Child's Pose

• Gently stretches the hips, thighs, and ankles
• Calms the brain and helps relieve stress and fatigue
• Relieves back and neck pain when done with head and torso supported

• Diarrhea
• Pregnancy
• Knee injury: Avoid Balasana unless you have the supervision of an experienced teacher.

We usually don't breathe consciously and fully into the back of the torso. Balasana provides us with an excellent opportunity to do just that. Imagine that each inhalation is "doming" the back torso toward the ceiling, lengthening and widening the spine. Then with each exhalation release the torso a little more deeply into the fold.

To increase the length of the torso, stretch your arms forward. Lift your buttocks just slightly away from your heels. Reach the arms longer while you draw the shoulder blades down the back. Then without moving the hands, sit the buttocks down on the heels again.

If you have difficulty sitting on your heels in this pose, place a thickly folded blanket between your back thighs and calves.

A partner can help you lengthen the "dome" shape of your back in this pose. Have your partner stand to one of your sides. He/she should place one hand on your sacrum (fingers pointing toward the tailbone) and the other hand on your mid-back (fingers pointing toward your head). As you exhale, your partner can press gently down (toward the floor) and, without physically moving the hands, scrub them in opposite directions. Help your partner regulate the pressure on your back—ask for more or less—but have him/her apply more pressure only on an exhalation.

• Virasana

• Balasana is a resting pose that can precede or follow any asana.