Downward Dog
Downward facing dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) was my nemesis pose for years
I would huff and puff through with sore wrists and tired arms. Have a rounded back from trying to achieve the 'perfect' upside down V alignment with straight legs and heels down. Silently cursing the instructor and willing the next pose to hurry up.
It wasn't till my teacher training that it finally clicked that:
Like most people I have pretty tight hamstrings, so it's much more comfortable if I bend my knees, let my heels come off the floor and focus on getting my hips high rather than having straight legs (and at the same time releasing my attachment to the idea of a perfect shape!)
If I bring my shoulders down away from my ears and make some space across my upper back my shoulders can actually engage to take some weight out of my arms & wrists
And most importantly...
If I actually listen to what my body needs, sometimes I don't have the energy for this pose and I need a more restorative option, like child's pose - and there's no shame in that!
Even though now I have more of a love than a hate relationship with downward dog, I still feel like I haven’t embraced it fully… I’ve realised I’ve been treating it more as a transition rather than enjoying the pose as it is.
This pose is a pretty good all rounder - it strengthens your shoulders, arms, and back, can release out the backs of your legs, encourages you to use different parts of your lungs to breathe, and is a practice of discipline as you build tapas (heat), just to name a few of the benefits. It’s also a great antidote to sitting for long periods hunched at a computer as it brings your arms above your head, strengthens your wrists, opens up across your chest & brings your upper back into a more neutral position (note to self, remember to take more downward dog breaks throughout the day!) Bringing your head below your heart is also said to help you see things from a different perspective, so maybe that stressful email won’t seem so bad once you get back to your desk.
While I don’t think downward dog will ever be a resting pose for me as it is sometimes described, when I’m in a more active flow I’ll definitely be hanging out and appreciating the pose rather than rushing through it.