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Yoga poses

Three-Legged Dog: Open Each Hip From Downward Dog

From Downward Dog, lift one leg, bend the knee and roll that hip open over the other, then set it down and change legs. Both hands keep pressing the floor.

Moving · Hips · 2 min read

Why it works: Chapter 23, Stiff people work harder for every stroke

Demonstration · Three-Legged Dog

How to do it

  1. 1

    Start in a strong Down Dog

    Hands shoulder-width apart, fingers spread, hips high, so your body makes an upside-down V. Bend your knees as much as you need to keep your back long.

  2. 2

    Shift, then lift

    Shift a little more weight into your hands and one foot, then lift the other leg straight back and up, from the top of the thigh.

  3. 3

    Roll the hip open

    Bend the lifted knee and let that hip turn up and stack over the standing hip, the foot drifting behind you toward the other side. Open only as far as your shoulders stay level.

  4. 4

    Keep pressing the floor away

    Both hands press down evenly so your shoulders stay wide and level. The arm on the side of the lifted leg tends to go soft; press it as hard as the other.

  5. 5

    Close it, set it down, lift the other

    Turn the hip back down, straighten the leg and place the foot back in Downward Dog, then lift and open the other side. Keep changing, steady and slow, for the whole time.

  6. 6

    The test

    You should feel the outer hip and glute of the lifted leg opening while your hands and standing leg hold you still. If all you feel is the back of the thigh, open the hip more and lift the leg lower. If your shoulders give out first, bend the standing knee.

Watch for

  • Collapsing into the standing side. That waist shortens, your shoulders tilt and the weight piles into one wrist.
  • Chasing height instead of the open hip. The leg goes up, your lower back arches and the hip never turns.
  • Soft arms. Your chest sinks toward the floor and your shoulders take the strain.
  • Dropping the foot to change. The change happens in a lurch, and the control you came for is gone.

Questions

Should your hips be square or open in Three-Legged Dog?

Both are taught. Here you open it: the lifted hip turns up and stacks over the standing one with the knee bent, so the outer hip and glute of that leg stretch while your hands and standing leg hold you still. Open only as far as your shoulders stay level.

What does Three-Legged Dog work?

Your shoulders and arms hold most of your weight, and the calf and hamstring of the standing leg get a long stretch. Opening the lifted hip stretches its outer hip and glute.

How long should you do Three-Legged Dog?

In the Balance · 01 routine it is two minutes of changing legs, one up, down, then the other, without stopping. There is no daily target: do it when your training day has that routine. Those are the times in the normal-length session: a long day holds a little longer, and a short day trims only the holds longer than a minute.