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Downward Dog Knee to Elbow Touch

This flow pulls one knee from downward dog to the same-side elbow, then presses back out to the pike, blending trunk flexion with a moving shoulder-stability demand. Beginners get an abdominal exercise and an upper-body warm-up inside one drill. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.

Muscles worked

Obliques Abs · rectus abdominis Deep core · transverse abdominis

Sets & reps by goal

Goal	Sets × Reps	Rest
Strength	4 sets × 4-6 slow reps per side	60-90 sec
Muscle	3 sets × 9-12 reps per side	45-60 sec
Endurance	2-3 sets × 15-20 reps per side	30-45 sec

Rep ranges per Helms 2014 · Schoenfeld 2016.

Level — Beginner

Beginner — the entry drill of the knee-to-elbow family; contact on every rep is the standard.

Proper form — 5 cues

Spread the fingers wide and grip the mat — the hands steer this whole movement.
Drive the knee toward the outside of the same-side elbow as the shoulders glide forward.
Let the spine round while the knee travels; a rigid back blocks the touch.
Keep the standing-leg heel pressing down toward the floor for balance.
Reset the full downward dog between reps and alternate sides evenly.

Breathing: Exhale on the knee drive, inhale as the hips lift back to the inverted V.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Support arms bending as the knee comes in. Soft elbows collapse the plank base and dump weight into the wrists and neck. Fix: Push the floor away continuously — imagine lengthening the arms throughout the rep.

Knee stalling far short of the elbow. Without the forward weight shift, the trunk never folds and the abs barely contract. Fix: Bring the shoulders further over the wrists first, then draw the knee the final distance.

Hopping between positions. Bouncing swaps the controlled fold for momentum and makes balance failures likely. Fix: Step the movements: shift, touch, and return as three deliberate beats.

Common questions

Same-side or cross-body version — which should I learn first?

Start with this same-side version. The knee travels a shorter, straighter path, balance demands are lower, and you learn the shoulder shift that both versions depend on. Once ten reps per side feel smooth and every rep makes contact, graduate to the cross-body touch, which adds rotation and a longer lever.

Is this drill enough for abs on its own?

For a beginner in the first months, drills like this plus planks cover trunk training respectably. As you adapt, the limb-weight resistance stops being challenging, so you would then add harder flexion work and loaded carries. It remains valuable long after that point — just as a warm-up rather than the main event.

Why do my wrists tire before my abs here?

The shifting plank keeps bodyweight over the hands longer than a static hold does, and most new trainees have unconditioned wrists. Grip the floor with the fingertips to share the pressure, take the drill in shorter sets, and build gradually — wrist tolerance improves within a few weeks of consistent floor work.

Related exercises

Harder: Downward Dog Cross Knee to Elbow Touch

Bicycle KicksObliques Bicycle Kicks (Modified)Obliques Cross Knee to Elbow PulseObliques Downward Knee to Elbow TouchObliques Knee to Elbow TouchObliques

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