Upward Plank Pose with Right Leg Up

How to do Upward Plank Pose with Right Leg Up

1. 1Begin seated in Staff Pose with legs extended straight forward and your spine tall.
2. 2Place your hands several inches behind your hips with fingers pointing forward toward your toes.
3. 3Press firmly into your palms and heels to lift your hips toward the ceiling until your body forms a long diagonal line.
4. 4Draw your shoulder blades down your back to broaden across your collarbones while engaging your inner thighs.
5. 5Ground down firmly through your left foot and engage your deep core to stabilize your pelvis.
6. 6Inhale and lift your right leg straight up toward the ceiling, keeping your toes active and hips level.
7. 7Gaze gently upward or keep your chin neutral, breathing steadily for several cycles.
8. 8Exhale to lower your right foot to the mat, then slowly release your hips down to the floor.

Benefits

• Strengthens the glutes, hamstrings, and spinal erectors.
• Builds functional endurance in the triceps, wrists, and shoulder stabilizers.
• Opens the chest, clavicles, and front shoulders.
• Improves asymmetrical pelvic control and balance.
• Tones and activates the deep abdominal muscles and hip flexors.

Common mistakes and cues

• Dropping the Pelvis

  Keep pressing actively through the supporting left heel and glute so the hips do not sag toward the floor.

• Tilting the Hips

  Avoid rolling the right hip open, keeping both hip points level and facing the ceiling.

• Collapsing in the Shoulders

  Push the floor away through your palms to elevate the heart rather than sinking into the shoulder joints.

• Bending the Standing Knee

  Keep the left leg strong and extended rather than letting the knee collapse or turn outward.

Modifications and props

• Bent-Knee Tabletop Variation

  Bend the supporting left knee at ninety degrees with the foot flat on the floor to reduce hamstring load.

• Fingers Turned Out

  Angle your hands slightly outward if pointing your fingers toward your feet strains your wrists.

• Knee-to-Chest Lift

  Draw your right knee toward your chest instead of extending the leg straight up to shorten the lever.

• Hands on Blocks

  Place yoga blocks under your hands to gain shoulder clearance and ease wrist extension.

Cautions

• Wrist Pain

  Avoid full weight-bearing if you have acute wrist strain, tendonitis, or carpal tunnel syndrome.

• Shoulder Impingement

  Modify or skip this pose if you experience sharp anterior shoulder pain during extension.

• Cervical Spine Sensitivity

  Keep your neck in line with your spine and your chin slightly tucked instead of dropping your head backward.

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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