Discover the Benefits of Yoga for Children

In the society we live in, where stress and lack of focus affect both adults and the youngest alike, practicing yoga can be a means that helps to soothe our lifestyle.

Can children's yoga be a good extracurricular activity?

Sometimes, as parents, it is hard to choose a good extracurricular activity for them, and we end up opting for rather competitive activities and language classes. Yoga, on the other hand, is a fully cooperative and complete activity, since it works on aspects such as relaxation, concentration, and balance.

At what age can children practice on their own?

According to the experts, a suitable age would be between 3 and 4 years old. At this point, children can already copy the various postures that children's yoga offers, because they already have the ability to perform and control quite a few movements of their body. But let us not forget that all of this must be done in a very playful way. The classes, especially for these ages, are based on stories (where different postures are worked on), music, and contact (massages among them, for example). Many studies have confirmed that early-childhood-education children who practice yoga with a minimum of regularity increase their concentration and autonomy.

What benefits can it bring us?

It is a very positive practice in which the child, through the postures, gradually gets to know their own body, acquires good postural habits, learns to breathe properly, to relax, and to develop their level of attention and memory. As we can see, there are countless benefits it can bring us. Let us look at them in more depth.

- Improvement in postural habits. The practice of the asanas or postures helps to keep the muscles strong. In the case of the back, it boosts its flexibility and keeps the spine well aligned. It also provides flexibility in the joints.

- It teaches proper breathing. One of the first things taught in yoga classes is how to breathe properly. They are offered mechanisms to breathe deeply, and this can help them reach states of calm and tranquility so that they can extrapolate it into their everyday life.

- It increases communication. Since it is a group and cooperative activity, this helps them learn to develop relationships without a competitive purpose, and to let their confidence in others and in themselves emerge.

- It improves the development of attention, memory, and concentration. We carry out exercises so that they develop their senses, exercises to stimulate sight, hearing, touch, taste, and smell, which children like very much, and at the same time they develop the capacity for attention. These techniques will help them a great deal at school, such as in exams, in the sport they practice, etc.

- It will develop their imagination. Since most of the time the work is done through stories to perform the different postures, this encourages them to express and let their imagination soar.

- They will learn to relax. In yoga sessions, we usually finish with a relaxation. This produces a sense of feeling better, and its neurophysiological effects are very notable. We observe a decrease in muscle tone (dilation of the blood vessels, whose main consequences are a drop in heart rate and an increase in body temperature), a reduction in breathing rate, regulation of the digestive system, and activation of the immune system.

Relaxation has a restorative effect, since it induces a state of deep rest very close to sleep and triggers the release of endorphins, hormones related to happiness.

As we can see, yoga is a highly recommended activity for children because of the positive impact it can bring them. It is a game that fosters both physical and mental development, in addition to helping lead a calmer life while maintaining a positive attitude.

If you are interested in children's yoga, contact us. We teach classes in schools and offer packs in July. You can contact us by clicking here