Upward Bow Pose

How to do Upward Bow Pose

1. 1Lie flat on your back with your knees bent, setting your feet parallel and hip-distance apart close to your sitting bones.
2. 2Place your palms on the mat beside your ears with fingers pointing toward your shoulders, keeping your elbows shoulder-width apart.
3. 3Press firmly into your feet and hands on an exhale, lifting your hips and chest to rest lightly on the crown of your head.
4. 4Re-hug your elbows toward the midline, draw your shoulder blades onto your back, and root down through the bases of your index fingers.
5. 5Inhale and push the floor away to straighten your arms and lift your head clear of the mat, rolling your inner thighs subtly downward.
6. 6Press your chest forward toward the wall behind you, allowing your neck to stay long and gaze softly toward the floor between your hands.
7. 7Hold for three to five steady breaths, then tuck your chin to your chest, bend your elbows, and gently lower your spine to the floor.

Benefits

• Stretches and broadens the chest, shoulders, abdomen, and hip flexors
• Strengthens the glutes, hamstrings, and deep spinal muscles
• Improves functional mobility throughout the thoracic and lumbar spine
• Builds load-bearing strength in the wrists, arms, and shoulder girdle
• Promotes full-body circulation and leaves the practitioner feeling alert and energized

Common mistakes and cues

• Splaying the feet and knees

  Keep your feet parallel and engage the inner thighs to avoid compressing the sacrum and lumbar spine.

• Over-arching the lower back

  Focus on driving the sternum through the arms rather than dumping all the extension into the lower back.

• Flaring the elbows outward

  Keep your elbows aligned directly over your wrists to properly stabilize the shoulder joints.

• Collapsing into the outer wrists

  Press firmly through the inner edges of your palms and the index finger knuckles to distribute wrist load evenly.

Modifications and props

• Blocks against a wall for wrists

  Place two yoga blocks on an angle against a baseboard beneath your hands to decrease the wrist extension angle.

• Strap above the elbows

  Loop a strap around your triceps at shoulder width to prevent your elbows from splaying outward as you press up.

• Block between the thighs

  Squeeze a block between your inner thighs while lifting to encourage neutral hip rotation and protect the low back.

• Supported over a chair

  Drape your mid-back over the padded seat of a backless yoga chair while holding the frame to access the heart opening with less muscular effort.

Cautions

• Wrist injuries or carpal tunnel

  Avoid full weight-bearing on extended wrists and consider practicing Bridge Pose instead.

• Shoulder impingement

  Do not force the lift if you encounter sharp pinch points or restricted overhead mobility in the shoulders.

• Uncontrolled blood pressure

  Avoid deep inverted backbends that place abrupt demands on arterial pressure and the cardiovascular system.

• Late-stage pregnancy

  Refrain from deep full-body backbends that place excessive traction on the abdominal wall and pelvic joints.

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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