Category: Inversions
Level: beginner
Hold: 5–10 breaths, or 30 seconds to 1 minute
Type: Asana
Breath: Breathe slowly and evenly; let each exhale send the hips a little higher and back.

Downward-Facing Dog

Adho Mukha Svanasana — "downward-facing dog posture"

Also known as: Down Dog

The most practiced pose in modern yoga: an upside-down V that stretches the whole back body while building shoulder and arm strength. Simple to attempt, surprisingly hard to do well.

Step by step

1Start on your hands and knees, wrists under your shoulders and knees under your hips.
2Spread your fingers wide and press evenly through your palms and knuckles.
3Tuck your toes, lift your knees off the floor, and send your hips up and back.
4Keep your knees bent at first and focus on lengthening your spine from wrists to tailbone.
5Slowly straighten your legs only as much as your hamstrings allow — heels do not need to touch the floor.
6Let your head hang between your upper arms, ears in line with your biceps.
7Breathe steadily and press the floor away with your hands.

Benefits

✓ Stretches the hamstrings, calves, and shoulders in one shape
✓ Strengthens the arms, wrists, and upper back
✓ Lengthens the spine after sitting or standing all day
✓ Acts as a gentle, accessible inversion with the head below the heart
✓ Serves as a resting and transition pose in flowing sequences

Make it yours

· Keep a generous bend in your knees — a long spine matters more than straight legs.
· Place your hands on a chair seat or blocks to reduce the load on wrists and hamstrings.
· Pedal your feet or lift your heels high to soften tight calves.

Take care

Approach with care if you have wrist pain, carpal tunnel symptoms, or a shoulder injury.
If you have high blood pressure, glaucoma, or other eye conditions, keep the hold short and check with a professional you trust before holding your head below your heart.
In late pregnancy, many people prefer a shorter hold or a hands-on-chair variation.

This is general practice guidance, not medical advice. If something hurts, ease out of it.

Practiced in

Props that help here

Yoga blanket — Folded under the hips in seated poses, under the knees in kneeling ones, under the shoulders for shoulderstand. A firm household blanket works too. find one
Wrist wedge — Reduces the wrist angle in plank, chaturanga, and arm balances. Worth trying before concluding your wrists can't do this. find one

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