Child's Pose

beginner · stretch

Setup

Kneel on a mat with the knees hip-width or wider and the tops of the feet down. Put a folded towel between your hips and heels if you cannot sit all the way back.

Execution

Sit your hips back toward your heels and reach both arms long on the mat in front of you.
Rest your forehead on the mat or on a block, letting the neck go completely soft.
Widen the knees if the belly is compressed, which is also the adjustment during pregnancy.
Breathe down into your lower back and feel it widen with each breath in.
Hold for 30-60 seconds, or longer if you are using it to bring the heart rate down after a session.
Come up by pressing the hands into the mat and rising slowly rather than popping straight up.

Breathing

Breathe slowly into the belly and lower back with the exhale longer than the inhale. This position is about settling down, so the breath matters more than the depth.

Quick cues

Hips back toward your heels.
Reach the arms long.
Breathe into your lower back.
Widen the knees if the belly is squeezed.
Let the neck hang like a bell.

Common faults

Fault: Forcing the hips to the heels when the ankles and knees will not allow it
Fix: Put a folded towel between the hips and heels, or a cushion under the ankles.
Fault: Keeping the shoulders jammed up by the ears while reaching
Fix: Set the shoulders away from the ears and soften the elbows so they can relax.
Fault: Holding the breath because the belly is pressed into the thighs
Fix: Widen the knees to give the belly room and breathe into the lower back.
Fault: Popping straight up after a long hold
Fix: Press the hands down and take 3 seconds to rise so you do not get light-headed.

Equipment

bodyweight, mat

Muscle groups

back, glutes