Chaturanga Dandasana, also known as four limb staff pose and Chaturanga, as it’s known in it’s short variation, is a foundational pose that teaches you how to find your centre whilst activating your arms and legs.

Commonly it’s a pose that practitioners struggle with, especially when starting out on their yoga journey as it requires a lot of upper body and core strength. Below are some tips to help to help build up to, or improve your Chaturanga Dandasana.

Starting from Plank Pose

Come into a plank pose - align your shoulders above your wrists, spread the fingers nice and wide, pressing palms into earth.
Lengthen through the legs, finding that nice extension and press the feet back, drawing energy through the heels of the feet as if pressing into a wall.
On an inhale move your shoulders slightly beyond your wrists whilst simultaneously drawing the heads of the shoulders and the tops of the thighs up and away from the floor, pull your lower body up and in, and release the tailbone toward the floor, continue to push back through the heels to engage the quadriceps and reach your sternum (chest) forward, this will create a nice straight line from the crown of the head to the balls of the feet
On an exhalation now, keeping everything taught, engaged and energised, slowly start to bend your elbows, keeping them as close to the body as you can and lower yourself toward the floor. Try not to let your centre dip or to stick your bottom up in the air.
As you lower bring your gaze towards the floor and stop about 6 inches in front of you, continue to lower until your shoulders are the same height as your elbows. Continue to breathe and lengthen through the body
To come out of the pose, exhale and lower all the way to your belly, push back to plank pose or inhale and roll onto the tops of the feet and into Upward Facing Dog, with your thighs off the floor.

Modifications

If you’re new to yoga, are building strength in your upper body or have a shoulder injury that perhaps you’re working with, then modifying this pose will really help you.

Carry out the steps outlined above, but with your knees on the floor, starting from your plank. You should still keep the integrity of the body.

Once you feel ready you can try it with your knees lifted.

Want to build shoulder and core strength?

There are lots of drills you can try out to help build upper body and core strength. But here’s a simple one to try to get you started.

Come into your Downward Facing Dog
On an inhale move forwards into Plank
On an exhale come back to Downward Facing Dog

Move through this flow as slowly or as dynamically as you wish, but continue to keep the integrity in the body. Try starting with up to 5 cycles and then build up to 10 cycles.

When you’re done lower your knees down, take them as wide as your mat, bring the big toes together to touch and come into a wide legged child’s pose (Balasana). Option to keep the arms reaching forwards or to bring them by the side of the body. Breathe.

If there’s a pose that you would like some tips on or have a question about then get in touch.