Breathing, flexibility, and awareness are all important part of a healthy exercise regimen for kids. Exercises like the yoga poses listed below cause less stress on growing bodies and joints and help children maintain a balanced body:
Child’s pose
Kneel on a mat and sit your bottom on your heels, then rest your head on the floor in front of you and place your hands by your sides. Breathe deeply in and out.
Lotus
Sit down on a mat and keep your back straight (shoulders away from the ears), then rest your hands on your knees and close your eyes. Breathe deeply in and out.
Forward bend
Stand up straight, then bend forward slowly from the hips, keeping your back as straight as you can and bending your knees just a little. Rest your hands on your knees and keep your back straight. When you’re ready, continue to bend forward until you can touch your toes. Breathe deeply in and out. If you need to stand up, just bend your knees and slowly roll up to a standing position.
Exercises like yoga support the perfect union of the mind and the body in children and adults alike. The regular practice of yoga-based movement builds strong, healthy postures and muscle tone and supports the deep, centered breathing that can boost brain function and help children stay alert and focused.
Mind /body works also helps reduce stress, increase self-awareness, decrease anxiety and depression, and improve vitality and creativity; it can enable kids to bring an increased level of awareness and purpose into other areas of their lives, whether schoolwork, interpersonal skills, or sports.
Taking a few minutes every day to breathe, focus, and move in harmony can bring increased levels of happiness and tranquility into children’s lives, and building a daily habit can be as easy as brushing teeth or washing hands and faces—good hygiene for the soul.
