How to Do Puppy Pose to Improve Your Posture and Relax Your Mind

Even if you're not a self-proclaimed yogi, you've likely done downward dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) many times — the popular yoga pose seems to make its way into every flow. But you might be less familiar with another canine-inspired posture: puppy pose (Uttana Shishosana).

Not only does it sound cute, but this powerful posture — which involves a deep backbend — boasts some pretty sweet mind-body benefits, like improving your posture and promoting relaxation and healthy circulation. Puppy pose definitely deserves a spot in your daily schedule (think: a post-workout stretch or to wind down at the end of the day before bed).

You can even sneak in puppy pose periodically throughout the workday to break up bouts of sitting, says Candace Harding, DPT, a physical therapist and yoga instructor based in Arlington, Virginia. And because it's gentle on your body, it's safe to be done as needed.

• ‌What is puppy pose?‌ Classified as a kneeling forward bend, puppy pose begins in a tabletop position with your hips over your knees, toes untucked, then walking both arms far enough away from your legs in order to lower your chest and chin down to the mat. This pose is unique because it puts you into a slight backbend (or even a moderate backbend, depending on how it's practiced) because your upper and mid back are gently extended and your throat is opened. However, having your arms and legs on the ground beneath you provides enough support to soften the intensity of this gentle heart opener.
• ‌What muscles does puppy pose work?‌ Aside from deeply stretching your chest, arms and back, it can also help strengthen your triceps muscles, as you actively reach your arms forward. This pose also recruits your abdominal muscles to help stabilize your body in the pose.
• ‌What is puppy pose good for?‌ Kneeling postures in yoga, like puppy pose, are a gentle way to relieve pressure in your hips and lower back because the weight is taken off your legs and feet. Puppy pose can also open your pelvis and restore length and neutrality in your spine. Because your hands, knees and feet are beneath you on the mat, your center of gravity is much lower to the ground, which plays a role in creating a calming, stable and supportive posture. Puppy pose is also a great substitute for downward dog if bearing weight on your hands or shoulders doesn't feel good.
• ‌Who can do puppy pose?‌ Most people can practice puppy pose unless they're experiencing knee pain or injury or weight on their knees is painful. Similarly, if back-bending causes pain or intense discomfort, you might want to avoid puppy pose altogether or try modified versions (more on these below).
• ‌How long should you hold puppy pose for?‌ There isn't a set amount of time to hold puppy pose, but you can hold it for 3 to 5 cycles of breath to effectively stretch your muscles. Support yourself with props to hold this pose even longer — anywhere from 1 to 3 minutes for a deep, restorative release.
• ‌What is the difference between puppy and child's pose?‌ Child's pose (Balasana) is also classified as a kneeling forward fold, meaning you begin on your knees and sit your hips back onto your heels with the goal of folding forward to rest your head on a yoga mat. Even though these two poses are very similar, the biggest difference is that in puppy pose, you lift your hips over your knees and raise your torso off the ground to create a supported backbend.

Here are just a few reasons to make puppy pose a part of your regular yoga practice.

Puppy pose is a perfect stretch for your spine, especially because it targets your upper ‌and‌ lower back.

"The upper back (thoracic spine) naturally has a kyphosis, or a 'C' shaped curve," Harding says. But many of us hold our tension in this area, and over time, it can become super stiff. "Puppy pose reverses the kyphosis and brings it into extension," Harding says. By doing so, it reinforces your spine's flexibility.

"The same can be said for the low back (lumbar spine), which naturally has a lordosis, or a backward 'C' shape," Harding says. "For many people, prolonged sitting results in a reversal of the normal lordosis that should be present in the low back."

The good news: "This posture will help restore or maintain the lumbar spine's ability to achieve its natural position," she says. And when your spine is in a healthy, neutral position, you'll experience less back pain.

If you sit slouched at a desk all day, odds are your chest muscles are bearing the brunt of it. Poor posture can constrict your pectoral region, and this can cause a damaging domino effect for your diaphragm, which may become restricted in movement (read: it won't be able to fully expand when you're breathing).

Case in point: A January 2016 study in the ​‌Journal of Physical Therapy Science‌‌​‌ found that poor posture limited lung capacity. And when your body doesn't receive the oxygen it needs, you'll likely feel fatigued.

Enter puppy pose: This stretch can help combat poor posture by opening your chest. In fact, it stretches three primary muscles on the anterior chest wall: the pectoralis major, pectoralis minor and serratus anterior, Harding says.

• The pectoralis major is the largest muscle of the chest and inserts onto your humerus (upper-arm bone).
• The pectoralis minor, a smaller muscle located underneath the pec major, inserts on a portion of the shoulder blade.
• The serratus anterior, a fan-shaped muscle, covers ribs one through nine and inserts on a portion of the shoulder blade.

"Puppy pose provides a stretch to a portion of the pectoralis major, because of its actions in shoulder abduction and extension," Harding says.

The posture also involves the pectoralis minor and serratus anterior, which produce scapular protraction, i.e., "the motion of bringing your shoulders forward to create an exaggeration of upper-back rounding," she says.

Slumped shoulders are another sign of poor posture. Hours at a laptop can result in that signature shoulder rounding, despite our best intentions to sit straight. Puppy pose, which stretches your serratus anterior, can help with this slouched-shoulder issue.

Here's why: Your serratus anterior plays a role as a shoulder stabilizer and impacts how well your shoulder blades move. So if your serratus anterior is stiff, your shoulders will suffer, too.

By requiring shoulder flexion and abduction, as well as scapular retraction, puppy pose lengthens and stretches the serratus anterior, Harding says. And when these muscles are loose and limber, your shoulders will be in better shape too (think: reduced rounding and improved posture).

Not only does puppy pose promote good posture, but it can also support a sense of peacefulness and relaxation in your body.

Our nervous system is made up of two parts: the parasympathetic (responsible for rest and digestion) and sympathetic (controls our fight-or-flight response), Harding says.

"Any posture that primarily exposes your back (versus the front of your body) is one of innate safety, thus promoting, parasympathetic nervous system activation," she says.

Think of it this way: In this back-facing-up position, the hard, sturdy bones of your spine and ribcage can protect and shield your body's more vulnerable structures (like your organs), Harding says.

In other words, "we feel physically safer with our backs exposed, so it helps calm us on a subconscious level," she says.

Puppy pose can also boost your blood flow. This benefit relates in part to the pose's positioning, which places your hips above your heart. Gravity helps improve venous "return of blood flow to your lungs for re-oxygenation and your heart for distribution back to your muscles," Harding says.

This little assist is especially useful, since our venous system (responsible for circulation of blood toward the heart) is less elastic than our arterial system (which brings blood away from the heart), she says.

Most importantly, good circulation is key to overall health. "Blood carries oxygen, which our bodies utilize to create energy for all cell functions and to support life," Harding says.

Use a bolster, yoga block and blanket to open the front of your body without a deep backbend. Place a blanket wide across the mat as padding for sensitive knees (and to create a soft and welcoming space). If you don't have a bolster, you can use two blocks or a rolled up blanket or towel instead.

Sometimes called thread-the-needle pose, this variation harnesses the power of gravity to help relieve tightness by unwinding your upper back. This variation also reduces pressure in your hips and lower back.

After practicing the twisted version of puppy pose above, you can take things a step further with revolved puppy pose — a deep and intense twist that requires a lot of flexibility in your upper body.

Being able to do gentler twists to open up your shoulders is definitely a prerequisite to doing this pose safely, so make sure not to jump right into this pose without a little preparation!