Want to touch your toes? This helps. This stretch targets the hamstrings and calves to improve flexibility, reduce soreness, and relieve pressure on the lower back. You can use this to warm up for a workout, relieve soreness the day after a workout, or loosen tight muscles after long periods of sitting.
Half Split Pose Target Areas
- hamstrings
- calves
Half Split Pose Benefits
- Promotes quick lower-body recovery
- Reduces lower-back pressure or pain caused by hip tightness
- Reduces risk of hamstring injury
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How to Do Half Split Pose
- Start in Low lunge with your left knee above your ankle and your right knee and foot resting on the floor, toes untucked. Place hands on hips to ensure hips are level.
- Hinge forward to rest your fingertips on the floor on either side of your heel. Inch left foot forward 4 to 6in (10–15cm), then shift hips back.
- Flex the toes of your left foot toward your shin, and press your left thigh toward the floor until you feel a stretch through left hamstrings. Relax your neck. Hold the posture, inhaling as you lengthen the spine, and exhaling as you deepen the stretch in the hamstrings. Repeat on the other side.
Cues for Half Split Pose
- Square hips
- Flatten back
- Shift left foot forward
- Pull chest forward
- Maintain flat back and engage core
- Press right thigh forward
- Actively press left thigh downward
- Flex left foot
WHAT YOU SHOULD FEEL
- Stretch in left hamstrings and calf
WHAT YOU SHOULDN’T FEEL
- Pain in left thigh; if you do, bend knee as needed
- Rounding of back; if so, bend left knee and lift chest
- Head sinking toward knee; if it is, pull chest toward toes
Half Split Pose Pro Tip
To make the pose more active and improve hamstring mobility, make sure to engage your lower-body muscles. Squeeze the back thigh forward, press front hamstrings downward, and squeeze hips toward each other.
Half Split Pose MODIFICATION
- If you cannot flatten your back with your hands on the floor, rest your hands on blocks placed on either side of your front shin.
About Dean Pohlman, Founder & CEO of Man Flow Yoga, Author of Yoga Fitness for Men, Expert on Yoga Fitness for Men.
Dean Pohlman is making yoga more accessible to fitness-minded men. A former collegiate lacrosse player, Dean discovered yoga while recovering from injuries and quickly realized its potential to boost strength, mobility, and overall performance.
Since launching Man Flow Yoga in 2013, Dean Pohlman has built a global community that speaks for itself:
- 195,000+ customers
- 42+ million YouTube views
- 200,000+ followers across Instagram, Facebook, and TikTok
Dean’s book Yoga Fitness for Men has sold over 50,000 copies, while his Body by Yoga DVD series has surpassed 120,000 units sold, earning him consistent #1 rankings on Amazon and thousands of five-star reviews. He’s also been featured in Men’s Health, Muscle & Fitness, GQ Magazine, Fox Tampa Bay, The Chicago Sun, and on influential podcasts like The Ready State and Ben Greenfield Fitness.
With a focus on real results, community, and technique-focused instruction, Dean Pohlman continues to change the conversation around yoga. He’s not just teaching poses—he’s helping people build stronger, more capable bodies for life.
