors Pure Color Envy Lipstick in Jealous, plus a little concealer—“for tired mommy dark circles,” she admits—doesn’t go a long way.) Here, she demonstrates some of her go-to yoga poses to help you re-center.

Fish Pose
“This is great for when you’ve been sitting at a desk all day or slouching texting. The arch in your back focuses on the shoulder blades and spine, which is where we really suffer from hunching. And the chest position is a heart opener that can improve breathing.”

Bridge
“A bridge motion works the backs of the legs and the glutes. My class that I developed is a combination of cardio, strengthening and stretching. I’m a total fitness nerd, and I love to take other people’s classes and learn. A good instructor is constantly going out and learning new things.”

Lizard Pose
“Whether you’re someone who is sedentary or extremely active, our hips carry us around a lot. They bear the weight of our entire upper body and they connect us to the ground, so they get a lot of abuse. Opening up the hip flexors with this pose will help you stand up straighter and release any tension in the lower back.”

Royal Pigeon Pose
“This is more of an advanced pose that stretches the outer front hip and the front of the thigh. It also stretches the quad of the back leg. It’s a great, full body stretch that strengthens the back and core muscles. I’ve struggled with self-care over the past three-and-a-half years that I’ve been a mom. I am multi-tasking most of the time, but taking the time to go work out, wash my face, take a bath, and carve out a little ‘me time’ has been a great lesson.”

Side Plank
“This pose will give you that hourglass shape. It strengthens the arm and outer standing leg, while also toning the obliques. Taking care of your body is not on a purely aesthetic basis, it’s more about feeling. I was a dancer when I was younger, and then I did gymnastics, and I loved it. But everything was about how it looked, not about how it felt. I had a lot of injuries, and you’re supposed to have this badge of honor, working through your injuries and ignoring the pain. By the time I was 20, I wanted to supplement with something healthier for the body. As soon as I tried yoga, I loved it, because it was all about how it felt, not how it looked.”

Headstand
“This is definitely an advanced one that helps with balance, and strengthens your arms, core and back. In a more ‘Namaste’ sense, yoga teachers talk about seeing the world upside-down and how this helps you see things from a different perspective. One of my favorite quotes is, ‘Saying you’re too inflexible to do yoga is like saying you’re too dirty to take a bath.’ It’s called a practice for a reason, because you’re constantly practicing.”