6 Must Do Yoga Asana's for Your Children

My daughter started formal school and along came the tribulations of a 4-year-old being made to learn or write (even worse), things she didn't comprehend. We would have these harrowing homework sessions, wherein she wanted to learn but her attention kept wandering off and little could be achieved. Soon both of us started dreading home assignments. "Studying", wasn't climbing spots on her priorities list and frankly even I wasn't too keen on it, at this age, however, homework had to be catered to. 
I tried everything from coaxing to bribing to black mailing(my bad, I know), but nothing worked. One day, my yoga instructor overheard me, while discussing my woes with a fellow mom, and suggested some simple yoga poses for my daughter. He said, they would not only improve her digestion but also increase her concentration and reduce stress levels in her. Turns out even 4-year-olds go through stress these days, I mean, who knew, right ?

Anyway, so I tried the poses with her at home, and she loved them. Off course, she is not able to achieve the absolute depth and we have to try variations but it sure
is fun. We play music, hop around our mats, burst into chortles during pranayama, overall, we keep it light and simple; and have we achieved anything....well read on.

Practice These Kid-friendly Yoga Poses

Finally, the 6 simple asanas that we have been practicing are listed below, along with their respective benefits. You'll notice that the postures depicted in these
asanas are the ones, which children playfully attain, while going about their monkey business, so it’s easy for them to pick up. Also, the first 3 asanas feature in the
renowned surya namaskar sequence, hence would be great to teach them beforehand.
As I am just a practitioner and not a yoga trainer, I am not listing the steps to do the asanas. You could google the asanas by their names or better, learn with your
children at a yogic center, if you're new to yoga.

#1. Tadasana or Mountain Pose

This is the most simple of the asanas, yet a powerful one. It requires focusing on maintaining body balance, all the while, improving posture and blood circulation
throughout the body. It strengthens heart muscles and the spine. Also, this asana is known to increase height.

#2. Uttanasana or Rag Doll Pose

Another simple pose, which reverses the blood flow to the brain, hence relieving tension in the spine, neck, and back; also reduces stress, anxiety, depression, and
fatigue, it calms the mind. This also strengthens the thighs and kness.

#3. Adho Mukha Svanasana or Downward-facing Dog Pose

This asana stretches the arms, legs and back all at once. As it requires bending forward, reverse circulation of the blood happens here as well thus easing out the
fatigue, if any, and relaxing the brain. It strengthens abdominal muscles and improves digestion as well.

#4. Bhujangasana or Cobra Pose

This asana strengthens the arms and shoulders. It stimulates organs in the abdomen, like the kidneys and opens the chest and helps clear the passages of the heart and lungs.

#5. Baddha Konasana or Butterfly Pose

This asana gives a good stretch for the inner thighs, groins and knees, improving flexibility in the hip region, it also helps in intestine and bowel movement. Above
all it gets my little one to go into peals of laughter.

#6. Balasana or Child's Pose

Yes, our naughty nuts have a whole asana named just after them, what luxury !!! This is a grounding pose that is a mind soother and a fabulous resting pose.

Yoga Benefits for Children

The major benefits of yoga that I could reap are...

1. Living upto expectations, yoga has improved her focus to an extent and elongated her attention spans. 
2. She is able to articulate, putting her feelings and emotions into words (before they turn into physical reactions), has become easier for her after we started yoga.
3. I have identified a new way of bonding with my daughter, the time we spend practicing yoga is full of giggles and laughter.
4. There is a visible difference in her tendency to catch allergic infections, also, her breathing habits have improved.
5. The exercise has improved her muscle strength and flexibility.

The Right Child Age to Start Yoga

Yoga has a lot to offer, that we all know, but if practiced from a young age, the benefits become ten-fold. I started teaching her at the tender age of 4, and we just
do the very simple of asanas. Experts say, the correct age for children to start yoga is around 7-8 years. You can try the asanas listed below for a week and see how it works for you.

What you Need to Watch

If you take my word and decide to make your children practice the above, there are few things you need to be careful about :

1. If you are new to yoga, please ensure that children do the above, in presence of a certified yoga trainer.
2. If the child has any physical ailment, please consult a medical practitioner as well as yoga practitioner, before starting with any of the poses. Certain poses in yoga could be detrimental in case of certain illnesses.
3. Most importantly, do not impose yoga on the child. It’s a mind-body exercise, the child needs to enjoy more than practice the poses.

Hope this helps you and your child gain the gift of health and wellness.