Ideal Bite

If my daughter Roxie is any indication, the originals yogi must have been infants.

At 5 months, she’d spend all her waking time in happy baby pose (on her back, legs curled up, clutching her feet with her hands). Two months later, she started sleeping in child’s pose (kneeling, with chest resting on her thighs) and now at 9 months, as she’s figuring out how to stand upright, it’s all about downward dog.

No, yoga isn’t eco per se, but watching Roxane wiggle around in her crib makes me think about how closely it’s tied to nature and natural development. With names like tree, pigeon, and locust, these poses certainly take their inspiration from the environment.

Above all, of course, are the amazing health and wellness benefits that kids learn through yoga: strength, good posture, focus, relaxation, and cooperation through shared poses. These skills become a toolkit for managing stress and anxiety at any age.

Roxie’s thrilled by her new abilities (she’s gonna pose right outta that crib any day now) and as soon as she starts to imitate movement, I look forward to teaching her and finding a toddler class we can take together.  For now, I’ll keep rolling out my mat in her room so she can watch mom, roll around on the floor, and giggle until she’s breathless - her newest take on happy baby pose.

-Mama Bite Editor Alison...off to find some good belly laughs...

From Mama Bite