Steps
- Lie on your belly, arms by your sides, palms down or in light fists.
- Reach the legs back. On an exhale, lift the chest and the legs only an inch or two.
- Keep the neck long. Look down.
- Lower with control. Rest. Repeat once if you like.
What this pose may help with
These lines describe why people practice the shape. A pose may help with ordinary stiffness or with settling your attention. They are not claims that the pose treats or cures a condition.
- Strengthens the back of the body.
- A counterpose after a lot of sitting or folding.
- Teaches you to lift without throwing the head back.
Common mistakes
- Lifting as high as possible and holding the breath.
- Crunching the neck.
- Hands pushing the floor so the shoulders hike up.
Modifications
- Lift only the chest, legs staying down.
- Or lift one leg at a time.
Safety
- Skip with pregnancy, recent abdominal surgery, or a back injury that dislikes extension.
- Neck pain: keep the forehead hovering or rested on a fist and lift less.
- A pinch in the lower back means the lift is too high.
If you are pregnant, injured, or dealing with back pain, consult a doctor before you follow this page. Stop for sharp pain, numbness, dizziness, or chest pain. This is movement education, not a diagnosis or a treatment. Read the medical disclaimer.
Locust Pose (Salabhasana, said sha-lah-BAHS-uh-nuh) is listed here as a Intermediate Prone pose. The body area it emphasizes is Back. Lying on the belly, you lift the chest and the legs a little, using the back body. Small and strong beats high and strained.
Read the steps in order. Set the pose up before you try to deepen it. The first mistake called out on this page is: Lifting as high as possible and holding the breath. That line is there because the usual error is doing too much, not because a tighter shape is a better practice. The modifications keep the same idea when the full shape does not fit today. Use them on purpose. They are part of the pose, not a demotion.
People practice Locust Pose for a plain reason: Strengthens the back of the body. That “may help” is a description of why the shape is in a beginner library. It is not a claim that the pose treats, cures, or prevents a condition. Skip with pregnancy, recent abdominal surgery, or a back injury that dislikes extension.
If you are pregnant, returning from an injury, or your back has been painful, consult a doctor before you practice Locust Pose. A safety note on a website is education. It is not clearance. Sharp pain, numbness, dizziness, or pain that runs down a leg is a reason to stop and get care, not a reason to hold the shape longer. The medical disclaimer on this site says the same thing in more detail.
When you are done, come out slowly. One calm repetition you can repeat tomorrow is the point of the page. Pair Locust Pose with a short routine from this site if you want a sequence, and keep the timer as a guide you are allowed to pause.