The More Comfortable Alternative to Child’s Pose

Each of us needs a safe space. Someplace we can turn to when we feel tossed about by life and in need of a few easy breaths. For me, that place is Supported Child’s Pose.

A forward-bending posture, it helps me soothe my frazzled nerves, allows for easy breathing, and gently supports my head and upper body so that all I need to do is soften and release the patterned tension I’m holding anywhere in my body.

How to Set Up for Supported Child’s Pose

It may take a few tries before finding the version of Supported Child’s Pose that feels best in your body. And that version may vary from day to day.

Use Blankets

This version of the pose is my favorite, and while it’s a bit prop heavy, I believe that rounding up every last blanket in the house is well worth the effort.

1. Fold five blankets so that each is 8-12 inches wide and long enough to support your torso and head when you fold forward. Neatly stack three of the blankets on top of one another and position them on your yoga mat. Form a second stack with the last two blankets and place it within arm’s reach.
2. Sit facing one short side of the thicker stack with your knees, your shins, and the tops of your feet resting on the floor. Stay here for just a moment, readjusting your knees and feet as needed so you feel completely comfortable.
3. Now place the two-blanket stack atop the three-blanket stack in front of your pelvis, so your stomach and chest will be gently supported when you bend forward over it. Take care to ensure that all the blankets are neatly folded and even, so when you bend forward, the support will be smooth and firm.
4. Inhale as you stretch your spine, and then exhale as you fold forward from the hips, allowing your torso to settle into the support you’ve created in front of you. Turn your head to one side and rest your cheek on the blankets as you relax your arms comfortably on the floor on either side of the bolster. (Instead of blankets, you can also place blocks underneath your torso and forehead. If resting your forehead on a block, keep your neck straight and your gaze down at the mat.)
5. Adjust your props as needed. (See Variations below.) You’ll know you’ve found just the right arrangement when you feel yourself sinking into the blankets or bolster with a sigh of relief. Once this happens, your only job is to surrender. Encourage every cell in your body to soften and unclench, so with each breath, you feel yourself releasing more into the cushion of support beneath you.
6. As you rest here, invite gravity to pull your legs toward the ground to release any lingering tension in the hips and thighs. Soften the muscles of the lower back and release the tailbone toward the heels. At the same time, spread your shoulder blades apart as your arms release. Encourage your entire body to feel tender, spacious, and at ease.
7. Now consider your breath. For the first few moments in Supported Child’s Pose, your inhalations and exhalations may feel choppy and short, since the front body is so deeply supported that it isn’t able to participate as fully as usual in the breathing process. But after resting quietly for several minutes, your body will likely discover new breathing patterns that encourage the back to expand to more completely accommodate the ebb and flow of the breath.
8. After a few minutes in the pose, your torso may have relaxed so much that it needs more space to lengthen. If so, press your hands into the ground, lift the torso a few inches away from the support, and slip the belly toward the heart, the heart toward the head, and the head toward the front of the stack. Then slowly release the torso back down onto the blankets, letting the spine elongate forward.

Play With Props

Once you’re situated, your belly, heart, and head should all rest contentedly on the cushions beneath you. If not, make a few adjustments so the shape of your blanket stack supports your body.

Adjust Your Level of Support

First, consider adding or removing blankets to find a more comfortable distance from the floor. There’s no right or wrong placement of the blankets—some people simply prefer more support in the low belly, while others do not. So feel free to experiment with your setup to discover the perfect arrangement for you.

If you are tight in your hips or achy in your knees or the tops of your feet,  for example, you might like more support beneath your pelvis when you rest forward. If so, add one or more blankets to the thick stack on which you’re sitting. This additional distance between your pelvis and the ground will create a little more space for your legs and relieve some of the pressure.

If, on the other hand, you feel like your arms and legs are dangling precipitously from your blankets, you might want to subtract a few blankets. You might even prefer the less-supported version of the pose, in which the hips rest on the heels in the traditional version of Child’s Pose and just the upper body rests on a bolster.

Consider shifting the upper blanket stack either closer to or farther away from your pelvis until you find the position that’s most comfortable for your abdomen.

Protect Your Head and Neck

Make sure your head is well supported and not dangling off the front edge of the blankets. If your head isn’t resting comfortably, slip another blanket or a firm pillow beneath the far end of the stack until the chin and forehead are level and even.

Finally, if as you rest here, you feel like any part of your front torso is unable to fully surrender, consider wedging a small blanket or a towel between that part of your body and the support beneath. I often roll up a thin blanket and slip it just beneath my collarbones, so my throat and heart are able to release evenly. You may find a part of your own body that responds well to additional support.

Bring in the Breath

Rest in Supported Child’s Pose for at least 3-5 minutes, or for as long as you feel comfortable, turning your head to face the opposite direction when you’re halfway through your time in the pose. Relax the head, relieving your shoulders of the burden of holding it up high. Encourage your heart to melt into the support beneath. Unclench your belly and let the outer world dissolve away as you draw your awareness inward toward the center of your being.

This article has been updated. Originally published September 2, 2021.