Downward Facing Dog is a great hamstring lengthener, to say the least! This is one of my favorite poses to do right when I wake up. It gets blood to my brain, wakes up my hamstrings, and lets me open my shoulders, and I usually do a little up and down lifting of my heels to stretch out my calves. It's a lot more difficult when you first get started because the tendency is to pour all your weight into your wrists. Concentrate on rolling your shoulders towards your armpits and pulling your biceps forwards as you drop your head and neck towards your knees. Try to put more of the weight into your shoulder BLADES, rather than wrists. Press back towards your heels to distribute the weight.
