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Urdvha Wha?

Urdvha = upward
Mukha = Face
Svana = Dog
Asana = posture, seat, connection to the earth

Benefits

1. Opens and stretches your chest and shoulders.

2. Strengthens your arms and wrists

3. Stimulates your abdominal organs

What to Watch Out For

Be careful in this pose if you have a back injury (you may just want to take Cobra pose), carpal tunnel syndrome (some yogis find relief by doing this pose on fists), are pregnant or have a headache.

Step by Step

As in all yoga postures, the breath is vital. I’ve written more here on how to breathe yogically.

1. From Chaturanga, use the strength of your core, your arms and your legs to inhale your chest forward and up, your legs up to hover above the floor, and your hips closer to your arms.

2. Exhale and draw your shoulders back and down.

3. Inhale and keep lifting your chest, looking up only if it’s comfortable for your neck and you can keep the back of your neck long.

4. Intend your pubis toward your navel, to decrease any pressure on your lower back. Try not to push your front ribs forward.

5. Keep your fingers spread really wide, palms planted evenly into the floor.

6. There’s some debate about whether or not it’s okay to take Upward Dog with your toes on the floor, rather than the tops of your feet. A teacher I know put it this way: women are more bottom heavy than men, so if we want to use the strength of our feet to help us out in this pose—why not?

Next up:

Flow back to Downward Facing Dog, then step into Warrior I and Warrior II on the side you haven’t done, and then step up to Mountain.

Off The Mat

Front body openers tend to energize us, so swoop up into Upward Facing Dog any time you need an energy boost, or feel your shoulders rounding.