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High Plank to Upward Dog

You lower from a high plank through a controlled dip and glide the chest forward and up into upward dog — hips low, thighs floating, arms straight — then press back to plank. The flow strengthens the press while taking the spine through extension in the same rep. Coached by Maddy (NASM-CPT) — these are the exact form cues he gives on every client's first week.

Muscles worked

Abs · rectus abdominis Deep core · transverse abdominis Obliques Lower back · erector spinae Front shoulders · anterior deltoid

Sets & reps by goal

Goal	Sets × Reps	Rest
Strength	4 sets × 4-6 flows with 3-sec holds in the arch	60-90 sec
Muscle	3 sets × 8-12 flows	60 sec
Endurance	2 sets × 45-60 sec of continuous flowing	45 sec

Level — Beginner

Intermediate — the floating-thigh arch is the gatekeeper; drop to the modified cobra flow if it collapses.

Proper form — 5 cues

Roll over the toes as the chest glides forward — the feet flip from tucked to pointed.
Straighten the arms fully in upward dog with the shoulders pulled away from the ears.
Keep the thighs and knees hovering; only the palms and the tops of the feet touch.
Squeeze the glutes lightly to support the lower back through the arch.
Reverse by lifting the hips first and rolling back over the toes into plank.

Breathing: Inhale as the chest glides forward and up, exhale as the hips lift back to plank.

The 3 mistakes Maddy corrects most

Thighs resting on the floor in the arch. Once the legs park on the ground the position becomes a passive backbend and the pressing work stops. Fix: Press the palms down and squeeze the quads to float the knees off the mat.

Shrugging into the ears at the top. Shoulders climbing toward the head compress the neck and dodge the chest-opening the pose provides. Fix: Push the floor away and slide the shoulder blades toward the hips before holding.

Hanging passively in the lower back. Dumping into the lumbar arch without muscular support is what gives backbends a bad name. Fix: Share the curve — lift the breastbone forward and keep the glutes and abs lightly engaged.

Common questions

Upward dog vs cobra — which am I doing here?

Upward dog: arms straight, thighs floating, only hands and feet touching. Cobra keeps the pelvis and legs on the floor with softly bent elbows, making it the gentler cousin. This flow deliberately uses the dog version because the floating hips keep the press and the glutes working — if your setup matches cobra, use the modified page.

Is arching my back like this safe?

For most healthy spines, active extension with engaged glutes and a lifted chest is not just safe but useful — spines are built to extend as well as flex. The caveats: move in gradually, keep the arch distributed rather than folded at one lumbar point, and treat any sharp or radiating sensation as a stop sign.

Where does this flow fit in a training week?

Two natural homes: inside warm-ups before pressing or full-body sessions, where it primes the shoulders and wakes the spine, and at the end of long sitting days as a movement snack. Eight to twelve slow flows is a meaningful dose — it complements dedicated pressing rather than replacing it.

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