January 28, 2002
Exotic exercises catching on with kids
By Debora Brite
It requires stretching, but it’s not T-ball. It takes balance, but it’s not bicycling. It makes kids sweat without running.
It’s yoga for children.
And local kids are doing it. Parents who swear by the physical and mental benefits of this ancient practice are now seeking an early start for their offspring. Parents such as Thomas Lofy, who takes “power yoga” Saturday mornings at At One Yoga in Scottsdale while, across the hallway, his three children take yoga for ages 4 to 8.
The 44-year-old Phoenix lawyer says that for him yoga “is like magic. It makes me serene, peaceful; it makes it easier for me to have joy.”
His kids were introduced to yoga about four months ago. Lofy says he has noticed subtle changes in Austin, 8, and twins Aleia and Lauren, 4. “They seem to be more aware of their bodies, maybe a little more balanced.”
What can kids gain from yoga? Experts say it depends on the teacher, who must be trained to work with children, and the program, which must be tailored to keep little ones engaged.
Annette Feinstein, 66, who teaches two weekend classes for kids for At One Yoga, is a retired first-grade and special-needs teacher. She has practiced and taught adult yoga for decades but went through training before she started teaching kids a year ago.
Yoga builds self-confidence without being competitive, Feinstein says. Further, it promotes strength and flexibility, good coordination and posture. It teaches kids how to relax, concentrate and be quiet and still.
Feinstein’s 95-minute class starts with the “electric circle.” Children sit in a circle facing inward and holding hands.
“0m...0m...0m...,” eight kids chant in unison in a round, dimly lighted room.
The scent of incense fills the air and the thermostat is in the low 80s.
“As SOON as you feel somebody’s energy, squeeze their hands,” she says.
Then she grabs a box of Harry Potter cookies to share, and you know this class isn’t for adults. Making the class fun is basic, even for breathing exercises. Feinstein has the children pick out stuffed animals before they lie flat on mats. The kids place the toys on their bellies and watch them rise and fall as they inhale and exhale.
Then it’s time for the asanas, the yoga poses. The kids stretch like a cat, reach for the sun like a tree and flex their legs like a butterfly. As they move forward like a warrior, Fein stein asks, “Can you say, ‘I’m strong, I’m powerful, I can do anything, I’m good at everything I do?’”
Sure they can.
As the children twist and bend, Fein stein goes from one child to the next, rubs their backs softly and whispers, “You’re awesome.”
Nearing the end of class, the children pledge to believe in themselves, to love and honor their bodies and to do their personal best. And each gets a heart sticker.
“This is more fun than anything I’ve ever done,” 6-year-old Drew Hensley says. “It makes me feel really good.”
Yoga for children may be a new concept to some, but at the Khalsa Montessori School in Phoenix, it has been in the curriculum for 30 years, says director Satwant Khalsa.
“Part of what we’re trying to do is to show children healthy ways of living, and yoga is a great start for that,” Khalsa says.
“You don’t give a child a full adult class,” Khalsa notes. He concentrates on stretching techniques and keeping each exercise brief. “We’re very careful to avoid stressing their bodies in any way,” he says. “Children at 3 or 4 years old are not going to do long meditation. What they enjoy is pretending to be a bird, a fish, a butterfly, that kind of thing.”
The non-profit 3HO Kundalini Yoga Center in Phoenix also offers yoga classes for children, using puppets, pictures and storytelling to keep kids captivated. Co-director Satrattan Kaur Khalsa (not related to Satwant Khalsa) says yoga is better for children ages 6 and older, although 3- to 5-year-olds can benefit. She cautions against children doing strenuous exercises and stretches.
The American Yoga Association goes further. It does not recommend yoga exercises for kids 15 and younger because their nervous and glandular systems are growing and the exercises could interfere with natural growth.
“We’re probably in the minority in the way that we feel,” says Patricia Rockwood, executive editor of the Florida-based group. “Many people think of yoga as just another fitness program.”
Indeed, many yoga instructors disagree with the association’s restrained stance, although they urge parents to check teachers’ credentials and make sure classes are designed for kids.
And the association says young children may safely practice meditation and simple breathing exercises as long as they don’t hold their breath. The techniques can help them learn to relax, concentrate, reduce impulsiveness, manage emotional upsets and cope with stressful events, says Rockwood.
Parents are thinking similarly.
“Mothers are coming in and they want their lads to learn and relax,” says Mary Beth Markus, owner and director-of A Desert Song Yoga and Massage Center. “Kids are really out of hand these days.
We’re trying to teach them life skills.”
The Phoenix studio started offering yoga for the young crowd last June “because parents wanted their children to learn the benefits they were getting from yoga,” Markus says, listing them as relaxation, better health, higher energy levels and body-tension relief.