Pose of the Week - Savasana

Savasana, also called Corpse pose, is the last pose in a yoga class, and often considered the most important.  It is intended as a meditative pose, giving time to relax and completely let go.  It is very difficult for kids to settle in to savasana.  A typical savasana in an adult class can last from 5-10 minutes.  Kids have a much shorter attention span and often get the wiggles, so I often play games to work them into savasana and get them to stay a little longer, working on breathing and relaxing.  I will talk about these in another post - today is just the basics.

To get in to savasana, come down to your back, legs about mat length apart, arms spread a little wider than the body, palms facing up.  Close your eyes and focus on breathing.  When a thought comes into your head, acknowledge it, and then let it go.  The goal here is to quiet the mind and relax, and this is very difficult!

I also like to include a nice massage with savasana, which I will demonstrate in a later post.  This aides in relaxation.  We take this a little further in my autism group.  A lot of people with autism have an under-stimulated nervous system and are constantly seeking sensory input.  Some people with this symptom respond well to deep pressure and joint compression.  Throughout our classes, Kobi has decided he enjoys his savasana more on his belly.  To facilitate bonding between him and his mom, rather than me give the massage and pressure, his mom would provide it for him at the end of class.  He really seemed to enjoy this time.  Here are some pictures of his mom giving him deep pressure massage in savasana.

 

Pose of the Week

Our pose of the week, Navasana or Boat Pose, is one that is great for building core stability and strength.  It can be very difficult for children (and adults) with low muscle tone to get into this pose.  We start by grounding our bottoms down and sitting up nice and tall with bent knees, the bottoms of our feet on the mat.  Then, we put our hands on our knees or shins and rock back so our feet are off the mat.
At this point, you can extend your legs into "tabletop" - knees bent, calves parallel to the ground, feet together.  You can release your hands and reach them toward your feet.  Here's us getting started with the pose:

If you would like a further challenge, the full pose is extending the legs out straight, keeping your core muscles engaged and legs and feet together.  Your body should form a V-shape.  Here I'm helping Mercedes keep her upper body off the mat - it's quite tempting to just lay down and lift your legs up, but that's not really working the core muscles. ;)

Here's Mercedes's succesful Boat Pose - with kids, they may not do the full pose with correct alignment, but that's ok, as long as they are having fun and are being safe.

And, if you need a little extra support, you can do like Mercedes does and find some furniture to prop your head up. ;)