In a Bikram Yoga class, you will never do it; in a power vinyasa class, you will do it what feels like a thousand times. It is an integral part of the sun salutation.
You may love it or despise
it, but Adho Mukha Svanasana, or Downward-Facing Dog Pose, has many benefits, including these:
•
Elongates and releases tension from your spine
•
Stretches your hamstrings, calves, arches, and hands
•
Strengthens your arms, shoulders, and back
•
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.
•
Relieves back pain, headaches, insomnia and fatique
•
Helps relieve the symptoms of menopause
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Downward-Facing Dog is a mild inversion that calms the nervous system
and helps relieve stress
•
According to BKS Iyengar, a mere
minute in this pose will “bring back lost energy for runners after a hard
race.”
•
Strengthens Bones: If
you’re new to yoga, even holding downward dog for a few seconds can cause the
muscles in your upper half to tremble. This is good—shaking means the muscles
in the arms and shoulders are being challenged as they support more of your
body weight. Not only do poses like downward dog promote upper body strength; they
also strengthen bone density and help prevent osteoporosis.
•
Relieves Back Pain: As you
strengthen the core muscles (muscles in the torso, consisting of the abdominals
and lower and outer back muscles) with downward dog, don’t overlook the
stretching, aligning, and loosening benefits of this pose on your spine,
shoulders, and back. For instance, in downward dog, the shoulders melt
down the back, the upper back fans out, and the spine is properly aligned to
promote flexible and ease tension.
•
Strengthens abdominal muscles: Envision
turning downward-facing dog right side up into boat pose.
Just as you would with boat pose, engaging the belly in downward-facing dog
strengthens and abdominal muscles that support the spine.
•
improves circulation: Many
tend to forget that downward-facing dog is an inversion! As the hips lift and
the head drops below the heart, the pull of gravity is reversed and fresh blood
flows, aiding in circulation.
Ideally, when the body is
properly aligned, Downward Facing Dog is a resting pose. Have
you ever wondered why your instructor leads you to take and hold downward dog
between yoga sequences? This is because in addition to promoting a good stretch
to the entire body, downward dog also allows you to take pause or inventory
between postures, as a means to mind-body connection.
In a perfect world, here is
what downward dog looks like when the body is properly aligned.
However many bodies cannot
get fully comfortable in Adho Mukha Svanasana, due to tight hamstrings,
injuries of the wrists or shoulders, or even one’s own unique skeletal
structure (some folks will never get their heels to reach the floor due to the
shape of their bones in the ankle!). So, here are some useful modifications
that you may find helpful:
•
Ease pressure on your wrists by placing a wedge under your palms or
performing the pose on your elbows.
•
Elevate hands on blocks or on the seat of a chair to release and open
your shoulders.
•
Bend knees slightly to flatten lower back.
Finally, here's a helpful instructional video from Yoga Journal's website that takes you through the pose, step by step:
Whether it's in a hot yoga flow or a traditional Surya Namaskar sequence, Adho Mukha Svanasana is a home base of sorts, a place where we pause together in class and center for a few quiet breaths. As they say in some yoga circles "I'll meet you in Downward Dog!"