How old do you need to be to start?

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#969

Hi Gabrielle,
How old a person must be to start Bikram yoga?
Thanks
Posted by gana on 01/24 at 01:18 AM

Hello Gana

I have had students start in my public studio at 7 years old.

The exact age to introduce children varies because of their different abilities to balance. Generally ALL children will be able to perform the standing balancing poses from the age of 12 or 13.
But as I say, that is up to the child. Some can balance and enjoy the class at 7. Others fall over a lot at 11. Just depends.

My daughter is 4. She loves to do some of the one legged poses and often does them with amazing aplomb. She enjoys Eagle and Standing Bow, Balancing Stick amongst others.
BUT I would obviously never have her in a 90 minute class because she does not have the ability to focus for that long, yet.

So consider the character, temperament and ability to focus COUPLED with the child’s age.
Most kids find the floor poses quite easy to do (even the ones we adults find physically challenging). It is the first half of the class where the balance and ability to stay focused comes into play and what needs to be assessed.

Cheers!
Gabrielle 🙂

[Restored Content]

#2739

Posted by paparak

Thanks, but I was wondering is it good for a child to practice in a warm room at all? I know that yoga is good and beneficial for children at any age, but what about the heat?
Thanks in advance

[Gabrielle (The Hot Yoga Doctor)]

#2740

Hello

Good question. Some of the answer will really depend on the studio more than the child!

Some studios super-heat the room. They go way above what in my opinion, I consider normal or necessary. Children often find it more difficult to focus. Heating the room too hot could take their attention to the heat, excessively. Find out if the quoted temperature at your studio is reliable. And if the heating is consistent. As adults we can put up with greater fluctuations in temperature. Still I only heat my studio to just within a degree of body temp.

I posted a lot of really relevant information over in the section called “the Heat” under a thread called “Is the studio I go to over-heating the room?”. The article referenced there is also very good.

The younger the child the less class they are likely to attempt. Before class, if they know that the poses are done twice each, then you can help them by suggesting they do one of each set. Mind you, that is easier said than done. They are more likely to try the poses than want to stand around for a set while watching everyone else. 😉

Or, you or the teacher may suggest that they only do the standing or the floor poses. Then they can leave the room and do something quiet while they wait for class to finish.

You obviously want to foster an affinity for the yoga, so go with what the child wants to do.

Kind regards
Gabrielle 🙂

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