Knees-chest-chin (hold)

Ashtanga Namaskara

Yogaeasytimedno equipment

Eight-limbed salute: toes, knees, chest, chin and both palms on the floor, hips lifted high, elbows bent straight back and hugging the ribs, gaze forward.

How to do it

1. Start in tabletop with the toes tucked: hands under the shoulders, fingers spread forward, knees under the hips, toes curled under so the heels point up.
2. Keeping the hips lifted, shift the shoulders and chest slightly forward of the wrists.
3. Bend the elbows straight back, hugging them to the ribs, and let the chest travel down and slightly forward.
4. Lower the chest and then the chin to the floor between the hands, keeping the hips high and the belly off the floor so the spine arches gently; the hands now sit beside the chest.
5. Eight points touch the floor: toes, knees, chest, chin and both palms; hips stay high, elbows close to the body, gaze forward. (In a sun salutation the pose is often entered from plank by first lowering the knees.)

Muscles worked

deltoidi, addominali, lombari, tricipiti, pettorali