Adho Mukha Svanasana or Downward Facing Dog Yoga
How does Adho Mukha Svanasana get its name?
In Sanskrit, ‘Adho’ means ‘downward’, ‘mukha’ means ‘face’ and ‘svana’ means ‘dog’, while ‘asana’ refers to a yoga pose. Translated into English, it means Downward Facing Dog Yoga Pose.
It is a part of the sequence of the Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskar). It is one of the most well-known yoga bending exercises, and is often recommended because it provides whole body stretching. It is not only a body and back strengthening yoga, it is also often used as a resting pose or a transitional pose for other yoga poses. Adho Mukha Svanasana is also one of the first poses taught to a beginner.
Step by Step:
Benefits of Downward Dog Pose Yoga:
Precautions: Do not practice it if you have:
In Sanskrit, ‘Adho’ means ‘downward’, ‘mukha’ means ‘face’ and ‘svana’ means ‘dog’, while ‘asana’ refers to a yoga pose. Translated into English, it means Downward Facing Dog Yoga Pose.
It is a part of the sequence of the Sun Salutation (Surya Namaskar). It is one of the most well-known yoga bending exercises, and is often recommended because it provides whole body stretching. It is not only a body and back strengthening yoga, it is also often used as a resting pose or a transitional pose for other yoga poses. Adho Mukha Svanasana is also one of the first poses taught to a beginner.
Step by Step:
- Come to the floor on your knees and hands. Your knees should be directly below your hips, and your hands should be underneath your shoulders, and a little forward.
- Tuck in your toes, raise your hips by pushing back and straighten your legs. Spread out your palms.
- Let your head hang down, but keep your shoulder blades open and away from your ears. Rest comfortably in this pose, with the weight on your quadriceps and not on your arms.
- Now exhale, and keeping your tailbone high, let your heels sink towards the floor. Lift the knees away from the floor.
- Gradually lengthen the tailbone backward, from behind your pelvis, and let it sink down, towards the pubis.
- With another exhalation, push the top of your thighs back, and stretch your heels until they come down toward the floor.
- Keep your arms straight with your hands spread out and pressed firmly on the floor. Keeping the wrists firm, widen your shoulder blades and press them against your back.
- Keep your head between the upper arms.
- Maintain this pose for 30 seconds to 1 minute. To release, inhale and go back to the starting pose.
- Repeat a few times.
Benefits of Downward Dog Pose Yoga:
- By stretching the muscles of the arms, shoulders, calves, hamstrings, ankles and the entire spine, it strengthens them and provides relief for back aches and fatigue.
- It helps to improve digestion, increases energy, and lowers high blood pressure.
- It has proved to be effective in curing flat feet and sciatica.
- It helps to calm the brain and provide relief from anxiety, insomnia, headaches and mild depression.
- It helps relieve menstrual discomfort, as well as symptoms of menopause.
Precautions: Do not practice it if you have:
- Diarrhea
- Carpal tunnel syndrome
- You are in late term pregnancy.