TWEEN YOGA!
Being a tween or teen is often challenging. Your body is changing. You are more peer-focused and friendships groups become more complex. Suddenly, you find yourself caring about what your friends think of you and worrying about what you look like. Practicing yoga from a relatively early age not only helps to calm the body, but also the mind. It can help tweens process what’s going on in their heads and gives them an opportunity to focus on something aside from their daily routines. Yoga can also help them see themselves and their bodies in a positive light.
What is Yoga?
Given all the popularity surrounding yoga in recent years, it might seem like a modern trend. However yoga began more than 3,000 years ago in India. The word yoga means "yoke," or to unite, the mind, body, and spirit. Yoga includes physical exercise, but it's so much more. It’s about life balance and training your mind, body, and breath. It’s about connecting with your spirituality and living the yoga lifestyle.
Some of the benefits of yoga for tweens include:
● Improve fitness and physical health
● Develop discipline
● Reduce stress and anxiety
● Build emotional strength
● Improve optimism
● Improve focus and school performance
● Improve self-esteem and body image
● Encourage creativity
● Develop self-regulation
● Improves sleep quality
How to Get Your Tween Started
Gyms, community centres, and even some yoga studios offer yoga classes for tweens and teens. Some yoga instructors offer private or semi-private classes for students. Some even offer classes online. Before your tween takes a class, make sure the instructor is registered with the Yoga Alliance, which ensures they’ve completed the proper training and teaching requirements. Your tween may want to observe a class before registering just to see if it’s something she is interested in doing. You could also try using yoga videos, apps, or online classes.
Here are some great online resources to check out:
Do Yoga With Me has over 500 free yoga instruction videos for kids of all ages.
https://www.thisisyoga.com.au/on-demand-kids-teens great on demand classes for tweens aged 10-14.
https://www.inspiredkidsyoga.com.au/ online courses, videos and webinars for tweens and children of all ages.