Childs Pose Stretch Tutorial

How to Do the Child’s Pose Exercise

Overview

Child’s pose is a relaxing pose commonly used in yoga practice. It can be done as a partial forward fold or a full forward fold with chin to chest and forehead to the floor. It’s called child’s pose because it’s how young children and babies tend to sleep, folded forward with arms back or to the sides, bums in the air and spine curved. It’s excellent for decreasing tension in the upper back, lower back and hips. It also provides a gentle stretch in the shoulders and various leg muscles. Used as a resting pose, it’s gentle enough for just about anyone to do and is ideal when you want to take a quick breather during a challenging session.

Also Known As

• Child’s Resting Pose
• Balasana

Level

Beginner

Targets

Child’s pose targets the back, hips, thighs, ankles and shoulders, depending on how you approach the pose and how deeply you move into it. 

Step by Step Instructions

1. Kneel on the floor
2. Touch your big toes together and sit back on your heels
3. Separate your knees as wide as your hips. If you want a deeper stretch, you can keep your knees closer together. You’ll feel a more intense stretch in your hips.
4. Exhaling deeply, lower your arms and torso down to your thighs.
5. Let your hips and thighs connect and relax together, then lengthen your tailbone from your pelvis to create space. If you’re at all uncomfortable, try widening your knees.
6. Lay your hands on the floor in front of you, palms up or down. You can even move your arms to your sides or out to the side. 
7. Stay and enjoy the pose for 30 seconds to about 3 minutes. 
8. When you’re ready to switch to a new pose, inhale and lift your torso using your arms to help push you back up to an upright, seated position.

Tips/Common Mistakes

• If sitting on your heels is uncomfortable, try placing a soft folded blanket or towel between your calves and the backs of your thighs.
• Maintain deep breathing throughout the pose for a deeper stretch 
• Stretch your arms forward to lengthen your torso
• Those with a knee injury should consult a professional before trying Child’s Pose

And that’s how you do the childs pose.

[Video Transcript]

This is a stretch called Child’s Pose. It’s designed to stretch your lower back. You can stretch the middle of your lower back and each side of your lower back as well while doing this pose. It’s really good for people who have a tight lower back or too much curving in the lower back. I always recommend this. Too much curving in the lower back is called hyperlordosis.

To do this stretch, get down on the ground—or you can do it on your bed—and lean back on your feet. Stretch your arms out in front of you, holding the stretch for twenty to thirty seconds to get a really good stretch in your lower back. You’ll feel it in your side body as well.

If your bum can’t quite reach your feet, use pillows—place one behind your legs. If your head can’t quite reach the ground, put a pillow under your head for support.

To get a better stretch for the side body, for example, if you want to stretch the left side of your back a little more, turn slightly to the right. You should feel a nice stretch along the left side of your body. Hold for twenty to thirty seconds. To stretch the right side, simply go the opposite way and turn to the left.

I like to start and end the day doing this stretch. It’s a nice way to wind down, but you can do it any time of the day.

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