Parent Magazine Volusia April 2019 | Page 12

Yes Say Find Serenity, Strength, and Self-Confidence to Yoga for Kids and Families By Sara Barry I f you think yoga is about flexibility, challenging poses, and a Zen attitude, you’ve got part of it. Yoga has physical and emotional benefits for people of all ages, including children. “Getting kids involved in yoga and meditation is a life- long win for them. Both yoga and meditation teach kids the benefits of fitness, but they are also valuable coping skills that kids can key into during life's challenges,” says yoga teacher Kerin Monaco. 12 | V O L U S I A parent M A G A Z I N E Monaco started practicing yoga herself in high school to combat crippling anxiety that cropped up around SATs and college applications. She went on to teach yoga and recently began to share yoga with her young family. When her daughter was 9 months old, Monaco started to practice with her on the mat, where they both loved the peaceful energy that yoga brings. That peaceful energy is one of the key reasons adults practice yoga, and that calm is great for kids too. That’s not the only benefit though. Yoga teacher Katy Dagle says that for younger kids, yoga builds coordination, balance, and self-regulation. For older kids, yoga continues to help with coordination and balance and also helps build flexibility, strength, and self-confidence. The emotional benefits can be especially helpful in the challenging tween and teen years. In addition to these physical and emotional benefits, yoga can help develop values, such as honesty and nonviolence. These values are an integral part of yoga that is often overlooked, but they can be an added benefit to families practicing together.