Upward Salute
ऊर्ध्व हस्तासन
Ūrdhva Hastāsana — a beginner standing pose that works the shoulders, spinal erectors, latissimus dorsi.
How to do Upward Salute
Read all of it before starting, and read the cautions further down before starting at all.
Begin standing in Tadasana with the feet grounded and the legs firm.
Turn the palms out, then sweep both arms wide and up until they frame the ears.
Keep the front ribs drawn in so the lift comes from the upper back rather than the lumbar spine.
Either keep the palms apart or bring them together, whichever lets the shoulders stay away from the ears.
Look forward or slightly up if the neck is comfortable, and hold.
Hold: 30–60 seconds. Keep the breath moving throughout — if you are holding it, the pose is too much for today.
Muscles worked
Where the effort and the lengthening land. Primary groups do most of the work; secondary groups assist or are stretched.
What Upward Salute does
Described mechanically — what the movement does to muscle and joint. Not a list of conditions it treats, because a pose does not treat conditions.
- Takes the shoulders through their full overhead range with the spine supported.
- Lengthens the side body from the hip to the fingertips.
- Trains the shoulder blades to rotate upward rather than hitch towards the ears.
Upward Salute is one of 18 standing poses in this library and one of 88 poses rated beginner. Poses built on the feet, where the legs carry the work and the floor is the reference point.
Who should skip Upward Salute, or change it
- Shoulder impingement or a rotator cuff injury — keep the arms lower and wider.
- High blood pressure, where long overhead holds with the arms up can be uncomfortable.
- Neck injury: keep the gaze forward instead of looking up.
General information only — not medical advice. Some asanas are unsuitable during pregnancy, injury or specific conditions. Learn from a qualified teacher and stop if anything hurts. If you are pregnant, recovering from surgery or managing any health condition, ask your doctor before starting a practice, and learn the pose itself from a qualified teacher who can see you move.
Common mistakes in Upward Salute
What tends to go wrong, and the specific correction — not "engage your core".
MistakeRibs thrusting forward so the arch collects in the low back.
FixExhale, soften the front ribs down, and let the arms travel back only as far as the ribs allow.
MistakeShoulders creeping up to the ears.
FixWiden the arms and let the collarbones broaden before lifting further.
What a practice like this costs in energy
Nobody has measured a single asana in a metabolic cart. The 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities publishes MET values per style of practice, so Upward Salute is mapped to the nearest published code — 02150, yoga, Hatha, 2.5 MET — and the figures below are for a practice of that kind, not for holding this one pose.
| Time practising | 10 min | 20 min | 30 min | 45 min | 60 min |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Calories | 31 | 61 | 92 | 138 | 184 |
Calculated as MET × 3.5 × 70 kg ÷ 200 kcal per minute — the standard ACSM relationship, shown in full on the method page. Scale it to your own weight by multiplying by your weight in kilograms and dividing by 70. The whole activity dataset, including every non-yoga activity, is at BurnLab.
Questions
How do you do Upward Salute?
Begin standing in Tadasana with the feet grounded and the legs firm. Turn the palms out, then sweep both arms wide and up until they frame the ears. Keep the front ribs drawn in so the lift comes from the upper back rather than the lumbar spine. Either keep the palms apart or bring them together, whichever lets the shoulders stay away from the ears. Look forward or slightly up if the neck is comfortable, and hold. Hold for 30–60 seconds.
What does Upward Salute work?
Primarily the shoulders, spinal erectors, latissimus dorsi, with the abdominals, trapezius, calves assisting or lengthening. In mechanical terms: takes the shoulders through their full overhead range with the spine supported.
Who should not do Upward Salute?
Shoulder impingement or a rotator cuff injury — keep the arms lower and wider. High blood pressure, where long overhead holds with the arms up can be uncomfortable. Neck injury: keep the gaze forward instead of looking up. This is general information, not medical advice — if any of these apply to you, ask your doctor and learn the pose with a qualified teacher rather than from a page.
Is Upward Salute suitable for beginners?
Yes. Upward Salute is a beginner-level pose on this site, which means it is learnable in a first class and has a version that works for most bodies. The cautions above still apply.
How many calories does Upward Salute burn?
The honest answer is that nobody has measured a single asana. The 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities publishes MET values for styles of yoga, not for individual poses. Upward Salute sits closest to Compendium code 02150, yoga, Hatha, at 2.5 MET — about 92 kcal for 30 minutes of that kind of practice for a 70 kg adult. Holding one pose for a minute is a rounding error either way.
Related poses
More standing poses — first at the same level, then the rest of the family.
Asana names are traditional. Every step, benefit and caution on this page is written for YogaPath rather than reproduced from any book, studio or other library — see how this site is written. Energy figures derive from the 2024 Adult Compendium of Physical Activities. General information only — not medical advice. Some asanas are unsuitable during pregnancy, injury or specific conditions. Learn from a qualified teacher and stop if anything hurts.