Starting young into exercise and fitness can give the lifelong foundation your little one needs for a healthy and disciplined life. As the yoga fever rises among Indians, children have much to gain as well.
"Yoga isn't about touching your toes. It's about self acceptance and awareness. Today where happiness is sought in worldly things, it's time to teach our children that true happiness lies within," says yoga guru Sabrina Merchant, who is the author of 'Ocean Yoga'.
In 2018, Merchant founded Li'l Yogis, is an innovative and fun-filled yoga class curated exclusively for children.
Here are the top five yoga postures for children from her books.
1. Lotus Pose - Padmasana
Benefits: The pose improves digestion, stretches the knees and ankles and strengthens the spine, abdomen, pelvis and bladder.
Instructions:
Sit on the floor or on a mat with legs stretched out in front of you while keeping the spine erect. Bend the right knee and place it on the left thigh. Make sure that the soles of the feet point upward and the heel is close to the abdomen. Now, repeat the same step with the other leg. With both the legs crossed and feet placed on opposite thighs, bring your palms together towards the centre of your chest. Keep the head straight, spine erect and eyes closed. Hold and continue with gentle long breaths in and out.
2. Naukasana/Boat Pose
Benefits: This pose strengthens the abdomen and back muscles, improves balance and toughens muscles of neck, shoulder and the legs.
Instructions:
Sit on the floor with feet flat and knees bent. Hands on the floor. Engage tummy muscles to sit up tall. Lift one foot off the floor and then the other. Now slowly extend your arms straight out alongside your knees. Be strong and breath in and out, making sure your boat doesn't tip over.
3. Crab Pose/Ardha Purvottanasana
Benefits: The pose builds coordination and balance, strengthens the core, and gross motor development.
Instructions:
Start by sitting on your bottom with your knees bent, feet flat on the floor. Place your hands behind you on the floor, palms flat and fingers pointing towards your body. Lift your belly to the sky. Try crab walking forward, backward and side to side.
4. Adho Much Svanasana/Down Dog pose
Benefits: It can help strengthen the upper body while also providing an opportunity to stretch the shoulders, arms and legs.
Instructions:
Come onto your hand and knees with the top of your feet flat on the floor. Tuck your toes under and push your hips up and back into the air. Keep your arms straight, your head and neck relaxed away from your shoulders. Press your hips back as you stretch your heels down toward the floor. Bring your lower back down to the start pose and sit back on your heels.
5. Butterfly/Konasana
Benefits: Butterfly can help open the hips and stretch the inner thigh. If your child has tight hips, have her sit on a floded blanket so that hep hips are above her legs and feet. For the most benefit, encourage your child to sit up tall while practising Butterfly Pose.
Instructions:
Sit up tall and bring the bottoms of your feet together to form your butterfly wings. Breathing in, lift your knees, Breathing out, lower your knees. Continue to breathe and flap your wings for a minute.
Festival of democracy enters second leg with 88 Lok Sabha seats across India set to vote
While 89 constituencies were slated to go to polls in the second phase, as per the initial announcement by the Election Commission, voting in Madhya Pradesh's Betul was advanced to the third phase on May 7 following the death of the BSP candidate in the fray.
Tripura BJP issues show-cause notice to party leader for slamming TMP chief Pradyot Debbarma
A day before the second phase of Lok Sabha elections, the ruling BJP in Tripura on Thursday served a show cause-notice to one of the party’s Vice-Presidents, Patal Kanya Jamatia, who accused Tipra Motha Party (TMP) chief Pradyot Bikram Manikya Debbarma of “spreading hatred” among tribals and non-tribals in the state.
PM Modi ups ante against Congress, says Rajiv Gandhi abolished inheritance law to 'save own interests'
Upping the ante against the Congress on the 'inheritance tax' issue, Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday launched another scathing attack on the grand old party, saying it was former PM Rajiv Gandhi who abolished the inheritance law "to save their own interests" after the demise of his mother Indira Gandhi.
Multi-cornered contest in Tripura East LS seat going to polls on Friday
A multi-cornered contest will be witnessed in the Tripura East Lok Sabha seat, which goes to the polls in the second phase of the 7-phase parliamentary elections on Friday.
Credit card data of 17K ICICI Bank users exposed; bank blocks cards, assures compensation
After credit card data of at least 17,000 new ICICI Bank customers was exposed and reached "wrong users", the bank said on Thursday that it has blocked these cards and is issuing new ones to the customers.
TRIPURA: BSF jawan on election duty dies after rifle accidently goes off
In a tragic incident amid the preparation for the second phase of polling in Tripura, a Border Security Force (BSF) jawan, who was engaged in election duty died after his rifle went off accidentally.
13.96 lakh voters to cast vote in 1664 Polling stations tomorrow
Although nine candidates are in the fray in the Tripura East Lok Sabha constituency, the main battle will be mainly between BJP candidate Kirit Singh Debbarma and CPIM candidate Rajendra Reang.
CM leads campaign with vigor, Completes 30 rallies, 18 road shows covering over 6,000 km
Chief Minister Prof. Dr. Manik Saha vigorously campaigned for BJP candidates in the Lok Sabha elections & Bidhan Sabha by-election, participating in 30 public rallies, 18 road shows, and 7 padyatras.