Love it or hate it Downward Facing Dog, or Adho Mukha Svanasana, is the bread and butter of most yoga classes. Whether your style of choice is Ashtanga, Vinyasa or Hatha odds are you will flow through a few Downward Facing Dogs in your time. This pose is an incredible full body engager. Strengthening, lengthening, and maybe challenging different parts of the body. So how can we get more comfortable in this pose?
Strengthen the shoulders.
Many people struggle to settle into downward facing dog due to uncomfortable aching in the arms. It's not unusual to experience an intense sensation or some shaking in the arms while staying in this pose. Downward facing dog is first and foremost an inversion and weight is being distributed evenly between hands and feet. Unfairly to the arms, the legs and feet are much more used to carrying our weight. To counteract this bring arm and shoulder strengthening exercises and shoulder mobility exercises in your warm up. This will go a long way in building strength and flexibility in the arms and shoulders to help make downward facing dog more comfortable.
2. Lessen the strain on the back of the legs.
One of the other common complaints when it comes to downward facing dogs is the uncomfortable sensation down the back of the legs. Many student exasperate over not being able to get their heels to the ground and straighten their legs. This is a common misconception about downward facing dog. There is no need to have the legs perfectly (or even remotely) straight, nor have the heels in contact with the floor. This is a myth! The purpose of any pose is to feel the benefits. So if you feel a grounding sensation through the feet, a stretch down the back of the legs, and an opening in the shoulders and back. Congratulations you're practicing a lovely downward facing dog that works for you! It really doesn't matter what it looks like, it's all about how it feels!
3. Use your hands!
One of the most frustrating parts to this pose is getting into it and then having to constantly readjust because your hands just keep sliding further away! Sweaty palms and slippy mats really don't help make this pose any more accessible but we've all been there! Besides keeping a towel nearby to mop up sweat and keep your hands and mat dry, a great way to lessen the chance of slipping is to use all of the hands. Grip that mat! Press the whole of the palm into the mat and grip using the fingertips. Not only will this lessen the chance of slipping forward, it's also great for the wrists. By engaging the whole hand you strengthen the wrists and forearms lessening chance of injury or aching, as well as taking pressure off the wrists while in the pose.
4. Shoulders away from the ears
Downward Dog can feel like a bit of an oxymoron when it comes to the shoulders. So much strength and mobility is needed in the shoulders which can often translate to bunched up shoulders tensing up and around the ears. Not comfy at all! Even though we are engaging the muscles in the rotator cuff and the back of the shoulder blades we can physically relax the tops of the shoulders. Send the shoulders down the back away from the ears. This will lessen any unnecessary tension in the area as well as open up the chest. This will allow better access for the belly to reach towards the thighs and provide a yummy back stretch.
5. Take a break
As much as you might want to power through an uncomfortable pose, yoga is all about listening to your body. If your body is telling you to take a break. Take it. There is no shame in taking a break and if anyone makes you feel ashamed then that's really a them problem, not a you problem. Being able to understand where how your body feels and honour it is a huge achievement within yoga. The pose will always be there to come back to whenever you're ready.
For more information on classes visit my website or contact me with any questions you may have.
By Laura Carey
200hr YAI Yoga Teacher
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