Extended Puppy Pose | Uttana Shishosana

upward plank pose


Namaste and Hello everyone and welcome to Warrior Fitness Zone. I am Kailash Rathod. Today we are going to learn Extended Puppy Pose also called as Uttana Shishosana. This is a backward bend posture and it can be practice by a beginner also. If you see anatomically, it affects the chest, the heart, the lungs, the abdomen also the shoulders and the brain along with the spine. It stretches the spine beautifully along with the shoulders. Also this asana is very beneficial for people who have anxiety, people who have depression, people who have insomnia, people who have headache, people who have neck problem, they can practice this asana. This asana also stretches and increases flexibility in the spine.

Contraindications: Those who have knee problem, they should cushion the knees by either using the blanket or they can fold the mat, so that the strains on the knees is less.

Now, friends when you perform this practice, what you will keep in mind, spine/the torso, the thighs should look parallel actually, parallel to the floor and the arms also the shins should become parallel to each other, perpendicular to the ground. Hands attached, press the feet, inner thigh, press the palms and come up. After coming up, what we do is, we lift the pelvis up without hardening the buttocks, we don’t want to harden the buttocks and we want to bring the shoulder blades in so that we are lifting the chest higher. It doesn't allow the chest to fall. When you are comfortable, straighten the legs slow, keep the pelvis higher, don't tighten the buttocks too much. Let the head be nice and tall. If you are okay, drop the head behind. Squeezing the shoulder blades, lifting the torso, lifting the chest be a little higher. Hold here for about 30 seconds. Keep breathing in this position. If you find the neck is getting tired, just lift the head, make it neutral. Keep breathe. After about a few minutes, inhale and when you exhale, come down to Dandasana. Slowly. Friends, if you practice this asana regularly, it will help you to remove the fatigue from the body, also, it is very good strengthening asana which will improve the flexibility of the body and it can be also used for weight loss. Namaste!