Semantics, Religion and Middle-schoolers

Before teaching yoga was my main job, I lead an after school program in an inner city middle school in San Francisco. On Friday afternoons, our leadership team chose activities to offer the students.  One week I thought I would try offering yoga.  Shouting over a cafeteria of noisy middle schoolers, my site coordinator announced "yoga in the park" and an eruption of groans, grumbles, and snickers bubbled across the cafeteria.  When the students were released to choose their activities, no one came my way. A group of girls lingered close to me, some looking like they wanted to join and some were not sure. "Do you want to come do yoga in the park?" I asked them. They made a series of excuses and reasons why they don't do yoga so I invited them to just come stretch and relax which they readily agreed to.

"Why are you so opposed to yoga?" I asked them when the time was right. One girl replied she was lazy, another girl because she was tired and didn't want to move, but the one that struck me the most was two girls said it was against their religion.  This caught me pretty off guard.  She continued to share that her step-mom used to do yoga and really liked it until her teacher gave her a pendant with a symbol and chant written on it and asked her class to perform the chant. When the step-mom found out what it meant, she was offended because it was not in line with her christian beliefs. The mom stopped going to the class and warned her daughter that yoga is "a religious practice that prays to false gods. " I took a deep breath.

To connect with these students I realized I needed to ditch the word yoga because it held a stigma. I needed to just teach the practice.  Instead of "doing yoga" I taught them "stretches" and "poses" and which they were all fine to try.  I taught them the three part breath and we talked about body awareness.  At the end of the afternoon, each person there moved their body, breathed deeply, and tried something new. As far as I was concerned, it was a success.  I realized that calling something "yoga" is not important- it is just a label and does not change the practice. The next time I attempted to teach yoga there, I called it "Stretch and Relax" and it was received far better by the students.

5 reasons why your teenager should try yoga

Over the last 4 years in teaching teen yoga, I have watched some amazing transformations happen in my students.  I have seen the shyest possible people emerge from their shells, have watched timid teens face fear and challenges, and observed tightly wound individuals learning to relax and find ease in their bodies.  There are countless reasons I think a yoga practice is valuable during teenage years, but here are my top 5:

1. Promotes self awareness
Students learn to see connections with themselves and the world around them.  Yoga puts teens in touch with their feelings, allows them to feel more comfortable in their body,  and experience all that they feel. Yoga has incredible benefits for the brain and nervous system and regular practice can produce endorphins to make teens feel mentally and emotionally stable and empower them to make decisions about what feel right for their bodies.

2. Stress Release
Let's face it: teen years are super stressful.  Balancing school, extracurricular activities, friends, and family can be a lot of pressure for teens.  In yoga teens learn healthy ways to manage stress and practice consciously relaxing their bodies.

.3. Advantage of Starting Young
Young bodies are naturally more flexible and adaptable. They typically do not have patterns of tension like adult bodies have. Teenagers have an advantage in starting a yoga practice while they are young because they can set the stage to have a conscious relationship with their bodies for the rest of their life.  There is less risk of injury and a quicker rate of muscle growth and repair.

4. Build Trust and Connection
The yoga studio is a place where we welcome the diversity of thoughts, opinions, appearances, and values of one another.  We practice respect for one another, respect for ourselves, and respect for the space around us.  We have check-ins at the beginning of every class to practice speaking to what is true for us and listening to what is true for others. We practice partner and group poses that build trust, connection, and forge friendships.  The skills students learn about how to work together can be applied in ever other area of their lives.

5. Discover Strength and Confidence
Our bones are dense and create a strong structural foundation for the body. Practicing consciously aligning the body can help teens tap into the strength that is intrinsically inside of them.  Attempting poses that are physically challenging can cultivate a sense of mastery and achievement and help to boost confidence. 

Teen Yoga Mandalas

Mandalas

A mandala is a sacred circle. I love to create mandalas in my teen yoga classess to encourage teamwork and community building.  Here are some photographs and descriptions of mandalas I practice with my teen yoga students: 

Reclined Hero Mandala:

Students form a circle seated on their knees with feet beside the hips (if this is uncomfortable, sit on a block). Use the hands to support the weight of the body as you slowly lower the back of the body toward the earth.  Some students might rest on their elbows, some might make it all the way to the floor.  Stay for 5-10 breaths. 

Balansana Mandala:

Students come knee to knee to form a circle.  Gently bow into the center of the circle and relax arms and hands at your side.  Take a few smooth deep breaths letting the pace of the breath slow down and they try to match your breath with the people around you.

Group flower mandala:

Students will form a circle and come into butterfly pose with the soles of the feet together and the knees wide apart.  Grabbing the soles of their feet, they will start to tilt back until they find balance on the hip bones. Staying balanced, they will reach their hands under their calves and lift their hearts.  Variations include: drawing the finders into a mudra, grasping hands with the people next to them, and tilting the gaze up to the ceiling. 

Easy Mandala:

All students lie on their bellies in a circle with arms outstretched and hands touching the person next to them.  This is a calming pose, so encourage students to feel the floor beneath them and feel the breath coming and going using very little effort.

Cobra Mandala:

Students come into a circle shape on their bellies, hand to hand with the person next to them.  Pressing both hands into the floor, students will lift their chest into a cobra or upward facing dog pose and try to match their breath with the person next to them. 

Belly Star:

Students lie in a circle on their bellies in the middle of the room, grabbing the hand of the person next to them.  They will slowly start to scooch back until everyone’s arms are fully outstretched in a v position, forming a human star. Relax, breathe deeply. 

Dukha Mandala:

Students form a circle knees to knee, seated on their heels with their toes tucked underneath them. Place the hands on the knees and gently lift the heart. This is an intense stretch for the soles of the feet, so encourage students that as they feel more sensation in their feet to deepen the breath.  Stay 30 seconds- 1 min.