Stretching bodies, horizons
Just days after the war in Iraq began, a group of children are together for yoga class at L.A. Yoga Center in Westwood. Acknowledging that it had been a rough week, instructor Joy Marcus guides the group, ranging in age from 5 to 10, through a variety of dances, stretches and poses.
From dog pose (“Make friends with your hamstrings!”) to tree pose (“I’m going to water you and watch you grow”), handstands to headstands, the children stretch, purr, sing and dance with confidence.
The class ends with each child lying on a mat in cloud pose. “Feel yourself floating up to the sky,” Marcus tells them gently. “See yourself warm and safe. No one can harm you.”
The children lie still on their mats, meditative, imagining a safe world.
Classes like this aren’t unique. From Silver Lake to Santa Monica, from kundalini to hatha, there is one universal among the Southland’s diverse yoga scene: Kids are welcome.
At a recent Mommy and Me class at Yoga Works in Santa Monica, the family vibe is especially intense as veteran instructor Rocki guides the class, a baby on each of her hips. Immune to crying babies and toddlers crawling on the floor, she is focused, providing each class member with individual attention. “You’re going to be sore tomorrow,” she warns one neophyte.
Yoga classes for kids are now a staple of nearly every studio’s repertoire. Parents can find Ashtanga, Bikram and transformative yoga class descriptions mixed with Mommy and Me (dads too) classes, kids and teen groups, even family classes.
In addition, many studios now host parallel classes so parents and kids can exercise in the same place at the same time. L.A. Yoga holds separate classes for kids and parents on Saturdays so children can take a class one room away from their parents. The Golden Bridge in L.A. also hosts parallel classes on the weekends. Children can be heard chanting, singing and doing sun salutations while their parents practice kundalini yoga and meditate with Gurmukh nearby.
Instructor Michel Bayan, who hosts a family class at Maha Yoga in L.A., believes that yoga helps kids get over the fear of trying something new at an early age.
“We make the play the yoga,” says Bayan. “Yoga is a great opportunity for parents and kids to do something together. Sometimes the parent motivates the child or vice versa. A lot of parents who have [difficulty] with certain poses work harder to do it so their child isn’t afraid to try it too.”
Bayan says parents are more open to yoga if they come with their kids, especially when they see their kids trying it. “It’s a built-in support system.”
While the benefits of yoga are well known -- it is said to help develop focus, balance and motor skills -- teachers agree that it is especially beneficial for children in developing self-confidence.
“The differentiation between yoga and every single other thing that a child is going to do in their life is that it’s entirely noncompetitive,” says Shana Meyerson, founder of Mini Yogis Yoga for Kids in Los Angeles. “A kid will never be told in yoga ‘You’re wrong, you’re not good enough, go sit on the bench,’ or be the last kid picked for a team.
“It’s huge for their self-esteem -- especially for kids who aren’t athletically inclined,” Meyerson says. “In yoga, you try it, you’ve done it, you’re perfect. It’s great to have a place where a kid can go, release some stress, release some tension and get in touch with their bodies.”
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Yoga for all
What: Family Fun Yoga Workshop, including yoga with Robin Fox, “move and groove” with Michel Bayan and art therapy with Jennifer Slider
Where: Maha Yoga, 13050 San Vicente Blvd., #202, Los Angeles
When: Saturday, noon to 2 p.m.
Cost: suggested donation, $5
Info: (310) 899-0047
