Pose · G
Cow Face Pose
Gomukhāsana
Seated with the legs stacked and the hands clasped behind the back — one arm coming over the shoulder and one coming up from below. Cow Face is really two poses sharing a name: the legs open the outer hips and the arms test the shoulders, and the two halves almost never have the same range.
The shape, with joint angles
The angles are measured on the drawn skeleton and change with the variant you pick. Treat them as a starting reference, not a target to force.
Specification
| Sanskrit | Gomukhāsana |
|---|---|
| Also called | Gomukhasana |
| Level | Intermediate |
| Loads | Hips · Shoulders · Chest · Upper back |
| Props | Mat · Blanket · Strap |
| Typical hold | 30 sec |
| Gaze | |
| Published | 5 October 2026 · By The Asana Desk |
Getting in
- 01
Sit on a folded blanket with the legs extended in front of you.
- 02
Bend the right knee and bring the right foot to the outside of the left hip.
- 03
Bend the left knee and stack it on top of the right, bringing the left foot to the outside of the right hip.
- 04
Sit evenly on both sitting bones and check that the pelvis is level before doing anything with the arms.
- 05
Take the right arm up and bend the elbow so the hand drops down the back between the shoulder blades.
- 06
Bring the left arm behind the back and walk the hand up toward the right hand; clasp the fingers or hold a strap.
- 07
Hold for 30 seconds with the spine tall, then release and repeat with the legs and the arms reversed.
Working notes
Two independent halves
| If this is the limit | Use this | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| Hips too tight to stack the knees | Blanket under the sitting bones, knees side by side | Levels the pelvis and takes the twist out of the lower back |
| Hands will not meet | Strap in the top hand | The shoulders work at their own range |
| Knees uncomfortable | Blanket under the upper knee | Removes the bone-on-bone contact |
| Top shoulder pinching | Reduce the elbow bend, keep the arm further forward | Keeps the shoulder out of impingement |
The legs and the arms have nothing to do with each other except the spine they share. It is entirely normal to have the legs stacked easily and the hands nowhere near each other, or the hands clasped comfortably and the hips nowhere near the floor.
That is why both halves have their own prop. A blanket under the sitting bones lets the pelvis stay level while the legs do what they can; a strap in the hands lets the shoulders work at their own range without the neck being pulled sideways.
The sitting bones decide the lower back
If one sitting bone leaves the floor, the spine has to lean to make up the difference, and a sideways lean in a seated pose is where most of the lower back complaints in this position come from. Sit on a blanket high enough that both sitting bones are down, even if the knees end up somewhere untidy.
The blanket is not a beginner's tool here, it is the setup. Almost everyone needs one to sit with a level pelvis and the legs stacked.
Self-checks
- Are both sitting bones equally on the floor?
- Is the lower back long, or has it rounded because the pelvis has tipped back?
- Is the neck free, or is the head being pulled sideways by the top arm?
- Is the breath reaching the back of the ribs?
Safety
Skip or heavily modify the pose if any of these apply to you. When in doubt, ask a teacher who can see you move, or a clinician who knows your history.
- Shoulder injury or a rotator cuff problem: do the arms one at a time, and stop at the first pinch.
- Knee or hip injury: skip the stacking and sit with the knees side by side, or in a chair.
- Sciatica or disc problems: sit on a higher support and keep the spine upright rather than folding.
- Recent hip replacement: avoid the crossed-leg position entirely without medical clearance.
- Stop if the front of the top shoulder pinches; that is impingement, not a stretch.
This page is informational only. It is not medical advice and no pose here is a treatment for any condition.
- A strap in the top hand, which removes the shoulder range requirement entirely.
- Legs stacked with the knees side by side rather than on top of each other.
- Sitting on a blanket or a block to level the pelvis.
- Arms practised one at a time: top arm only for thirty seconds, then the bottom arm only.
Useful propsMat · Blanket · Strap
- A strap is standard equipment here, not a substitute — it is how the pose is normally taught.
- A folded blanket under the sitting bones is what makes a level pelvis possible.
- A thin blanket or a small block under the upper knee, if the knees are sensitive to pressure.
- Shoulder injury or a rotator cuff problem: do the arms one at a time, and stop at the first pinch.
- Knee or hip injury: skip the stacking and sit with the knees side by side, or in a chair.
- Sciatica or disc problems: sit on a higher support and keep the spine upright rather than folding.
- Recent hip replacement: avoid the crossed-leg position entirely without medical clearance.
- Stop if the front of the top shoulder pinches; that is impingement, not a stretch.
Steady nasal breathing, with the ribs expanding sideways into the space the twist of the arms has created.
- If the breath is arriving only in the upper chest, the pelvis has tipped back.
- Stay for the exhale before releasing the hands — the shoulders let go more slowly than the legs.
- Never pull the clasped hands to force the shoulders; the strap is there so you do not have to.