Tips on Rolling Over Your Toes in Yoga

Rolling over on your toes in yoga may seem like a difficult technique to master at first. With practice, however, rolling your toes over as you transition between poses is not as hard as it looks. Rolling your toes is a step that helps you transition from a Downward-facing Plank or Four-limbed Staff pose to Upward-facing Dog. With a few tweaks in your technique, you can learn to roll your toes over and back no matter what type of yoga you practice.

Things You'll Need

  • Yoga mat
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Instructions

  1. Rolling Forward

    • 1

      Start in Plank pose or Four-limbed Staff pose, shifting your weight forward slightly and keeping your core muscles tight. Come up on your tip-toes -- your shoulders will be slightly forward of your hands and wrists.

    • 2

      Flow into Upward-facing Dog by shifting your pelvis forward. As you do so, begin to roll over your toes. The tops of your feet will lightly rest on the mat.

    • 3

      Tighten and engage your core muscles to take the pressure off your feet. Let your belly sink toward the floor as you arch your back and straighten your arms to finish the transition and to hold Upward-facing Dog.

    Rolling Back

    • 4

      To move from Upward-facing Dog back into Downward Dog, tighten up your core muscles by pulling your belly button in toward your spine.

    • 5

      Lift your hips as high as you can and push back. If you have difficulty with the lift of your hips, use your arms to press away from the floor.

    • 6

      Lift your heels to the point where your toes start roll back over. Rolling back over your toes puts the balls of your feet on the mat.