Downward-Facing Dog

This is a very beneficial pose as it works various regions on one’s body; it stretches your feet, hamstrings, shoulders, as well as your calves; it strengthens your legs arms and gives you a great core workout. You should start this pose on your hands and knees similar to that of a crawling position. Make sure your knees and feet as hip-width apart from one another. Hand positioning is also very important, position your hands shoulder width apart, and make sure you spread your fingers as wide as you can. Now while pressing through your hands lift your knees off the floor and try to straighten your legs. Remember again be careful especially if you have tight hamstrings, a gentle and slight bend in the knees is fine.

Now carefully walk your hands forward a few inches, then walk your feet back a few inches. Try to press your heels towards the floor it is okay if they do not reach the floor. Relax your neck and your head and let your shoulder blades work their way toward your feet. Try to suck in your stomach as much as possible to get the ultimate core experience. Breathe deep, hold this for 2-3 minutes, rest and then repeat 1 more time.

Why it’s good for you:

We more often than not experience back pain due to incredibly tight hamstrings and hips. It’s also common for us to have tight should. The Down Dog releases the tension in all of those areas while building upper body strength. If you only have time for one or two poses a day make this one your priority.