Bow Pose

How to do Bow Pose

1. 1Lie flat on your belly with your arms alongside your torso and your forehead resting on the mat.
2. 2Bend your knees and draw your heels toward your buttocks, keeping your knees hip-width apart.
3. 3Reach back with both hands and clasp the outer edges of your ankles firmly.
4. 4Inhale deeply, engage your glutes, and actively kick your shins back and upward away from your body.
5. 5Allow the backward momentum of your legs to draw your chest, shoulders, and head off the floor.
6. 6Draw your shoulder blades down and together to keep your neck long, keeping your gaze forward.
7. 7Hold the pose for three to five smooth breaths, feeling the gentle rise and fall of your belly against the mat.
8. 8Exhale gently to release your grip, lowering your thighs, chest, and forehead slowly back down to rest.

Benefits

• Stretches the entire anterior body including the throat, chest, abdomen, and quadriceps.
• Strengthens the spinal extensors, buttocks, and backs of the thighs.
• Improves thoracic spinal mobility and promotes healthy posture.
• Expands the rib cage to encourage deeper, more efficient breathing.
• Gently stimulates the abdominal organs through pressure against the floor.

Common mistakes and cues

• Splaying the knees wide

  Keep your knees hip-distance apart throughout the lift to avoid pinching your lower back and sacroiliac joints.

• Pulling with the arms

  Focus on actively kicking your legs backward rather than pulling with your biceps to hoist the upper body.

• Compressing the neck

  Lengthen the back of your cervical spine by gazing forward or slightly downward rather than hyperextending the neck.

• Holding the breath

  Avoid clenching your throat and maintain a steady, gentle abdominal breath while resting on your belly.

Modifications and props

• Strap around ankles

  Loop a yoga strap around the front of both ankles if your hands cannot reach your feet without straining your shoulders.

• Blanket under pelvis

  Place a folded blanket beneath your hip bones and lower abdomen to cushion sensitive pressure points on hard floors.

• One-legged variation

  Hold one ankle at a time while resting the opposite forearm across the top of your mat for support.

• Block between thighs

  Gently squeeze a foam block between your inner thighs to encourage proper adductor engagement and keep knees parallel.

Cautions

• Lumbar spine issues

  Avoid or modify gently if you have acute disc herniation, spondylolisthesis, or sharp lower-back discomfort.

• Pregnancy

  Avoid this pose entirely during pregnancy due to direct pressure on the abdomen, choosing standing chest openers instead.

• Cardiovascular conditions

  Enter and exit mindfully without straining or holding the breath if you have high blood pressure or heart conditions.

If you are working with an injury, pregnancy or a medical condition, check with a qualified professional before practising this pose.

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