Ardha Hanumanasana (Half Splits Pose): how to do it, cues and benefits

How to do Half Splits Pose step by step

1. Start in a low lunge with your left foot forward and your right knee on the mat. Put a folded blanket under the right knee if it is sensitive.
2. Place your hands on the mat, or on two blocks, on either side of your left leg, under your shoulders.
3. Shift your hips back until they are stacked over your right knee. At the same time, straighten your left leg and rest the left heel on the mat.
4. Flex your left foot so the toes point up toward the ceiling. Keep both hip points facing forward.
5. Lengthen your spine forward with a flat back. Fold lower over the leg only if your back stays long.
6. Stay for about 30 seconds (5–6 breaths), breathing into the back of the left leg.
7. To come out, bend the left knee, shift your hips forward into the lunge and step back. Repeat with the right leg forward.

Where you feel Half Splits Pose: what it stretches and strengthens

Shift your hips back over your knee and flex the front foot. In the 3D guide, turn on Body guide: areas that stretch glow green and areas that work glow saffron.

Benefits and precautions

Half splits pose (Ardha Hanumanasana), also called half monkey pose or runner's stretch, is a kneeling forward fold over one straight leg. The back knee rests on the mat, the hips stack over it and the front heel stays on the floor with the toes pointing up. Yoga teachers count half monkey pose among the most useful hamstring stretches: simple enough for beginners and a standard step on the way to the full splits.

What is a half split? Half splits pose Sanskrit name and meaning

In Ardha Hanumanasana yoga, the Sanskrit name has three parts: ardha means "half", Hanuman is the monkey god of the Ramayana, and asana means "pose". In the story, Hanuman leapt across the sea from India to Lanka, and the full splits, Hanumanasana or monkey pose, recalls that giant stride. So what is monkey pose in yoga? It is the front splits; half splits is the same shape with the front leg straight and the back knee still bent under the hip.

The half split position has many English names: half monkey pose, half front split pose, runners stretch, or simply half splits. They all describe this pose.

How to do half splits pose: key cues

The steps above follow the 3D guide, which shows the left leg forward first. These half splits yoga pose cues fix the usual problems:

• Hips over the knee. If the hips stay forward, the stretch is weak. If they drift behind the knee, the back knee gets pressure. Aim for the hip right above the knee.
• Flat back first, fold second. Lead with the chest, not the head. A long spine with a small fold stretches the hamstrings better than a rounded back that reaches the shin.
• Soft front knee. Straight is the goal, locked is not. A micro-bend protects the back of the knee.
• Toes up, heel down. Flexing the foot adds a stretch along the calf. Point the toes instead if the calf stretch is too strong.
• Square hips. Draw the front hip back so both hip points face forward.

Hold half splits for about 30 seconds per leg; up to a minute is fine if you breathe easily. It works best after a few warm-up poses, and you can repeat it twice per side.

Half split pose benefits

Of all the half split yoga pose benefits, the main one is a clear, controllable hamstring stretch. Because the back knee is on the floor and the hands are supported, you can adjust the depth easily, which makes it safer than a standing forward bend for many people. The calf of the front leg lengthens too, especially with the foot flexed.

Runners, cyclists and people who sit a lot often have tight hamstrings, and this runners stretch position is a gentle, regular way to ease that tightness. Physical therapists often give a similar runners stretch for tight hamstrings, and in runners stretch yoga routines it usually follows a low lunge. It also teaches you to hinge from the hips, a skill that helps in every forward bend.

Is half splits good for back pain?

Tight hamstrings can pull on the pelvis and add strain to the lower back, so a gentle hamstring stretch is part of many back-care routines. That is why this yoga pose often appears in plans for lower back stiffness. Keep your back flat, use blocks and stop if pain travels down the leg. If you have sciatica or a disc problem, follow our yoga for back pain plan and ask your physiotherapist before doing the splits with back pain.

Muscles stretched

Turn on the Body guide on the 3D figure to see the stretch zones glow green.

Half splits yoga pose variations

• With blocks: hands on blocks at any height keep the spine long. This is the best version for beginners.
• Front knee bent: for very tight hamstrings, keep a small bend and still flex the foot.
• Revolved half splits pose: keep one hand down and reach the other arm up, turning the chest toward the front leg.
• Standing half splits pose: some teachers use this name for Pyramid Pose, a standing fold over the front leg. Half splits pyramid pose is the same stretch while standing.
• Runners stretch at a wall: for runners stretching exercises aimed at the calves and Achilles, press the ball of the front foot against a wall with the heel down.

Children like the monkey yoga pose idea: kids can try it as "monkey getting ready to jump", keeping it short and playful.

Half splits vs similar poses

• Half splits vs low lunge: in Low Lunge the front knee bends and the hips move forward, stretching the front of the back hip. In half splits the hips move back, stretching the back of the front leg. Teachers often flow between the two.
• Half splits vs full splits: in Hanumanasana the back leg straightens and the hips drop to the floor. It needs much more flexibility in both legs.
• Half splits vs half moon: the names sound alike, but half moon yoga pose (Ardha Chandrasana) is a standing balance, not a hamstring stretch.

Doing the splits with yoga: how to progress safely

If your goal is the full front splits for yoga and dance, half splits is your daily base. Practise it most days after a warm-up, together with a low lunge for the hip flexors. Over weeks, lower your hands from tall blocks to the floor, then begin sliding the front heel forward in the full splits with blocks under your hips. How to do the splits properly comes down to patience: never bounce, and stop at a strong but comfortable stretch. Side splits (Samakonasana) are a separate goal that needs open inner thighs. You can add half splits to any sequence in the session builder or practise it in our guided sessions.

This page is for general education. Check with your doctor before starting yoga if you are pregnant, have a medical condition or an injury. Stop if you feel pain, dizziness or shortness of breath.