Family Yoga: Fun Summer Activities for Kids and Parents
Summer, with its long, sunny days and vibrant energy, is the perfect time to introduce your family to the joys of yoga. This practice isn’t just about stretching and posing; it’s about bonding, playing, and creating cherished memories together. In this post, I’ll share some delightful summer activities that blend yoga with family time, ensuring everyone enjoys the benefits of this ancient practice. ever since my son was very little, I have tried to incorporate some fun yoga play and activities into our play time and it might not always turn out how it’s meant but it has created a lot of laughter!
Outdoor Yoga Picnics
One of my favourite summer activities is organising an outdoor yoga picnic. East Sussex is blessed with beautiful parks and countryside, making it easy to find the perfect spot. Here’s how you can plan your own:
Choose a Location: Find a local park, beach, or even your backyard. The South Downs National Park is an excellent choice with its stunning views and serene environment. If that is not possible then any nearby park, or evenyour back garden will do.
Pack Your Essentials: Bring along yoga mats, a picnic blanket, healthy snacks, and plenty of water. Don’t forget sunscreen and hats for sun protection.
Create a Simple Routine: Start with some basic poses that everyone can do. Tree pose (Vrksasana) is a fun one for balance, and kids love pretending to be strong trees. Warrior poses (Virabhadrasana I, II, and III) can turn into an imaginative adventure of brave warriors.
Incorporate Games: Make it fun with yoga games. “Yogi Says” (like Simon Says but with yoga poses) is always a hit. Another favourite is “Yoga Freeze Dance,” where everyone dances and freezes in a yoga pose when the music stops.
Enjoy a Relaxing Picnic: After your yoga session, enjoy a relaxing picnic. Encourage mindful eating by appreciating the colours, textures, and tastes of your food.
Yoga Storytime
Combining storytelling with yoga is a wonderful way to engage children’s imaginations while introducing them to different poses. You can create your own stories or use books that incorporate yoga.
Pick a Story: Choose a favourite children’s book or make up a story involving animals, adventures, and different characters.
Pose with the Story: As you read or tell the story, incorporate yoga poses. For example, if the story involves a lion, everyone can do lion’s breath (Simhasana). If there’s a tree, everyone can become a tree with Tree Pose.
Interactive Play: Encourage the children to add to the story with their own poses and ideas. This makes the session more interactive and fun.
Family Yoga Challenges
A little friendly competition can be motivating and fun. Set up a family yoga challenge with simple goals and rewards.
Daily Pose Challenge: Each day, choose a new pose for the family to master. Take photos of everyone doing the pose, and at the end of the week, create a photo collage of your progress.
Yoga Bingo: Create bingo cards with different yoga poses and activities. The first person to complete a row gets to choose a fun family activity, like a movie night or an ice cream outing.
Yoga Scavenger Hunt: Hide cards with different yoga poses around the garden or house. As each card is found, everyone must perform the pose together.
Sunset Yoga Sessions
Summer evenings in East Sussex can be magical, with long, lingering sunsets. Use this time for a calming family yoga session that helps everyone unwind.
Find a Quiet Spot: Your garden, a nearby field, or even a quiet room with the windows open can be perfect for this.
Gentle Poses: Focus on gentle, relaxing poses. Child’s Pose (Balasana), Cat-Cow (Marjaryasana-Bitilasana), and Butterfly Pose (Baddha Konasana) are great for winding down.
Breathing Exercises: Teach simple breathing exercises like “Bumblebee Breath” (Bhramari) to help everyone relax and focus.
Gratitude Practice: End with a circle of gratitude, where each family member shares something they are thankful for that day. This fosters a sense of connection and positivity.
Rainy Day Yoga Fun
In the UK, summer doesn’t always mean sunshine. Rainy days can be a great opportunity to bring yoga indoors and keep the fun going.
Indoor Yoga Circuit: Create a mini yoga circuit in your living room with different stations. Each station can have a different pose or activity, like a balance challenge or a breathing exercise.
Yoga Craft Projects: Combine creativity with yoga by making yoga-related crafts. Create pose cards by drawing different poses on index cards, or make a “peace jar” filled with glitter and water to use for calming meditation.
Family Meditation: Teach simple meditation techniques. Guided visualisations, where you imagine a favourite place or a calming scene, can be especially soothing for children.
Conclusion
Family yoga is a wonderful way to spend time together, stay active, and cultivate mindfulness. Whether you’re enjoying an outdoor yoga picnic in the beautiful landscapes of East Sussex, telling yoga stories, or finding joy in gentle evening practices, the key is to have fun and be present with each other. Activities like these, not only bring families closer, but can also instil a lifelong love for yoga and mindfulness. So, roll out your mats, take a deep breath, and let this summer be filled with the joy and connection that family yoga brings.
Namaste. Angie at Sussex Yoga x
