Downward Dog Modifications?

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

I’m a complete newbie to yoga, and have both wanting to try it and avoiding it all at the same time…lol. Back ground is I’m very tight from my calves right through my hips. I also have osteo-arthritis which has given me the right hip of a 75 year old (I’m 41). Not to mention I have two cervical ribs (extra set of ribs near where neck & shoulders meet) So in an effort to manage pain, keep movement in the joint and just open up more I decided to really give yoga a proper chance. I’m currently practicing hatha yoga. The reason I been avoiding yoga is due to how tight I am, and I know doing yoga will help.

Right now I feel my biggest problem is downward dog. My calves feel so tight & doing that pose hurts my calves I can’t get my heels down & bending my knees it still hurts. When I try to open up in the shoulders I feel limited there due to the extra ribs. So I’ve been trying to do modifications like doing a half dog using a wall, and that I seem to be able to do okay. However using a wall for downward dog I find awkward for sun salutations. I did try using a chair, but that still doesn’t move the floor up high enough for me. So I’m wondering should I keep using the wall, and move through sun salutations as smoothly as I can. Should I just keep my knees bent & push through the pain in my calves which is a burning pulling type of pain. Are there baby steps anyone can suggest so that I can slowly and gently move through all this tightness?

Thanks!

#2

It is difficult to give advise without seeing you…perhaps just do not do sun salutations…but do work on the asanas that are in it…just one at a time…slowly using the wall as you need rather than trying to flow them together.

Maybe Gordon has some ideas for you he is good at this stuff…

It would be good for you to work with an experienced teacher…some 1-2-1 classes would benefit you…then you can practice safely on your own.

#3

When there is something big going on something big is needed to counter it. When you have little stuff you can use little stuff.

When the body is stiff and there’s symptoms of arthritis and you’re over 40 that’s a bit of stuff So for me in this I would turn the focus away from “how do I do surya namaskar” and focus on “what things can I do in the early parts of my practice to traction my hip, lengthen and release my calves, and engage the serratus anterior to spread my shoulder blades SO THAT I can get to downward facing dog”.

If the preference, after all that, is to still do the pose then I would suggest exploring it outside of the SN sequence. Do it in wall ropes, do it with the heels on the baseboard, do it with the knees flexed enough to not have pain in the calves (all the while attending to the line of the spine).

In the meantime have your teacher show you the therapeutic work for the calves using a rod or a golf ball, supta padangusthasana with a strap, and perhaps a tilted plank pose at the wall.

The balance of work has to come in the realm of lifestyle and nutrition. Eliminate foods that lead to inflammation and eat the ones that lead to hydration, oxygenation, and alkalinity.

#4

good for you that you are exploring variations. yes, I can see that wall is very uncomfortable during sun salute.

some people will never be able to put feet in the floor in this pose…just due to bone structure of the foot, not due to tense calves.

down dog’s main focus it the spine…i advise my students to bend their knees as much as they need to get good extension of the spine.

bending your knees in sun salute should be easier rather using the wall.

#5

Thanks everyone for the replies. I’m currently just doing yoga videos and I know that isn’t the best way to learn. I will be taking some classes shortly so that I could then get direct feedback as well!