Why You Struggle To Step Your Foot Between Your Hands In Yoga Class

Every time someone tells me they can't step their foot between their hands because they have short arms, I want to ask...

"Who told you that?"

Because it's one of those yoga myths that just keeps getting repeated.

Somewhere along the way, "You have short arms" became the go-to explanation for anyone who couldn't step their foot forward from Downward Dog into a lunge (or who can't do something challenging)

It's been repeated so many times that most people don't even question it anymore. They just assume this is one of those things their body will never be able to do.

And from that point on, every failed attempt becomes another little piece of evidence that the myth must be true.

Your foot gets stuck halfway? "See? I have short arms."

You have to grab your ankle and physically drag it the rest of the way? "It's definitely the arms!"

You watch the person next to you step effortlessly into a lunge while you're toe-punting the floor like you've completely forgotten how legs work? "Why must I be built like a T-Rex?"

I get it. If the same thing happens every single time you try something, it's pretty reasonable to assume your body is the problem.

Except after teaching this transition for years, I can't remember a single time I've looked at someone and thought, "Yep. Definitely the arms."

(Psst... need some help with your Down Dog? Check out this blog post!)

So if it isn't your arms... what is it?

To be fair... it does seem like a pretty solid theory.

Your foot won't make it between your hands, so you look at the distance between your hands and the floor and think, "Well... there just isn't enough room because I wasn't born with the proportions of an Amazonian goddess."

It's a reasonable conclusion.

But the conclusion falls apart because it doesn't explain why two people with almost identical body proportions can have completely different experiences of the same movement.

One student steps straight into a lunge without giving it a second thought. The person beside them is about the same height, with about the same proportions, and they're still having to physically drag their foot to the top of the mat.

If arm length was really the deciding factor, that wouldn't happen!

The Problem Starts Before Your Foot Even Moves

Whenever someone tells me they have short arms, I don't spend much time staring at their arms (unless it's Jamie from Outlander).

I watch them do the movement.

And nine times out of ten, I see exactly the same thing.

They start in a perfectly good Downward Dog, shift their shoulders forwards... and then immediately let their hips sink like they're about to dry hump the floor. From there, they start trying to fling the foot forwards.

It doesn't work, so they swing the leg a bit harder. Still doesn't work. So they give it one more enthusiastic fling before eventually reaching down, grabbing the ankle, and manually relocating the foot to the top of the mat.

At no point am I thinking, "Well... clearly we've got ourselves a humerus-length emergency."

I'm thinking, "You've already lost the space." You see, as soon as your hips sink, they move into the exact space your knee was about to travel through. Before you've even lifted your foot, you've made the journey much harder than it needs to be.

Which is why the second swing doesn't work.

Or the third.

Or the fourth "THIS TIME IT'LL DEFINITELY MAKE IT" swing.

Swinging the leg faster doesn't create more room. It just means you're repeatedly trying to force your foot through a space you've already taken away by letting your hips drop.

Try This the Next Time You're On Your Mat

Next time you're on your mat, forget your foot (and T-Rex arms) for a second.

Watch your hips instead.

As you shift your shoulders forwards, see if you can resist the urge to let your hips sink towards the floor. Keep them lifted for just a fraction longer and see what happens.

It's one of my favorite things to watch. Someone gets stuck, tries it again with their hips just a little higher... and suddenly looks up at me like I've performed actual witchcraft.

Same body. Same flexibility. Same arm length. Different mechanics.

So... we can officially let your arms off the hook.

Is this the only thing that can stop your foot getting through?

Nope. But it's the first thing I look for because it's the one I see most often. Keeping your hips lifted is only one piece of the puzzle.

Want the Full Breakdown?

In the video below, I'll show you the other two things I look for, and why fixing all three makes this transition feel completely different.

And if you're the kind of person who likes understanding why poses work instead of just collecting more cues, you'll probably enjoy my No Bullsh*t Yoga Pose Library too...

Inside, I break down dozens of common yoga poses and transitions exactly like this, explaining the mechanics behind them so you can stop guessing and start understanding.

Grab my No Bullsh*t Yoga Pose Library here!

Because "you have short arms" is a satisfying explanation...

It just isn't usually the right one.