Hero Pose with Cow-Face Arms, Left Arm Up

How to do Hero Pose with Cow-Face Arms, Left Arm Up

1. 1Kneel on the floor with your knees together and feet slightly wider than your hips, pressing the tops of your feet evenly into the mat.
2. 2Sit back gently between your heels, allowing your sit bones to rest on the floor or a yoga block.
3. 3Extend your left arm straight up overhead toward the ceiling, then bend the elbow to drop your left hand down between your shoulder blades.
4. 4Reach your right arm out to the side, rotate the palm backward, bend the elbow, and slide your right hand up your spine.
5. 5Clasp the fingers of both hands behind your back, or hold a strap if your hands do not meet comfortably.
6. 6Point your left elbow straight up toward the ceiling while drawing your right elbow close to your side ribs.
7. 7Broaden across your collarbones, keep your head upright with the chin parallel to the floor, and breathe smoothly for five to eight breaths.

Benefits

• Deeply stretches the quadriceps, hip flexors, and tops of the ankles.
• Increases range of motion in the rotator cuff and shoulder joints.
• Stretches the triceps, chest, and latissimus dorsi muscles.
• Encourages natural lumbar alignment and an upright, alert spine.
• Expands lung capacity by opening the ribcage and intercostal spaces.

Common mistakes and cues

• Flaring the ribs

  Draw your lower front ribs gently toward your spine to avoid over-arching the lower back.

• Pressing the head forward

  Keep your neck long and press the back of your head lightly into the top forearm rather than tucking your chin.

• Collapsing inward

  Maintain equal weight across both sitting bones and keep the chest broad rather than tilting toward the top arm.

• Forcing the bind

  Use a strap instead of wrenching the shoulder joint if your fingers do not touch naturally.

Modifications and props

• Use a strap

  Hold a yoga strap in your top hand and grasp it with your bottom hand to bridge the distance between your fingers.

• Sit on a block

  Place a yoga block on its lowest or medium height between your feet to ease knee and ankle pressure.

• Blanket under ankles

  Slide a rolled blanket under your ankle joints if the tops of your feet feel overly compressed.

• Release the bottom bind

  Gently rest your right hand on your left elbow overhead for a triceps stretch if internal rotation is unavailable.

Cautions

• Knee injuries

  Avoid deep knee flexion or elevate your seat with multiple blocks if you experience any sharp knee pain.

• Rotator cuff issues

  Refrain from binding behind the back if you have acute shoulder impingement or tears.

• Ankle sprains

  Skip the Virasana seat or use significant padding if recovering from recent ankle trauma.

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

Practise this for

Classes that teach this pose

Upcoming Iyengar classes where this shape shows up.

Teachers and studios for this practice

Related poses