Downward Facing Dog: Part 1- Shoulders

I've been teaching Yoga at work the past month and realized that Downward Dog- a basic position in almost every single Yoga class, is actually quite difficult for beginners. Students/Colleagues in my class often complain of wrist pain when they are asked to come into this asana.

While this pose stretches the hamstrings, the most important part of the pose is elongating the spine, then we can start worrying about the hamstrings. The goal is to create a straight line in the back of the body and touching the heels on the mat is secondary.

I suggest trying this alignment in puppy dog first to get a sense and then lift your hips up to downward facing dog!

Here are few things to keep in mind in the upper body when doing downward facing dog:

- Spread your fingers on the mat, press them down, particularly the index finger
- Make sure the index finger is pointing straight or slightly out
- Arms of shoulder width apart
- Shoulders externally rotated, forearms squeezing tightly in
-Neck relaxed, looking down at your feet
- Squeeze your belly to your spine

Let me know how this worked for you if you've been having difficulty with this pose! I believe practice makes perfect but only if you are practicing right!