Asana of the Week: Shark Pose

Last Saturday was the last class of my Yogi Junior classes until the end of June. I love teaching kids, and it's so rewarding when they tell me they have used breathing techniques in school or before a game or they use a flow at home. It makes it even more rewarding. Yogi Junior is a 6 week series on Saturday afternoons from 12:30-1:15 at East Bank Yoga (8th & Railroad Center) offered on a rotating basis (see the calendar for more details
http://eastbankyoga8thandrr.blogspot.com/p/calendarfees.html?m=1).
Over the course of the class, we spent time learning a variety of poses, starting with basics and graduating to more difficult poses in a fun, safe environment. Each week we have a theme-on the farm, outer space, under the sea and more. We start with a story, then we do breathing exercises, warm ups, play a few games and then get down to business with our flow. Afterwards the kids get a takeaway (stickers or whatnot) based on the theme.
It's so much fun, and yoga is such a great life skill for kids. They learn to focus, stretch muscles and build strength and develop stress management skills. I've seen the difference yoga has made in Little Man's life. For our home practice, we use the Yoga Pretzels deck, which is so much fun to play with!
One of my favorite poses is from our under the sea adventure: shark pose.

To do it, you need to lie on your stomach. Raise your chest and legs off the mat (locust pose) and reach hands behind you. If you can grab them perfect! Hold for at least 2 breaths.