- Category
- Prone & kneeling
- Level
- beginner
- Hold
- 5–10 breaths, or as long as you like
- Type
- Asana
- Breath
- Slow and low — feel the breath move into your back ribs.
Child's Pose
Balasana — "child posture"
Also known as: Resting Pose, Child Pose
Knees down, hips back toward the heels, forehead to the floor. Child's Pose is the standing invitation to rest — you can come here any time a practice gets to be too much.
Step by step
- 1From Tabletop, bring your big toes together and take your knees wide — or keep them together if that feels better.
- 2Sink your hips back toward your heels.
- 3Walk your hands forward and lower your chest between (or onto) your thighs.
- 4Rest your forehead on the mat.
- 5Either stretch your arms forward, palms down, or lay them alongside your body, palms up.
- 6Let your whole back broaden with each inhale, and soften a little more with each exhale.
Benefits
- ✓ Gently stretches the hips, thighs, and lower back
- ✓ Releases tension in the shoulders when the arms reach forward
- ✓ Slows the breath and settles the nervous system
- ✓ Gives you a legitimate rest stop in any sequence
Make it yours
- · Place a folded blanket under your knees, or a rolled blanket between your calves and thighs if your hips don't reach your heels.
- · Rest your torso and head on a bolster placed lengthwise between your thighs for a fully supported version.
- · Stack your fists or a block under your forehead if it doesn't reach the floor.
Take care
- If your knees are sensitive, deep knee flexion here can be uncomfortable — pad generously or place a rolled blanket behind the knees.
- During pregnancy, take the knees wide so there's room for the belly, and come up if anything feels compressed.
This is general practice guidance, not medical advice. If something hurts, ease out of it.
Props that help here
- Yoga blanket — Folded under the hips in seated poses, under the knees in kneeling ones, under the shoulders for shoulderstand. A firm household blanket works too. find one
- Bolster — The single best restorative purchase. Under the knees, under the spine, or lengthwise under the back to open a gentle supported backbend. find one
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