Easy Yoga Poses for Kids

Yoga can do wonders in helping kids deal with the reality of modern day life. When yoga becomes a part of their already busy routine, kids will learn to handle life and all that comes along with it. Yoga for children is excellent for the sponge like-mind of a child and the benefits that it offers will last a lifetime. When introduced at a young age, yoga only benefits the mind of a child and sets the foundation for living as a more centered and compassionate person for life. Just as it does for us, working with easy yoga poses for kids offers them a deeper insight to living and offers emotional, physical, and spiritual balance and harmony.

Our kids deserve to have a childhood that is free from worry, where they can flourish, live carefree, and touch upon the magic that can only be seen through the eyes of a child. In the fast pace of our modern realities, however, this is not so much the case. In our hurried worlds where we constantly go, go, go, they end up go, go, going right along with us. Not only are our own schedules packed full, but in the life of the modern child, they have their own long list of to-dos as well. Between demanding school schedules, competitive sports, after-school activities & clubs our kids have taken on a load much heavier than any one we ever knew. Add peer and social media pressures and you’ve got a population of children that are stressed out and far from seeing life through eyes of wonder.

The following benefits will have your children saying “Namaste” in no time.

• Yoga Increases Strength & FlexibilityKids are constantly growing and it is important for them to keep up their strength. Yoga is excellent for growing bodies and also provides the flexibility kids need. Increased strength also allows for more energy, which is something that kids these days need more than ever before. Yoga offers an excellent base for kids to keep playing hard, avoid injuries and fatigue, and perform at optimal levels in all they do.
• It Provides Emotional StabilityThese days, there is more pressure on children than ever before. All the demands that kids meet every day on top of any problems they might encounter in the home or at school, can leave them feeling drained, anxious, and unsure about the life around them. Yoga is a wonderful outlet that helps increase emotional stability while offering children a calmer state of mind. Yoga gives kids the emotional stability they need in a far too often unstable world.
• Helps Children Connect with Their True SelvesYoga offers a way for children to connect with who they really are. With so much outside pressure to fit in, it is often hard for kids to be their true selves. Yoga, however, helps children connect deeply with their truest rhythms and allows them space to discover the “real” them. When children practice yoga, it takes them inward and closer to their real identity. There can be great discovery in children who practice yoga, and it will not only help them to connect to their authenticity, but also help them be proud of who they are.
• Increases Confidence and Self-EsteemIn order for children to live a happy childhood and grown into healthy adults, they must have a strong sense of confidence and high self-esteem. For some kids, especially in the pre-teen and teen years, this may seem all but impossible. Childhood is a time of monumental change and growth and having the confidence to meet life and all its unexpected challenges is pertinent for raising healthy kids. A regular yoga practice is an excellent way to increase confidence in kids and make them feel like they can take on the world. Increased awareness will also help increase self-esteem and aid in kids offering higher esteem to others.

10 Great and Easy Yoga Poses for Kids

Downward Facing Dog

Kids love downward facing dog. Not only does it provide a number of benefits for little minds, but it is fun for them to do! Downward dog strengthens arms and legs while increasing overall flexibility. This is also a great pose to calm young minds that are prone to tantrums. The many varieties of this pose will keep kids entertained during yoga and want to return to this pose again and again.

Mountain Pose

Although it is one of the simplest of all yoga poses, mountain pose comes with, well, a mountain of benefits when it comes to kids. This is an excellent place to start a yoga sequence for kids and provides an excellent base for their practice. While helping to align the entire body, it also teaches kids to focus as they stand still and learn to plant their energy firmly into the ground. This pose is great for young minds that tend to be more than a little busy.

Tree Pose

Tree pose is a great extension from mountain pose, and kids will love to practice balancing on one foot while pretending to be their favorite tree. Kids practicing together will enjoy getting together to make a forest while in this pose, and the possibilities for games with this pose are endless. Tree pose will help improve posture while increasing concentration in kids. It is a great practice for kids who have trouble focusing.

Butterfly Pose

All kids love butterflies, and kids of all ages enjoy and benefit from this pose that gets its name from the appearance it gives that looks like a butterfly flapping its wings. This pose stretches inner thighs and provides improved knee strength. For teens, it offers great relief from menstrual discomfort. Butterfly pose is excellent to keep young minds engaged in imagination!

Bridge Pose

Kids love pressing their hips up to the air to create a bridge during a yoga practice, and this pose is great for stretching the chest, neck, and back. This popular pose amongst children is also excellent for calming racing minds. It also helps relieve depression, a condition that can be just as common with kids as it can adults.

Happy Baby Pose

In happy baby pose, kids get to pretend to be just that. There isn’t one child that doesn’t delight in the mind calming benefits this pose offers. Happy baby pose is fun for kids to do, strengthens the spine, and relieves stress and fatigue. It’s excellent for kids when they need a break from the demands of their busy schedules.

Cat Cow

Kids will get a kick out of pretending to be two animals at the same time in this pose that warms up the spine. This pose is simple, and even the smallest of children as well as those kids that are new to yoga, will be able to do it with ease. This pose also opens up the lungs for better breathing by stretching the lungs and chest. Great news for those kids that are prone to asthma!

Ragdoll Pose

This relaxing pose will soothe troubled minds and leave them refreshed and focused. Ragdoll pose is great for releasing tension in the neck and shoulders which is often common after long hours sitting in the classroom. This pose also helps relieve anxiety and is effective in bringing a great sense of calm to a child’s often racing mind.

Child’s Pose

What child doesn’t like the relaxing benefits of child’s pose? This is, after all, the pose named after them. This resting pose not only gives kids a break in their yoga routine, but also gives them a break from the many facets of their busy world. It’s greatly relaxing for the back and is excellent in calming frayed nerves. It also helps to relieve constipation, which is never fun for kids of any age.

Corpse Pose

Also called final resting pose, or savasana, corpse pose is usually practiced toward the end of a yoga sequence. This pose will wash away the stress and fatigue of the day, and leave kids refreshed and ready to conquer everything in their worlds. It helps ground the body and is also an excellent aid for insomnia.

With all the great benefits yoga offers, it is a simple and fun way to introduce kids to a lifetime of advantages. Yoga will only increase your child’s capacity for learning, stimulation, and a balanced state of being. There is a reason yoga has been practiced for thousands of years and is only increasing in popularity. It works, and it works wonders. Kids that practice yoga will not only become more centered and focused, but will learn to be more compassionate human beings. With the increased pressure that is put on children today, nothing could be more important. Yoga will help children to see that we are all human, give them the confidence they need to succeed, and give them their inherent right to see the world through the eyes of wonder that only a child can do.