Forward Fold or Uttanasana

Each week, 2-3 days, we do a 15 minute yoga work out in my home daycare. Kids from 1 1/2 to 5 do this, while each does as much as they are able and in a way they are capable of they all get a nice stretch, a scheduled work out time, and some fun new body movements. We do the sun salutations and then add a few jumps, hops, new yoga pose, and teacher assisted summersaults at the end. In doing these poses always consult a doctor first, only attempt what is in your child’s ability level, and do what is comfortable for your and their body.  Today, we worked on Forward Fold or Uttanasana.


These are only suggestions and like any exercise you and your children try them at your own risk, I am not there to show you and see what your body is saying so I can only offer these on a very basic level. Make sure to wear comfortable clothing that is easy to move in, have a yoga mat to work on, and do not wear socks because of the risk of slipping!  Lastly, always remember to smile and never go past what your capable of and don't push a kid to go past what they are capable. 


We start by standing with our feet slightly apart in a natural stand.  Slowly, hands extend as long as they can to either side of the body like a slow jumping jack.  They reach up to grab the sun once our hands are directly up above our shoulders.  We practice 10 times going up on our tip toes to grab the sun without jumping!  Then, we pretend that the top part of our body has just jumped off a diving board and in a swan dive style we dive with our chest arms moving to form a T shape as we fold forward.  We go slowly keeping our legs straight and diving to the point our body tells us is our stopping point.  We pretend we are holding our breath under water while touching our toes.  We try holding our breath 3 times to see how long we can go and then we spread our arms back to the T shape and dive up out of the water, slowly standing up.  We again practice grabbing the sun without jumping 10 times.  Then we bring our hands to our hearts and say thank you to the sun for playing in our folding game!  Remember not to push on your child or move too fast.  Ask the kids what they saw under water and if the sun was hot!  Write down their experiences in your Kid's Journal and enjoy having a nice stretch and exercise with your little one!  


Namaste!