Yoga is not just for adults! In fact, children’s yoga has become increasingly popular in recent years. Its popularity can be attributed in part to the many valuable life skills and benefits it offers to children and young people.
Much more than just a physical activity, a regular yoga practice can help children to develop essential coping skills that will support them as they navigate the challenges of adolescence and the pressure of exams and give them a wider range of mental and emotional resources to draw on in later life. Here are just a few of the many potentially life-changing benefits of children’s yoga.
1. MANAGING ANXIETY
Nowadays, children are exposed to more stressors than ever before. Whether these come from school, home, peer groups, social media interactions, or societal expectations, stress is an inevitable part of growing up.
Yoga can help children to manage their anxiety and gradually become more peaceful. It can help even the most anxious of children to decompress, re-centre, and regain focus, increasing their ability to be comfortable in their skin and trust their instincts.
2. IMPROVED MENTAL FOCUS
Numerous studies have shown that yoga improves concentration and can increase your child’s mental capacity. The focus required for repetitive and slightly challenging yoga poses can encourage healthy juvenile brain development.
Yoga is also known for helping kids with attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) as it increases mindfulness and attention span. Children who regularly engage in yoga have increased body awareness and are more able to focus on immediate tasks, despite external distractions.
3. EMOTIONAL REGULATION
Most children are easily overwhelmed by their emotions. Kids are often triggered by traumatic situations or changes in family dynamics. Yoga teaches them to be less hard on themselves and release the inner pressure to fix things. By becoming calm and gaining perspective, they are able to see these situations more clearly, take things less seriously, and deal with their emotions more productively.
4. IMPROVING BALANCE AND COORDINATION
Children who practise yoga have better coordination, balance and flexibility. Yoga increases their spatial awareness and their understanding of muscle movements and body positioning. This can help them to increase their physical abilities and strength, even in sports performance.
Children who practise yoga and play team sports such as football, hockey, basketball, and netball are able to learn new plays more easily and generally have more confidence in games and sports. They are also less prone to accidents and injuries, as they have far better coordination and physical awareness.
5. REDUCING IMPULSIVITY
Impulsivity is a common problem among children, who will often act before thinking about the consequences of their actions. Through yoga, they are able to gain more self-control and self-awareness, making them far more likely to think before acting.
Yoga has been shown to foster an increase in self-discipline in children and young people, which helps them to make better decisions.
Yoga is for everyone!
There’s no doubt that yoga provides numerous benefits for the mind and body, for people of all ages. This makes children’s yoga a smart choice in these stressful times. It’s the perfect self-soother and can be incorporated into your child’s lifestyle or practised intentionally in a class. By increasing wellness, self-awareness and mindfulness, daily yoga could, quite literally, change the course of your child’s life.
Find children’s yoga classes
Start your family’s yoga journey with our yoga for youngsters of all levels. These sessions are specifically designed to support developing bodies and minds. Classes involve a combination of yoga postures, breath work, mindfulness practice and relaxation. Encouraging teens to unplug from the digital world and build inner strength and calm. Visit the Power Yoga Co., a thriving and extremely well-resourced yoga studio in London, offering high-quality live-streamed and in-person yoga classes.