How to Get Your Legs Over Your Head on the Floor: A Guide to Plow Pose (Halasana)

How do you get your legs over your head on the floor?

Achieving the position of getting your legs over your head on the floor, commonly known as Plow Pose (Halasana) in yoga, is a flexibility and inversion exercise that requires significant hamstring flexibility, spinal mobility, and core control. It's a progressive journey, not an overnight achievement, built on consistent practice of foundational stretches and strength exercises.

Understanding the Movement: The Plow Pose (Halasana)

The movement you're describing is most accurately represented by the yoga posture known as Plow Pose (Halasana). In this pose, you lie on your back, lift your legs, and then continue to lift your hips, rolling your spine off the floor until your legs extend over your head, ideally with your toes touching the floor beyond your head.

• Muscles Involved:
  • Primary Stretch: Hamstrings, glutes, calves, and the entire posterior chain of the spine.
  • Spinal Engagement: Spinal erectors and deep core muscles for stability and control during the lift and descent.
  • Neck: Crucial for supporting the body weight, though the weight should be primarily on the shoulders, not the cervical spine.
• Benefits:
  • Spinal Decompression: Gently stretches and lengthens the spine, potentially alleviating back stiffness.
  • Hamstring and Glute Flexibility: Deeply stretches the muscles at the back of the thighs and hips.
  • Calming Effect: As an inversion, it can help calm the nervous system and reduce stress.
  • Digestive Stimulation: Gentle compression of the abdominal organs.

Prerequisites for Safe Execution

Before attempting to get your legs over your head, ensure you have sufficient foundational flexibility and strength to prevent injury.

• Hamstring Flexibility: You should be able to comfortably touch your toes while keeping your legs relatively straight, or perform deep forward folds without excessive strain. Inadequate hamstring flexibility will pull on your lower back, making the pose difficult and potentially harmful.
• Spinal Mobility: Your thoracic (upper) and lumbar (lower) spine need to be mobile enough to round gracefully and allow the hips to lift over the shoulders. Stiffness here can lead to excessive strain on the neck.
• Neck Health: This is paramount. If you have any history of neck injury, cervical disc issues, or chronic neck pain, this pose should be approached with extreme caution or avoided entirely. The weight of the body rests on the shoulders and upper back, but the neck is in a flexed position.
• Core Strength: A strong core (abdominal and back muscles) is essential for controlling the lift of the legs and hips, as well as for a safe and controlled exit from the pose.

Step-by-Step Guide to Getting Your Legs Over Your Head (Plow Pose)

Always warm up your body with gentle stretches and movements before attempting this pose.

1. Preparation:
   • Lie on your back on a mat with your arms by your sides, palms flat on the floor.
   • Keep your legs together and straight.
   • Ensure there's ample space behind your head for your legs to extend.
2. Lifting the Legs:
   • Engage your core muscles. On an exhale, press your palms into the floor and slowly lift your legs straight up towards the ceiling, aiming for a 90-degree angle to the floor.
   • Continue to lift your legs past 90 degrees, using your abdominal strength.
3. Rolling Over:
   • As your legs move towards your head, continue to lift your hips off the floor, rolling your spine up one vertebra at a time.
   • You can use a gentle push from your hands on the floor to help lift your hips.
   • Aim to get your hips stacked directly over your shoulders.
4. Extending Legs:
   • Once your hips are lifted, allow your legs to continue their journey over your head.
   • Ideally, your toes will touch the floor beyond your head. If they don't, that's perfectly fine; rest them on a block or a stack of blankets, or keep them floating in the air.
   • Keep your legs as straight as possible, gently pressing through your heels.
5. Hand Position:
   • You have a few options for your hands:
     • Keep them extended on the floor, palms down, interlacing your fingers if comfortable.
     • Bend your elbows and support your lower back with your hands, fingers pointing towards your hips, as you would in a shoulder stand. This provides more support.
6. Breathing and Hold:
   • Breathe deeply and evenly through your nose.
   • Hold the pose for 30 seconds to a few minutes, gradually increasing your duration as you gain comfort and flexibility.
7. Exiting the Pose:
   • Bring your hands back to the floor, palms down, if they were supporting your back.
   • Engage your core muscles strongly.
   • Slowly and with control, unroll your spine one vertebra at a time back onto the mat. Resist the urge to drop down quickly.
   • Allow your legs to gently lower back to the floor.
   • Rest in Savasana (Corpse Pose) for a few moments to allow your spine to neutralize.

Progressive Drills to Build Towards the Pose

If you can't achieve the full pose immediately, these exercises will help you build the necessary flexibility and strength:

• Supine Hamstring Stretch with Strap: Lie on your back, loop a strap around the ball of one foot, and gently pull the leg straight up towards the ceiling, keeping the other leg extended. Hold for 30-60 seconds per leg.
• Happy Baby Pose (Ananda Balasana): Lie on your back, bring your knees to your chest, then grasp the outsides of your feet (or ankles/shins). Open your knees wider than your torso and pull your knees towards your armpits, keeping your shins perpendicular to the floor. This opens the hips and inner thighs.
• Legs Up the Wall (Viparita Karani): Sit with one hip against a wall, then swing your legs up the wall as you lie back. Your sitting bones should be as close to the wall as comfortable. This is a gentle inversion that prepares your body and calms the nervous system.
• Shoulder Stand Preparatory (Ardha Sarvangasana): From lying on your back, lift your legs, then your hips, supporting your lower back with your hands. Keep your knees bent if needed, aiming to stack your hips over your shoulders without fully straightening your body into a full shoulder stand. This builds the necessary core and shoulder girdle strength.
• Supported Plow Pose (Using a Chair or Wall): Perform the pose as described, but instead of trying to touch your toes to the floor, rest them on a chair placed behind your head, or against a wall. This reduces the demand on hamstring flexibility while still providing the spinal stretch.

Common Mistakes and Safety Precautions

• Forcing the Pose: Never push into pain. Flexibility takes time. Forcing the pose can lead to muscle strains, ligament tears, or spinal injuries.
• Looking Side to Side: Once in the pose, do not turn your head from side to side. This puts extreme torque on the cervical spine and can cause severe injury. Keep your gaze fixed upwards or straight ahead.
• Collapsing onto the Neck: The weight of your body should be primarily on your shoulders and upper back, not directly on your neck. If you feel excessive pressure on your neck, you may not have enough spinal mobility or hamstring flexibility, or you might be using too much momentum.
• Lack of Warm-up: Always warm up your body before attempting deep stretches or inversions.
• Ignoring Pain: Listen to your body. Sharp pain is a signal to stop.
• Contraindications: Avoid or modify this pose if you have:
  • Neck injuries or chronic neck pain
  • High blood pressure
  • Glaucoma
  • Diarrhea or menstruation (some traditions suggest avoiding inversions)
  • Pregnancy

Consistency and Patience: The Keys to Mastery

Getting your legs over your head on the floor is a journey that requires consistent effort and patience. Incorporate the preparatory exercises into your routine regularly. Focus on gradual progress, not perfection. If you are unsure, consider working with a qualified yoga instructor or physical therapist who can provide personalized guidance and ensure proper form to maximize benefits and minimize risks.