Warm Up with the Benefits of Kids Yoga

Kids yoga. What is it?  At Appleseed, we play yoga through storytelling, and we inspire movement from seed to tree.  It's about planting, cultivating, nourishing and growing, and it's what we do. 

Why choose kids yoga for your child over other movement-based activities?  The benefits of kids yoga are seemingly endless.  In a world where it seems like we're spinning out of control, Appleseed Yoga cultivates a deep awareness and acceptance of the present moment, and inspires mindful, imaginative movement with our children. 

You already know the classic benefits of yoga: stress relief, body awareness, greater mindfulness, fortification of all the bodily systems, and non-competitive activity, amoung others. Kids yoga can take those benefits and grow further. Here are a few additional benefits of kids yoga that you should be aware of. 

1. Connection to the earth and people

In our classes, your kids imagine snowshoeing through the Arctic, standing tall like a redwood, and running like a cheetah.  We nurture the feelings the changing seasons bring, eat like a kangaroo in the outback, and hold hands with our loved ones.  We connect to the earth and nature, and also with our families and friends in class.  But more than this, we recognize our dependence on nature and our commonality with all the people in our world - our collective family.

2. Educational yet imaginative play

Can you actually go to the North Pole?  How many bones does a giraffe's neck have?  How long can a dolphin hold its breath?  We talk, learn, and share all about our wacky world in kids yoga.  We seek to make sense of life and enrich our experience of it.  Truth and yet a wild imagination play large roles in our classes...you may find us learning about the tundras with one knee up like a flamingo in Greenland!

3. Learn to relax 

Relaxation is an art. At Appleseed Yoga we start it young!  In a world where it feels like we are constantly moving at a feverish pace, learning to relax is more important than ever.  Yoga is one of the only places where your children (and yourself) can purposefully cultivate this learned skill.  Kids these days are under enormous pressures at school and home. Let's give them some practical skills to ease the tension.

4. Cultivate emotional health

Kids yoga addresses the whole child, including their emotional body.  When we come to our mats, we take time for ourselves to work on acceptance and awareness of who we are and what's going on with us in the moment.  At our kids yoga classes, you can know your child is accepted for just who he or she is.  They are free to be themselves, bolstering their self-confidence and self-image, and building their emotional resilience.

Come join us for kids yoga (ages 4-8) every Wednesday from 4-4:45 at the Ralph Thornton Centre, we'd love to see you there!

For the love of our families,

Megan 

The Benefits of Family Yoga - Part #2

A few months back I posted about some of the many benefits of Family Yoga.  The list continues, so read on to learn more about how Family Yoga is good for you and your brood!   

 6. Family Yoga shows children that parents are not perfect.  Up to a certain age, children believe their parents are super-human!  They seem to never run out of time, money or resources, and this can create high expectations for parents to fulfill.  There are always poses a parent finds difficult and those a child find's difficult.  This reality check brings a humanizing quality to the parents, releasing them of expectations from the child. 

7.  Family Yoga teaches families how to relax together.  Most parents want their children to learn ways to relax and be more at peace!  What a better way to learn these skills then doing it as a family!  Yoga is wonderful for discharging energy and also engaging the rest and digest response, releasing those loving, calming hormones. 

8.  Family Yoga provides an opportunity for positive feedback among family members.  Since every person and every body can do yoga, there are always opportunities for encouragement in family yoga class!  We always encourage positive feedback for each family member in class, no matter what shape a body holds.  Yoga is about holding space for a wide breadth of experiences, from the tiniest yogi to the most experienced.

9.  Family Yoga inspires creativity as a family.  When we play yoga, we exchange roles and role-play a lot, and this contributes to increased creativity among family members.  We like to mix it up and take a dune buggy ride across the Sahara right after baking a pizza in Tuscany!  Often, this creativity translates over into moments outside of class!

10.  Family Yoga creates a sense of connection.  Each family yoga class doesn't just consist of poses alone.  Yoga is about creating wholistic community, so wether we like it or not we are sharing ourselves emotionally, spiritually, intellectually, and more when we share a family yoga class.  We share this within our own family and with the families in class with us!  This happens verbally through our class introductions, and physically as we touch others in group poses, and in our ending relaxation.  In class we learn from others and garner a sense of connection to life, truly knowing that we are all connected and going through life together.  This is in large part the essence of family yoga.

I look forward to sharing all these benefits of family yoga and more as we participate in class together!  If you can think of any other benefits of Family Yoga, please share, I'd love to hear them!

For the Love of our Families,

Megan

The Benefits of Toddler Yoga Part #2

As I shared in my last blog post, the benefits of Toddler Yoga are vast.  Check out the rest of the list below!

• Reduced Stress - Studies show that children today encounter 25% more stress than their grandparents did as children (Itsy Bitsy Yoga for Toddlers and Preschoolers, pg.11).  In a culture that is constantly on the move, now more than ever we need to instill in our children the importance of relaxation.  One benefit of this is improved focusing and concentration skills, which leads to better learning.  Relaxing effectively will help to make the stressors our children carry more tolerable, thereby leading to greater overall health.  
   
• Improved Gross and Fine Motor Development - Many poses in a typical toddler yoga class contribute greatly to developing your child's gross and fine motor skills.  Using various yoga props and repetitive practice of these poses from week to week ensures your child will be set up to succeed in their development.  
   
• The Beginnings of a Healthy Lifestyle - Holistically healthy toddlers will become holistically healthy children!  Starting a healthy lifestyle for your toddler is a gift they can take with them into the rest of their life.  The body has a strong memory, and the movements we make and repeat stay with us on a cellular level as we grow.  
   
• Strengthened Bonds Between Parent and Child - As Helen Garabedian writes, the word yoga means 'union', and in the case of Toddler Yoga, we have an opportunity to unite in a profound way with our child!  Being fully present with your child in a toddler yoga class is a unique treat where there are no toys or distractions.  It is a safe space to observe and learn about and from your toddler, during the most transformative and important years of her life.
   
• Longer Retention of Their Innate Bodily Awareness - As Liz Lark puts it, "Young bodies have not yet been inhibited or restricted by everyday conditioning, so they naturally move much more freely."  Yoga will enable your toddler to retain and preserve their innate bodily awareness so they can move more freely throughout their life.

There you have it, the numerous benefits of Toddler Yoga completed.

Next Friday November 10th Appleseed is introducing a new weekly Toddler Yoga class to the schedule at 11am!  

We hope to see you and your toddler there,

Megan

*This list is largely compiled from Helen Garabedian's Book, Itsy Bitsy Yoga.  The comments are mine.

Pose of the Season: Autumn

Plow Pose (Halasana)

Kids love plow pose!  This pose can be done solo, with a partner or even as a family!  There are many benefits to plow pose, including improved digestion, relaxation of the nervous system, fatigue relief, and stretching of the shoulders and spine.  This pose also calms anxiety and reduces irritability in our youngsters!  And parents, all these benefits apply to you too.  :)

So on your trip to the farm this fall to harvest apples or pumpkins, take a break and lay in the dirt as a plow!

Solo Pose: Roll onto your back and let your feet and legs come up over your body as far as they'd like.  You can use you arms and hands along your mat to support you.

Partner Pose: As you can see above, your friend/family member can hold your ankles in this pose.  Take a deep breath in and relax all your muscles so your partner holds all your weight.  Have your partner slowly slowly let your spine uncurl, releasing your feet back down to the mat.  This is a great pose to do before bedtime, it's very relaxing!

Family pose variation: One family member is in plow pose, the second person sits with their low back to the plow's rear with legs out straight.  A third family member sits high on the lap of the second family member, facing them.  The third person holds the wrists of the first person (in plow) and uses their arms to drive the plow!  Vroom vroom!

Happy Autumn, 

Megan

The Benefits of Family Yoga - Part #1

Family Yoga is FUN!  But there are many benefits of family yoga beyond what meets the eye.

Why should you do family yoga?  How can it benefit your family?  

In today's world, there aren't many opportunities for families to connect.  It is rare to have a moment when you're not on the TV, iPad, phone, or at work or school.  And when that moment does come, when everyone has some time to spend together, some families aren't sure how to spend it.  Well there are plenty of options, and family yoga is a wonderful one! 

I started writing this post and after a while couldn't believe the list of benefits!  So in order to not overwhelm, here are just a few.

1. Family Yoga strengthens the family bond. Spending time together and touching physically, as well as connecting emotionally, spiritually and mentally, is strengthening, and sets the stage for spending more quality family time throughout the rest of the week.

2. Family Yoga creates a sense of support within the family!  Literal support in poses for the whole family, and this easily translates to further physical and emotional support outside of class.

3. Family Yoga gives you something to all do together.  Doing yoga together is about as high as you can get on the parent/child interaction meter.  It levels the playing field, and each family member's strengths begin to shine, with none being any greater or less than the others.

4. Family Yoga teaches parents how to play!  In a time where parents mostly feel like police men and woman, family yoga can take the tension out of a parent/child relationship and open the gates to fun and playfulness within and outside of class.

5. Family Yoga makes parents learners!  Children get to see their parents as learners, which sets a great example for them!  And parents get to see how their children learn and how they interact with other age groups, something we don't often see in school/work life.

The list goes on!  Stay in touch to learn more ways that family yoga can benefit every member of your family. 

Love and Light,

Megan