Yoga for Parents and Infants - creating a physical and spiritual bond
We don't normally think of infants as needing exercise. Certainly, just the act of growing and developing taxes their young energy reserves. But a celebration of the body's ability to move from the youngest age, even if it is unconscious, sets the stage for the baby to enjoy a lifetime of fitness. It creates an inherent love of moving their body and an appreciation for it.
Just the act of seeing a parent engaging in regular exercise from earliest consciousness creates a powerful role model in the infant's mind. Studies have shown that children with parents who exercise regularly are less likely to be overweight, more likely to participate in sports and positive activities, and less likely to abuse alcohol or other body-harming drugs (duh!).
Watch how your infant moves easily and instinctively. See how it is nothing for them to put their toes in their mouth, for instance? We are all born with an innate flexibility, but we lose that ability if we don't continue to stretch those ligaments, muscles, and tendons. Yet retaining this precious elasticity can help us prevent injury our whole lives!
Even when your infant is very young, take their tiny hand and move them. Fuss and smile when they stretch and adopt "funny" poses on their own. Move their little arms gently up and down. Play with their tiny feet and watch them smile as their legs move all around. Just your touch provides an invaluable bonding with your child. And though you are building a bond of love through your touch and your smile, you are also helping their little limbs develop. Just as a physical therapist helps develop a recovering patient's limbs' strength, so are you helping your babies' muscles grow through your movement of them. Such play will no doubt delight your baby, but will also set them on the path to lifelong fitness.
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