How to do: Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

ByFrancois

Targets: Upper back, shoulders, and hamstrings.

Type: Inversion

Level: Beginner

Downward Facing Dog is perhaps the most recognized posture in Yoga. It is one of the first foundational poses you learn as you begin a yoga practice. It is performed repeatedly during most yoga classes, especially in Vinyasa yoga and Sun Salutation A and B. It acts as a transitional pose and can be a resting position.

For beginners, this posture can be somewhat challenging as it is a standing pose and mild inversion that does require strength in the wrists, shoulders and core, to hold the pose for several breath rounds. Downward Dog pose is the perfect example of the many benefits simple yoga postures can offer the body.

Here’s how to do down dog correctly, plus tips, modifications, and the benefits you can expect when you practice this pose regularly.

Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

Step-by-Step

  1. Come to your hands and knees with your wrists underneath the shoulders and your knees underneath the hips. Your hands should be slightly in front of your shoulders.
  2. Spread your fingers wide and press firmly through your palms and knuckles. Distribute your weight evenly across your hands.
  3. As you exhale curl your toes under and push back through your hands to lift your hips and straighten your legs. At first keeping your knees slightly bent and toes facing forward. Reach your pelvis up toward the ceiling.
  4. Outwardly rotate your upper arms to broaden the collarbones. Your elbow crease should face your thumb.
  5. Align your ears with your upper arms. Relax your head, but do not let it dangle. Gaze between your legs or toward your navel.
  6. On an exhalation, engage your lower belly drawing the navel back to the spine. Push your top thighs back and stretch your heels toward the floor. Straighten your knees without locking them.
  7. Engage your quadriceps to take the burden of your body’s weight off your arms. This will help making this a resting pose.
  8. Rotate your thighs inward, keep your tailbone high, and sink your heels towards the floor.
  9. “Walk your dog” by alternately bending and straightening your legs. Eventually bringing both heels towards the floor. They do not have to touch the floor.
  10. Check that the distance between your hands and feet is correct by coming forward to a plank position. The distance between the hands and feet should be the same in these two poses. Do not step the feet toward the hands in Down Dog in order the get the heels to the floor.
  11. Stay in the pose for 10 or more breaths
  12. To come out of the pose, bring your knees back down to the floor and come into Child’s pose or transition into a lunge by stepping one foot towards your hands.

Coming Into The Pose

You can come into Downward Dog from a resting Child’s Pose position. Or you can come into downward dog from a deep standing forward bend (Uttanasana) by placing your hands on the floor and stepping back into the pose. Another alternative is from Plank Pose. 

Coming Out Of The Pose

You can come back into Child’s Pose after downward dog by lowering your knees back down to the floor. Or you can come back into a standing forward bend from Downward Dog by stepping your feet forward between your hands. Alternatively, you can shift back into plank after by lowering your hips and drawing your shoulders forward over your wrists.

The Benefits of Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

  • Strengthens muscles – Downward Facing Dog stretches the hamstrings and calves, and it strengthens the arms, back and legs. It is a weight-bearing exercise, so it’s effective at building strength in your shoulders and arms and legs and thus preparing your hands and feet for standing and arm balancing poses.
  • Builds core strength – This yoga pose also engages your midsection to help build strong abdominal muscles.
  • Stimulates blood flow. Downward dog is a position that places your heart above your head, allowing gravity to increase blood flow and improve your circulation.
  • Improves posture – Downward dog opens up the chest and shoulders, which can help straighten your vertebrae and align your spine, leading to overall improved posture.
  • Resting pose – Downward Dog is a great pose to rest the spine between strong backbends and forward bends. 
  • Relieve back pain- When performed daily in yoga practice, it will even help relieve chronic back pain.
  • Improves Digestion – Although downward-facing dog is not a full bend or fold, the pose does allow for slight abdominal compression by drawing the navel into the spine. The pose compresses the organs like the kidneys, liver and the spleen, aiding in digestion.
  • Decreases Anxiety – Stretching the cervical spine and the neck allows the head and your mind to relax.
  • Better respiratory function – Adho Mukha Svanasana also expands the chest and strengthens the lungs for better respiratory function.
  • Sciatic nerve – Downward Dog elongates all the muscles that run along the backs of the legs, releasing the tightness that often leads to pressure on the sciatic nerve.

5 Common Mistakes in Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana):

In yoga, Downward Dog seems like a simple enough pose, but there are a surprising number of ways to get the position wrong.

  1. Not Releasing Your Heels – The most common mistake in Downward Facing Dog is that students don’t release their heels toward the floor. If you are up on the balls of your feet, it shifts the direction of the pose forward instead of back. It will never be a resting position unless you take your weight back into your heels. This doesn’t mean that the heels have to touch the floor, they just have to be moving in that direction.
  2. Sinking Back- If you are very flexible, try not to let your rib cage sink towards the floor, creating a sinking. Draw your ribs in to maintain a flat back. 
  3. Foot Position – Your toes should be pointing toward the front of your mat. It’s quite common for students to want to turn their feet out. And your feet should be hip width apart.
  4. Distance Between Hands and Feet – The space between the hands and feet is either too close or too far apart. Start with the Plank to Downward-Facing Dog check. In Downward-Facing Dog, your hands and feet are roughly the same distance they would be in Plank.
  5. Scrunching the shoulders – Scrunching your shoulders up near your ears. Resist this urge. Draw the shoulders away from the ears to give space to your neck. Double check that the eyes of your elbows are facing their opposite corners on the mat.

Modifications And Variations For Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana):

Try these simple changes to find a variation that works best for you:

  • If you have very tight hamstrings, you may not be able to keep your butt high and straighten your legs at the same time. If that’s the case, it’s okay to keep a slight bend in your knees. Your hamstrings will lengthen over time with the consistent practice of other poses
  • For a restorative version of the pose, place a yoga block under your head. Release all neck tension. Hold for up to five minutes.
  • Place a yoga block between your inner thighs to learn the movement of inner rotation. Grip the block with your thighs and press it toward the wall behind you as you hold the pose. 
  • Try the Three-legged dog variation, lifting one of your legs up, keeping your hips level and your foot flex. Repeat on the other side. 
  • For more of a focus on the arms, loop around your arms, just above the elbows and press against the strap. Same for the legs. Place a strap on your upper legs above the knees and work on active legs drawing thighs outwards.

Caution When Performing Downward Facing Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)

Always work within your own range of limits and abilities. If you have any medical concerns, talk with your doctor before practicing yoga. 

Avoid this pose if:

  • If you have a wrist injury or carpal tunnel syndrome.
  • If you are in the last trimester of pregnancy.1
  • If you have high blood pressure, heart disease, vertigo, or a slipped disc in your spine.4
  • If you have an injury to the back, arms, or shoulders.

How to Prepare For Downward Facing Dog?

Practice a few rounds of cat cow pose (Bitilasana Marjaryasana), it is a great exercise to prepare your arms, wrists, and back for downward facing dog.

You can also prepare the hamstrings by practicing your forward fold (uttanasana), keeping as much bend as you need through the knees to avoid taking strain in the lower back.

Preparatory Poses:

  • Cat Pose
  • Cow Pose
  • Tadasana (Mountain Pose)
  • Puppy Pose
  • Plank Pose
  • Uttanasana (Standing Forward Bend)

7 Tips for Performing Downward Dog:

When done correctly, Downward Dog can greatly benefit the whole body. Keep the following information in mind when practicing this pose.

  1. Try to remember to inhale and exhale deeply and you can enjoy moving within your downward dog pose. You can paddle out your feet, enjoying feeling the stretch at the back of the legs.
  2. Don’t tuck your tailbone. Your back should be straight for the entirety of this stretch. Tilt your pelvis forward to keep your spine straight and prevent you from rounding your back.
  3. Hug your navel up and in, to help with the upward motion of the hips.
  4. Keep your knees bent. When you extend your legs for this stretch, avoid o locking your knees. It can place unnecessary strain on your joints. Keep your legs as straight as possible while maintaining a slight bend in the knee to ensure adequate stability.
  5. To hold the pose better and for longer, keep your eyes focused on your big toes. Also, keep your head between your upper arms. Don’t let it hang otherwise you will experience pain.
  6. It’s more important to keep length in the spine than straight legs. So, if you find you are rounding in your back or you are hunching your shoulders it’s fine to keep the knees bent as much as you need to so you can enjoy the stretch in your back. And remember your heels don’t need to touch the floor!
  7. You can work on the pose by practicing against a wall. Stand facing the wall about 3 feet away with your legs hip distance apart. Place your hands on the wall. Walk your hands down the wall until your torso and arms are parallel to the floor.

Conclusion:

With practice, Downward Dog will become a resting pose to help you catch your breath during strong Vinyasa or Ashtanga yoga classes.

When done correctly, this not only becomes the foundation of the yoga practice, but it also offers the body relief from challenging sequencing and asanas. Whether you are new to yoga or an experienced practitioner, the benefits of Down Dog are truly limitless.

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