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Pokemon Go Yoga

Pokemon Go is outdoors so take your yoga outdoors too!

Quick confession here… I thought Pokemon was silly and Pokemon Go was even sillier. Before sitting down with both of my sons to talk about this blog, I was a Pokemon naysayer. My boys have taught me to realize that Pokemons are pretty cool when you learn each character and see how really cute they are. If you are still a naysayer, you just have to check out Eevee and their evolutions! The added bonus is looking at them through the eyes of a yogi and developing a fun class to tie the two together. Oh, I also learned today that Pokemon means Pocket Monsters! When my youngest son showed me that the little figures captured in Pokémon Go move when he taps his finger on them, it got me thinking about using his passion for Pokemon to meld with our passion for yoga. If you see these Pokémon characters in action, you can see how they can teach our kids to do yoga. They balance, they stretch, they move, they shake, they practice breathing and they meditate. They do all the things kids do in a yoga class to get the benefits of yoga through fun! The following is a sample class I did with my son. Truth be told that he came up with most of the poses. It is designed by going through the Pokemons that he has captured.

Start of in an Easy Seat like Abra. He is actually meditating! Who knew that Pokemon was actually teaching us to meditate? My older son said “that is the basis of this little guy.” Close your eyes and feel your breath moving in and out, like waves of energy that surround Abra. To go from seated to standing, Childs Pose like Gulpin, Hands and Knees like Eevee, Down Dog like Growlithe, Up Dog like Zigzagoon, back to Down Dog and step forward and come up into Tree like Exeggutor (just ignore that he has 3 heads) and don’t forget to do Tree for the other leg.

Now it’s time for some movement. Try do some moves like the following Pokemons:

– Hop forward and back with both feet like Minun and Plusle, or make it into a hopping race if you have more than one child.
– By yourself or as another class race, jump forward/jump back like Exeggcute.
 Mankey Monkey Pose because it’s fun to act like a silly monkey. Don’t forget the sill monkey sounds!
– Shake like Skitty and Paras because shaking is good for you, your brain and all of your cells.
– Don’t forget to jump in the air like everyone’s favorite Pokemon, Pikachu (think Frog jumps)

Follow this up with a few more Pokemon based poses:

– Practice your balance in a Bird Pose (Warrior Three) like Pidgey and/or balance on one foot like Hoothoot.
– Stretch out like a Star to be Starmie or Staryu.
– Reach up really high for the sky like Teddiursa.
– Pretend to be Raichu and see if you can bend at the waist and touch your toes like a Ragdoll.
– Be a Spider like Spinarak.
– Try your luck in Flower Pose to look like Sunkern.

Just before settling in to our final resting pose, do the Lion Breath like Raticate. Finally, lay down like Snorlax to practice Belly Breathing and then drift away to your Secret Pokemon Garden or any place that makes you feel happy, safe, and loved.

 

FREE WORKSHOP RECORDING:

Bringing Mindfulness into the Classroom

Watch at your leisure!

FREE WORKSHOP RECORDING:

Relaxation & Meditation for Kids

Watch at your leisure!