How to Avoid Shoulder Injuries in Chaturanga and Plank.

Arm-strengthening poses like chaturanga and plank protect the shoulders—if you do them correctly. Learn how to prevent shoulder pain and injuries with simple exercises.

Flexible ashtangis and other hatha yoga enthusiasts often suffer from dull, persistent pain at the fronts of the shoulders. Why? This type of soreness occurs when we overtax our shoulders in demanding poses such as chaturanga dandasana (four-limbed staff pose). If our shoulders are incorrectly positioned in such weight-bearing poses—and they often are—the tendons attaching the biceps to the fronts of the arm bones can be strained and may even begin to tear. The injury is a form of tendonitis called biceps tendonitis. This, in turn, may put strain on the rotator cuff, the group of muscles and tendons that stabilize the shoulder. Here are some tips to help you protect your biceps, develop proper shoulder alignment, restore structural integrity to your shoulders, and perform poses like chaturanga and plank safely and effectively.

How to Identify Good Shoulder Alignment

Let’s start with a little experiment, exploring shoulder alignment without putting weight on the arms. This will help you feel the many muscles involved without distraction. To begin, stand with your arms extended forward at shoulder height, wrists flexed at 90 degrees, and arms parallel (as if you were pantomiming plank pose from a standing position).

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