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Downward Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)
Positions & Range of Motion
- Start
- quadruped with hands under the shoulders, fingers spread and rooted, toes tucked under
- End
- hips lifted up and back into an inverted V, arms and spine forming one long line, sit bones reaching toward the ceiling, heels sinking toward the floor, head relaxed between the upper arms
- Range of Motion
- sustained hold — overhead shoulder flexion, deep hip flexion, and knee/ankle extension taken to a neutral-spine end range
How to Perform
From hands-and-knees, tuck the toes and lift the hips up and back until the body forms an inverted V, arms and spine in one long line and knees softly extending. Press the floor away through spread fingers, reach the sit bones toward the ceiling, and let the heels sink toward the floor only as far as a neutral spine allows. Hold while breathing steadily, keeping the head relaxed between the upper arms.
Opens a YouTube search for “Downward Dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana)”
Coaching Cues
- 1
Press the floor away from you and reach your hips up and back toward the wall behind you.
(external) - 2
Spread your fingers wide and root down through the knuckles so the wrists share the load.
(external) - 3
Bend your knees as much as you need to keep your back long — hips high beats heels down.
(internal) - 4
Let your head hang relaxed between your arms, ears in line with your upper arms.
(external)
Evidence-Based Dosing & EMG Data
Hold 20-30 seconds (about 5 slow breaths) for 3-5 repetitions, most days of the week if used for hamstring/calf flexibility — consistent with general static-stretching dosage literature (30 s holds, repeated). No pose-specific dose-response trials exist, so strengthening-oriented flow dosing is by convention rather than evidence.
Small surface-EMG studies of hatha yoga poses (mostly in healthy adults, including older adults in the Yoga Empowers Seniors Study line of work) report low-to-moderate activation in downward dog: notable serratus anterior and trapezius activity from the weight-bearing upward-rotated scapula, moderate triceps and anterior deltoid activity, and modest erector spinae and abdominal activity for trunk control. Force-plate work shows roughly 55-65 percent of body weight borne through the upper limbs, which is why it is used to build wrist and shoulder weight-bearing tolerance. Hamstring and triceps surae activity is minimal — those muscles are primarily on stretch. Samples are small and protocols heterogeneous, so treat the numbers as indicative rather than definitive.
Muscles Involved (20)
Primary Movers
Secondary Movers
Stabilizers
Lengthened / Stretched
Easier Variations ↓
Wall Downward Dog
Hands on a wall or countertop at hip height, hinge at the hips and walk back until the spine is long. Greatly reduces upper-limb load and hamstring demand; ideal for wrist pain, shoulder limitation, or contraindicated inversion.
Bent-Knee Downward Dog
Perform the full pose with knees generously bent and heels lifted, prioritizing a long spine and hip flexion over knee extension. Suits tight hamstrings and calves.
Harder Variations ↑
Three-Legged Dog
From the pose, extend one leg toward the ceiling while keeping the pelvis level. Adds single-limb load, hip-extensor work on the lifted side, and anti-rotation trunk demand.
Down Dog to Plank Flow / Pike Push-Up
Rhythmically shift between downward dog and high plank, or bend the elbows in the pike position and press back up. Adds dynamic serratus, deltoid, and triceps strengthening toward overhead-pressing capacity.
Target Movements (7)
Why This Exercise Matters
Everyday activities this exercise helps you do — essential means it directly trains the capacity the task needs:
Goals This Helps With
Rehab, performance, prevention, and mobility goals this exercise supports — essential means it's a cornerstone:
Research Notes
claude-researched 2026-07; muscle/movement links validated against the roster. Adversarial clinical verification pending — do not promote past needs_review without human review.