Yoga is super beneficial, and as an adult, you’ll already be well aware of the good it can do for your mind and body. However, trying to get your children to enjoy these same benefits is a whole other ball game.
Children will give anything a go, but the quickest way to make them run in the other direction is to force the practice onto them. They have to do it in their own time.
Here are several other tips to remember to ensure your children love the practice and it’s something you can do as a family!
Use Their Energy
Children are renowned for having a tonne of energy. In fact, I might even go as far to say that it’s unlimited! However, instead of trying to calm your children down when practising yoga, embrace the energy they have.
This means doing a fast-paced and energetic routine that they can really engage with. Who knows, you might even be able to get them to fall asleep after!
Use Imagery
You’ll already know how much your children love stories and how vivid their imaginations are. Why not use this to your advantage?
To implement this into your yoga practices, take your children on a journey and create characters with your poses. Of course, if you plan it beforehand, the story will be better but feel free to make it up as you go along.
For example, the warrior pose could be pushing away the evil forces from the forest that you’re protecting. This is a great way to engage your child’s mind while teaching them about yoga and helping them to enjoy themselves.
Don’t Implement Rules
Children hate rules so if you start forcing them on them; they’re not going to enjoy yoga. Depending on the age of your children, they can learn the proper ins and outs at a later date when they’re older. In the meantime, solely focus on making sure they enjoy themselves.
One of the best rules, and possibly only rule, you want to implement is respect. Be sure to listen to one another about how you both feel, don’t threaten, put-down or in other ways raise the tension. Remember that yoga is all about calm.
Keep Things Fresh
Finally, if you’re going through the same poses time and time again, your children are going to get bored, especially if you’re doing it every day. To counteract this, use games, change the poses up and change the tone of your voice.
Basically, whenever you can make something different or change it up, do it from time to time. This helps to keep things new and exciting, even if you are doing the same thing as you did yesterday.
The most important thing to remember when doing yoga with your children is to enjoy yourself. If you’re enjoying yourself, your children will enjoy themselves. Have a smile on your face and appreciate the time you’re spending together!
