adho mukha svanasana

Adho mukha svanasana - downward facing dog is a beginners pose very commonly added to a surya namaskar - sun salutation or to a flowing yoga practice. It is an inverted pose.

If you have a dog you may well be familiar with this pose, our four legged friends brilliant at it, elongating through their spine and stretching their front paws away.

How do I get into downward facing dog?

The best way to get into the pose, is to start off in bharmanasna - table top. Spread your fingers out, have your wrists underneath your shoulders. Take your knees so that they are under your hips. Be very conscious of the connection of the palms of the hands on your mat, tuck your toes under and start to rock your torso towards your feet, bending your knees as you go. Pushing the weight of your body through your hands, start to lift your knees a couple of centimetres off the mat. Your body will feel tucked, your tummy may rest on your thighs. As you exhale start to straighten your legs and lift your tail bone (the very base of your spine) up towards the ceiling. It may be helpful to imagine that someone is pulling you up from the centre belt loop of your trousers. As you lift your tail bone, tilt your pelvis, so that your tail bone can lift up more. Feel a strong stretch through the backs of the legs as you start to move the heels down towards the mat behind you. Whilst all this is happening, your head is relaxed.

When you have arrived in your adho mukha svanasana continue to relax your shoulder blades, moving them further away from your ears and imagine that you can turn your armpits to face each other. Extend deeper into the pose with every exhale.