Half Forward Fold

The small step that shapes every fold

Half Forward Fold, often called Halfway Lift or Flat Back, lasts a single breath in most classes, so it is easy to rush. It teaches you to hinge from the hips with a long spine, which is the same action you need for a safer forward fold. In Sun Salutations, it is the inhale that links the fold to the step or jump back.

How to do Half Forward Fold

• Begin in Standing Forward Fold with the knees bent as much as you need
• Place the fingertips or hands on the shins, thighs or blocks
• Breathing in, lift the torso halfway and lengthen from the tailbone to the crown
• Draw the shoulders away from the ears and broaden the collarbones
• Keep the back of the neck long and look just ahead of your feet
• Breathing out, fold back down or step back to Plank

Where to put your hands

• Fingertips on the floor: only if your back can still stay flat
• Hands on blocks: raises the floor when the hamstrings are tight
• Hands on the shins: a common choice, and it avoids pressing on the knees
• Hands on the thighs: the most support, and useful for a sensitive back

Common mistakes

• Rounding the upper back to keep the hands low
• Lifting the chin and compressing the back of the neck
• Locking the knees, which tips the pelvis back and rounds the spine
• Pressing the hands into the kneecaps

Who should take care

Bend the knees and take the hands high on the legs if your lower back is sensitive. With a disc problem, follow the advice of your clinician on forward bending, and come up slowly if you tend to feel lightheaded. Rising with a long spine and bent knees is kinder on the back than rolling up quickly.