How to do Virabhadrasana or Warrior pose in yoga

The virabhadrasana ia a good warm up exercise for backbends.
The lower back gets relaxed and the leg muscles are stretched and strengthened at the same time.
The warrior pose strengthens legs, back, shoulders and arms.
It also improves balance and opens your hips and your chest.
# Kneel down, keep your back straight ( vertical ) and sit comfortable ( hands on thighs )
# Step forward with one foot until the foot is a slightly in front of the knee ( see virabhadrasana flash illustration above ) The back leg rests on the floor with its toes and your knee on the mat.
# Lift the knee of the backleg and move a bit forward, ( straighten backleg )
so that the thighs of the frontleg are horizontal and its lower leg is vertical.
# At the same time lift your arms and hook your thumbs together. Your view follows your hands.
The arms should point straight up. If your lower back feels comfortable, you can even try to look backwards. If not, look straight forward. ( horizontal )
* Inhale when you move up.
* You can use the warrior pose as a warm up for harder back and hip stretches, bridges etc.
* If you don't lift the back knee, the warrior pose is a bit easer. ( because you will need less balance and leg strength )
* To make this exercise harder, just stand deeper.