Yoga For Kids

The practise of yoga has become a worldwide phenomenon and it can all be credited to its simple stretching benefits and enhanced understanding of the body, with the added dimension of a link between mind and body.

Benjamin Hart, a Yoga instructor from Rainbow Yoga, Europe joined the Go Alpha Kids sports summit for a half an hour yoga session, the enthusiastic and outgoing character of Benjamin transformed this into an immersive, power-packed, engaging yoga session for children and parents alike.

YOGA AND MINDFULNESS 

During the session, Benjamin introduced various yoga poses through a positive and nurturing narrative style to help the children see their bodies as their home, a place to be loved and a place where they can feel safe and protected. This mindset can help children form a positive relationship with their bodies.

Beginning with a warmup and a simple song, Benjamin tried to form a connection with the children and gave them a sense of their environment, all the while helping them be conscious of their bodies and working with some poses that immediately uplifted the moods of everyone present during the session.

STAYING ACTIVE AND CONNECTED WITH THE SELF AND OTHERS

While we might be stuck inside our houses, Benjamin explained how simple movements can help us stay active. Energetic, engaging and interactive, singing and active movement kept the kids hooked, working and playing together.

In addition to promoting self-affirming, happy thinking, the session also brought families and friends together as Benjamin celebrated the philosophy of unity, as yoga implies union and it binds not only the mind and the body of an individual, but also connects one person to the other. He explained that staying active at home is as easy as thinking about six directions:

1. Up and down
2. Left and right
3. Forward and back

These movements were simple to understand and easy to incorporate into the everyday routine, it was also interesting to see that these movements engaged the children and their parents alike, as they joined together to touch the sky, and became a seed and even became houses and embraced their general state of being in its entirety.

Staying connected with our minds, body and even our loved ones is essential, and the session explored poses and moves that helped the little ones connect with their breath and their family. Doing the same things together, despite being in separate spaces gives a feeling of connectedness.

Yoga allows a person to be more conscious and aware of their own body and breath, and the session with Benjamin also helped the children to interact in a whole new way with their families and friends, which was both enjoyable and inspiring, and a yoga session of this nature is important. The session was filled with self-affirmations, practices that increase trust, a sense of communal love and love of oneself.

SPREADING GOOD ENERGY AND POSITIVE VIBES 

The practice served an important aim of bringing good energies into each one’s life and our environment. When we move, when we breathe and when we share these experiences with our friends, near or far, we feel good. And at the very end, Benjamin also put forth the idea of being our own best friend. This session not only inspired the children to be more active but t also helped them rethink their relationship with their bodies and mind, and equipped them with a life-long skill.

The benefits of yoga for kids 

Although adults worldwide practise yoga, it is important to recognise that when introduced at a young age, the practice will help children become more involved, compassionate and happier in their lives, and as they develop, they can learn to love themselves and those around them better.

Yoga also helps an individual live in the present, which is important for children as they struggle with coping in the ever-changing world. Children

1. Helps them overcome anxiety and fear of uncertainty.
2. Helps develop a positive attitude towards life.
3. Allows them to foster a better relationship with their parents and friends.
4. Improves concentration, which further helps them focus better during their studies.
5. Helps them develop body positivity.

Yoga poses for improved concentration: 

1. Seated forward bend yoga pose (paschimottanasana)
2. Bee breathing (Bhramari pranayama)
3. Camel pose (ustrasana)
4. Bridge pose (Setu bandhasana)
5. Corpse pose (savasana)

Yoga poses to help kids improve their overall health: 

1. Adomukhi Svanasana – Downward Dog Pose.
2. Santolanasana.
3. Bhujangasana.
4. Dandasana (Staff Pose)
5. Ashtanga Pranam.

While these asanas can be practised in a general manner, where the focus can be on the moves and the posture, it would be better to incorporate Benjamin’s fun, power-packed techniques of flowing with music and activating all senses to feel the poses and focus on how each pose/asana makes them feel, during and after the practice.

As the children moved during the session, connecting with nature without being outside, it helped them visualise how they can be one with their surroundings and manifest the universal energies within them. The session proved how energies could be felt even through the screen, as each participant high fived and celebrated not just their achievements, but also those who worked with them in their spaces and beyond.

The session with Benjamin Hart wasn’t just about how yoga can change our bodies and mind, but it also gave every participant the feeling of connectedness, with their children and the community as a whole. The poses introduced didn’t just move the bodies, but also the participant’s hearts while making a house with their bodies, and holding hands and embracing each other, a connection was made within the hearts and souls of everyone during the session.

Being able to connect with people from all around the world in such a unique and beautiful manner surely made a deep impact on the way we view our lives and our fellow members of society. The session managed to promote the idea of self-love and helped everyone see each other as their comrades, rather than a competition.

And as the session ended, Benjamin left us with a beautiful quote, “The light inside of you is inside me too.”

Written by Stuti