How to Do the Child's Pose

We know you're not a child, but doesn't it feel good to act like one every so often?

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Learn all the basic yoga poses -- downward facing dog, lotus, plank, and so on -- so you can get toned and find a little inner calmness, too.

 
 

You Will Need

  • Comfortable clothing suitable for stretching and moving
  • A calm place where you won't be distracted or disturbed
  • A yoga mat or folded blanket
  • A pillow or two

Steps

  1. Step 1

    Kneel on mat

    Kneel on the mat on your knees, with your back straight and your knees separated about as wide as your hips, six to twelve inches apart.

  2. Step 2

    Lower chest & head

    Lower your chest onto your thighs and your forehead toward the mat.

  3. Make it easier to achieve this pose by placing a pillow between the back of your thighs and calves, and another where your head will go.

  4. Step 3

    Slide hand to feet

    Slide your hands, palms facing up, back toward your feet, with your arms alongside your legs.

  5. To vary this pose, stretch your arms out in front of you, palms-down, on the mat.

  6. Step 4

    Hold pose

    Hold this pose for 20 seconds or longer, breathing deeply, letting go of stress, allowing yourself to become as peaceful as a sleeping child.

  7. Step 5

    Rise & rest

    Rise, and rest. Now, back to adulthood.

  8. Yoga became oh-so-cool to Westerners in the mid-1960s, when the Beatles learned some poses from Maharishi Mahesh. Now it's hard to find a celebrity who doesn't practice...

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