The low, half-height plank that runs through every flow: elbows tight to the body, stop at 90 degrees, shoulders never sinking below the elbows.
Chaturanga is the most repeated strength position in yoga – and musculoskeletal complaints are the most common yoga side effect there is: roughly 11 percent of practitioners reported them in one large survey. The typical error looks harmless: the chest sags, the shoulders drop below elbow height, the elbows wing outwards. In that position your weight hangs in the shoulder joint instead of the muscles, dozens of times per class. The fix is unspectacular: elbows against the ribs, core firm, stop at 90 degrees – half-depth and clean beats all the way down and crooked. What most people miss: dropping the knees isn't a beginner version, it's load management, and on tired days it is the correct call.