1-Relaxation-Childs’ pose is a great opportunity to release
all the tension in your muscles, and just be supported by the floor. If Childs’ pose isn’t relaxing to you, use
props, maybe behind the knees, or under the head & chest.
2-Grounding-How often, in daily life, do we put our
foreheads to the floor? Not much. And yet, it’s a great way to connect with the
earth again. Placing the forehead on the
floor can help to bring you out of the monkey mind, and into the body once
again.
3-Pranayama-One of the things I love about Childs’ pose is
how my breath seems amplified when I’m all curled up like that. The sounds of my breath reverberate back to
me off my legs. This allows my focus to
remain firmly on my breath…just where it needs to be.
4-Yin time-The ‘yin’ side of life is the calm, quiet,
solitude side. In Childs’ pose, I feel
like I’m totally alone in the world. I
feel protected by my strong back, and I feel I can spend some time just being
me.
5-Low back stretch-This posture is a great counter pose to
some of the back-strengthening poses we do in yoga. When we’ve done several locust poses, or
camel poses, it can feel so good to just shift backward and stretch the lower
back.
6-Neck softness-All day long, we hold up this 8-10 lb
bowling ball we call a head. Our necks
get tired and stretched, often causing neck pain, headaches, and more. But in Childs’ pose, all the weight of the
head is on the floor. What a nice break
from our daily chore. The muscles of the
neck can relax and become soft, leaving that big head to be supported by the
mat.
7-Breath consciousness in the back-We are often aware of the
breath coming & going through the front of the ribcage, but it also moves
through the back. In Childs’ pose,
because the front of the chest is compressed, we can focus on opening the back
with the breath. Our intercostal muscles
rarely get such a great workout as when we’re actively bringing the breath into
the back.
