A dog with its head down is one of the most popular yoga asanas. Not only is its popularity so often chosen, but also its relative ease of execution, purpose, multi-functionality and efficiency. A dog with its head down not only allows you to deal with joint and muscle pain, but also has a preventive effect - it strengthens the body, tones the tissues and teaches our body correct posture and good, conscious movement. Unfold the mat and do something useful for yourself!
A dog with his head down , or Adho Mukha Svanasana, is a real relief for the body and a rescue for sore muscles and joints. This asana is not only preventive - it prevents injuries, overload and posture defects, but is also a great tool for dealing with already acquired injuries and dysfunctions.
Today, many of us spend too much time sitting, and the dog with its head down comes to our aid. Performed several times a day during breaks from working at a desk, it can be a real rescue and a surprising ally. It is worth knowing that for people who have hard physical work, a dog with its head down will also be recommended - it will relax, oxygenate and regenerate the overloaded body.
Contents:
- A dog with its head down - how to do it correctly?
- Dog with his head down - the most common mistakes
- Dog with head down - what gives?
- Head-down dog vs. cobra
- Dog head down and dog head up
- Dog with head down - contraindications
- Dog Head Down - Breathe
- Head-down dog - where does this item come from?
A dog with a head down doesn't have many contraindications. After consulting a doctor, it can be performed even during pregnancy. Interestingly, in yoga class, it is one of the first positions we "enter". Let's take a closer look at this one of the basic yoga poses.
A dog with its head down - how to do it correctly?
- Come down to the front or plank position.
- Place your hands parallel to each other shoulder-width apart. Place your fingers quite wide apart and point your thumbs inward.
- Try to unscrew the shoulders from the mat and point your elbows gently outward. This will also help you properly position your shoulder blades and tighten them.
- Place your knees approximately hip-width apart, and place your feet parallel to each other.
- ThenPush yourself firmly off the mat with your hips pointing upwards.
- You don't have to touch the mat with your heels right away and straighten your knees. You can only lean on your toes. However, be sure to tighten your buttocks so that your knees are facing outwards and your feet are tightened and gently unscrewed.
- Remember to keep your shoulders away from your ears and not hang on your shoulder blades. Keep the abdomen slightly taut and the pelvis tucked up.
- Don't mess your head! The head should be aligned with the spine and be its natural extension.
Dog with his head down - the most common mistakes
1. Bending the lumbar spine
Bending the lumbar spine is one of the most common mistakes when a dog is positioned head down. Of course, a dog with its head down is an excellent stretching exercise for the spine, but we must not forget about the strengthening aspect. If we allow hyperextension in the lumbar spine, our whole body will not work properly. Then the buttocks and biceps muscles will relax, the abdomen will release tension, and our lumbar region will cram too much. To prevent bending of the lumbar spine, you should tense your abdomen and buttocks - this will provide us with perfect stabilization and, most importantly, the position of each vertebra.
2. Hyperextension in the elbows
This is a fairly common mistake when a dog is head down. The elbows should be slightly pointing outwards and the fingers of the hands should be wide apart. To avoid hyperextension in your elbows, imagine that you are playing a piano. Then you will properly tighten the muscles and protect the joint from excessive straightening. It may also be helpful to point your thumbs towards you and tighten the paddles firmly.
3. Knees turned inwards
A dog with his head down is not an exercise in which we put pressure on the knees, but it is still worth positioning them correctly. Your knees should be pointing outwards and your toes should be parallel to each other. Thanks to the gentle rotation of the knees, we will activate the gluteal muscles to work, which is an additional advantage of the dog's head down position.
4. Hanging on the shoulder blades
Hanging on the shoulder blades is a big mistake for a dog with his head down. Not only is it dangerous and can permanently damage the scapula joint and the shoulder girdle, it is also simply ineffective. The shoulders of the dog should be kept tight - that is, pulled down.
5. Loose belly
Contrary to appearances, a dog with its head down is an exercise that not only makes you flexible, but also strengthens. The belly while the dog is head down should be slightly taut. This can be achieved with a pelvic tuck or simplystomach pulled in. If we do not do this, our entire center, which is responsible for stabilization, deactivates. This will cause changes to the entire body alignment, which in turn will make the exercise ineffective.
6. Buckling head
Bucking head while the dog is head down is a big mistake. It not only disturbs the work of the entire torso, but also changes the position of the vertebrae in the spine. This can result in overstrain, injury and even a later posture defect. Proper positioning of the head during exercise is particularly important, often it is the constant looking sideways in the mirror while exercising or raising your head that causes permanent posture defects or overload pain in the muscles and head.
7. Pushing off the ground too weakly
The dog with the head down is an exercise in which the full force of the upper body generates a strong push off the mat. If we do it correctly, our entire back will stretch properly, the spaces between the vertebrae will increase and the entire spine will become more elastic.
8. The shoulders next to the ears
The shoulders should be as far away from the ears as possible. A common problem among trainers is tightening the neck and its surroundings and pulling the shoulders up to the ears. Such positioning not only has a negative effect on the work of the entire shoulder girdle, but also excessive tension in the neck and nape area. When we pull the shoulders up to the ears, our shoulder blade is not working properly and is constantly stretched - this also limits the effectiveness of this exercise.
Dog with head down - what gives?
A dog with its head down is an invaluable exercise in terms of its he alth properties! Let's see what the head down dog gives and what to expect when doing it regularly:
- removes backache
- strengthens the spine and prevents its dysfunction
- strengthens the shoulders and improves the work of the entire shoulder complex
- opens her chest
- regulates the work of hormones
- regenerates the nervous system
- supports the work of the diaphragm and respiratory muscles
- strengthens joints and ligaments
- increases the mobility of the hips, shoulders and spine
- improves blood circulation
- regulates the pressure
- removes fatigue
- restores energy
- oxygenates the brain and supports its work
A dog with its head down is primarily a strengthening exercise and it is worth taking a closer look at this angle.
In this position, the work begins in the wrist flexor muscles, which keep the body in support. The triceps muscles of the arms, i.e. the triceps, straighten the elbows, while the biceps, i.e. the biceps muscles of the arms,they remain in a constant elongation, but control the elbow joint and prevent it from overstretching. Moreover, the front part of the deltoid muscles keeps the shoulders elevated, and the infraspinatus and lesser curves guide the arms outward. The toothed anterior muscle, on the other hand, stabilizes the scapula and, together with the trapezius, keeps the shoulders away from the ears.
As for the work of the torso, in a dog with its head down, the spine extensor keeps the spine in a straight line, and together with the shoulders and pelvis, it forms a whole joined by the latissimus dorsi muscle, which stretches evenly in this position. The chest opens to allow the pectoral muscles to stretch and lift the arms above the head. Moving on, the abdominal muscles are elongated but at the same time remain constantly tense, which helps to stabilize the spine. The iliopsoas keeps the hip joints bent, and the inverted diaphragm lifts the internal organs during inhalation, and pushes against them when exhaling, allowing them to relax.
Our legs and buttocks also work when the dog's head down! The back side of our legs is in constant isometric tension and simultaneous stretching. Our legs are connected by a myofascial chain, which begins at the plantar fascia in the foot, goes into the triceps muscle of the calf and the muscles of the posterior side of the thigh, and ends in the great gluteal muscles, at which the next chain begins - the one resulting from work arms.
In a head down dog, the quadriceps are concentrically tense and the tibialis anterior muscle pulls the foot against the thighs and allows the calves to stretch. All the work of the body ends with the fibula muscles that turn the foot inward and allow it to rest on the inner part and emphasize the arch of the foot. Interestingly, their work connects to the muscle of the broad fascia, which twists the hip joint inwards.
As you can see, a dog with its head down is a comprehensive exercise that has an extremely wide range of applications.
Head-down dog vs. cobra
A dog with a head down, a dog with a head up and a cobra are very well-known yoga poses and at the same time make it difficult to recognize and distinguish them. Certainly this is primarily because each of these poses occurs in the most famous yoga sequence - sun salutation. Another reason may be the nomenclature that may bring to mind similar associations about the curvature of the spine. Nevertheless, these items have completely different uses and techniques. Let's take a look at themcloser.
Cobra is quite similar to the head-up dog, but slightly different from its predecessor. During the cobra, we do not push off the mat, but only bend the thoracic spine into an arch. Our hands rest under the shoulders, but the elbows are not straightened, as in a dog with his head up. In the cobra, we also do not support our feet, although the feet remain actively tense.
Dog head down and dog head up
A head-up dog is also a yoga pose, but should not be confused with a head-down dog. These two exercises are mirror images of each other, and therefore the complete opposite! A dog with its head up is a position in which we bend the spine into an arch, pushing ourselves off the mat with our hands, but remain lying on the stomach. More specifically, we are close to the mat, but by pushing the tops of our feet up, our hips are gently lifted
Explore other yoga poses:
- Lotus flower step by step
- Headstand (sirshasana)
Dog with head down - contraindications
A contraindication for a dog with its head down are all kinds of locomotor system diseases that make it impossible to perform exercises in front supports, based on the hip flexion.
People who cannot stay in the head down position and suffering from headaches will also be excluded from doing this exercise. These are, for example, people with high blood pressure or stroke survivors.
A dog with its head down should not be performed by people in convalescence and those with a recent injury to the shoulder girdle, ankle joint, wrists or spine.
Some problems related to the heart and circulatory system are also a contraindication to exercising a dog with its head down. A dog with its head down does improve the work of the circulatory system, but only when this position is performed according to the recommendations of the doctor or physiotherapist.
- Yoga poses (asanas) for lumbar spine pain
- Yoga for Beginners - Basic Asanas
Dog Head Down - Breathe
Breathing in yoga exercises is very important. The breath is, as it were, part of a given position, and without it, it is not fully effective. Breathing in a dog with its head down is particularly important - it loosens tense places in the body, oxygenates the body, calms the nervous system and ensures proper operation of the diaphragm.
Breathing should be regular and calm. During the breath, we should imagine that we direct it down the back and on the sides of our body - this will provide us with axial breathingin 360 degrees, which is what it should be. Proper inhalation should make our torso fill up like a barrel. We should breathe a diaphragm that moves in every direction: sideways, forward and backward, and up and down. In a dog with its head down, breathing is especially pleasant and soothing - it perfectly affects the work of the CNS, i.e. our nervous system.
Breathe in should be about 4 seconds and exhale for a minimum of 8 seconds. We should also remember about a short pause immediately after exhalation, it will prevent hyperventilation and oxygenate us better. When exhaling, try to direct the air up the palate, thanks to which we will do it correctly.
Head-down dog - where does this item come from?
The head down dog is one of the most popular and used asanas in yoga - the Indian exercise system and philosophy. The full and professional name of the head down dog is Adho Mukha Svasana, where "adho" means "forward", "mukha" means "face" and "svana" is dog. On the other hand, "asana" is in other words a pose.
The head-down dog pose is derived from the yoga system called hatha yoga. It is based on taking appropriate body positions (asanas), the six processes of cleansing the kriya and breathing control, the so-called pranayama.