Lie face down on the floor. Place your palms flat on the floor, next to your ribs. Extend your arms, pressing into the palms. Lift your chest off the ground, keeping your hips and legs on the floor. Look straight ahead. Hold for a few breaths and then lower your chest back down to the floor.

How to perform the Upward Facing Dog

  1. Set up. Set up in a stable, balanced starting position appropriate for the Upward Facing Dog using your body weight.
  2. Brace and execute. Brace your core, control the descent, and move through a full pain-free range of motion while emphasizing your hamstrings.
  3. Reset. Reverse the movement under control and reset between repetitions, keeping your form crisp on every rep.

Coaching cues

  • Move with intent — every rep should feel deliberate, not rushed.
  • Drive force through your hamstrings rather than momentum.
  • Keep your breathing steady: exhale on the hard part, inhale on the reset.

Common mistakes

  • Using too much weight and losing positional control.
  • Cutting the range of motion short and missing the target muscle.
  • Letting your spine round or hyperextend instead of staying neutral.

Detailed cues, common mistakes, and demonstration video are available in the Fitly app.

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