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Child Pose Stretch – Overview

It’s one of the most effective yoga poses, as it has been used as a therapeutic exercise by most of the physiotherapists around the world to treat common cases such as low back pain. As it’s the counter pose of the cobra pose stretch.

The top benefits of this stretch exercise are muscles relaxation, make your mind calm and to relieve stress side by side with breathing, it is used to elongate and relax several muscles such as tightened back muscles, buttocks, thighs, ankles, and shoulders.

There are some different variations of child pose you should know to gain the top benefit you look for.

In this article, we will talk about how to do child pose stretch most simply way?

What are the variations of child pose stretch?

What are the benefits of child pose stretch?

Most mistakes and precautions you have to consider while doing child pose?

How to do child pose stretch?

To do this exercise you need a blanket or mat, then follow these steps:

1. Start from sitting on your knees (kneeling position).
2. Keep your knees apart as wide as the hips.
3. Keep your buttocks back to the heels.
4. Go forward between your knees and take your hands and slowly relax, down and forwards, and your palms down.
5. Exhale and bring the forehead down towards the floor and try to allow the buttocks to come back towards the heels as much as you can.
6. If you can’t relax your head on the floor, use a pillow or a towel.
7. Hold there 15-30 seconds.
8. Repeat 5-10 times.
9. Then with inhalation, you’re going to use those hands just gently to push and return slowly to the starting position.

Benefits of Child Pose Stretch

• Relaxation, make your brain calm and relieve stress.
• Gentle stretching of tightened hips, thighs, and ankles.
• Stretching and to relieve low back pain and neck pain.
• Stretching of tight shoulder muscles.

Top 2 Variations of child pose stretch

There are two variations or more advance ways to do child pose exercise to stretch other parts of your upper body, which are:

• Instead of extending both hands down and forward on the floor, use both hands crossed with your forehead resting on the back of them, or you can use one hand, in the same way, to stretch one side of your body, as explained in the following video. Then repeat on the other side.

• Use the same steps in the first video, then bend your body towards one side to stretch the opposite side of your body, as explained in the following video. Then repeat on the opposite side.

Common mistakes

• If you feel that you are bending your neck during doing the exercise, please stop this and use a pillow or folded towel to support your head.
• Unrelaxed ankles, thighs, knees, hips or spine in the right position may affect gaining the maximum benefit of the exercise.

Precautions

• Always do these exercises within your limits of tolerance and abilities. If you have any medical concerns, please talk to your physical therapist or doctor before.
• To can use a rolled blanket or towel to alleviate the uncomfortable ankles or knees.

Don’t do Child pose stretch if you’re:

• Pregnant especially in the last trimester.
• If you have knees or hips serious concerns or injury.
• If you have back serious concerns or injury.
• If you have shoulders or neck serious concerns or injury.

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Resources and References:

• “Child’s Pose” 2019, yoga journal.
• “How to Do Child’s Pose in Yoga” 2015, Yoga outlet.
• Jo-Ann Staugaard-Jones 2015, The Concise Book of Yoga Anatomy: An Illustrated Guide to the Science of Motion.
• “Stretch of the Week: Child’s Pose” 2014, Athletico Physical Therapy.