We at alignyo believe that every great celebration calls for a little yoga, and Halloween is no exception. Get in the Halloween spirit with these 5 “scary” yoga poses inspired from the season’s spookiest characters. If your little yogi had a little too much sugar, break out the mat and make this a Halloween yoga sequence for kids. They’ll burn off some extra energy and you’ll get in a quick yoga session.
Scary Cat Pose
Get ready for Halloween – and warm up your spine – with “scary” cat pose. Start on all fours with your shoulders stacked over your wrists and your hips lined up over your knees. Tuck your chin and lift your spine to find a cat position. Return to a neutral spine and repeat twice more.
Cobra Pose
You might be afraid of snakes, but cobra pose is nothing to worry about. Start lying on your belly with your hands right below your shoulders. Press the tops of your feet into your mat as you lift your torso off of the earth. You can also lift your hands a couple of inches off of your mat for a bigger challenge. Hold for several breaths to strengthen your back.
Frog Pose
Toads can be frightening to even the bravest yogis, but we think frog pose is a blast. Start standing and find a wide stance. Press your palms together at your heart center. Turn your toes outward and sink your bottom until it is as low as you can take it while keeping your feet flat on your mat. Roll your shoulders back and find a tall spine. Stay here for several breaths. If doing this pose with little yogis, have them make their best frog noise as you hold the pose. Ribbit!
Crow Pose
In horror movies, crows are often ominous signs of something wicked coming, but in yoga, this playful inversion is a symbol of balance, strength and focus. To get into crow pose, start from downward facing dog. Walk your feet 6-12 inches behind your wrists and rock your weight forward onto your palms. Find chaturanga in your arms and rest your knees onto your triceps. Gaze forward as you lift one foot and eventually all ten toes to fly.
Note: We don’t recommend Crow and Scorpion for little yogis, but they’ll definitely think it’s cool if you show them these yoga poses!
Scorpion Pose
We can’t think of many creatures freakier than a real scorpion, but scorpion pose looks wickedly cool. Try it first against a wall. Come into forearm stand using the wall, slowly push off the wall with one foot and then the other. To get to scorpion from this position, carefully bend your knees, ideally until your feet touch your head. If you fall out of this posture, just try again. Hold scorpion for a few breaths and return to forearm stand to get out of the pose.
Don’t forget to end your Halloween yoga practice with corpse pose – otherwise known as savasana!
Big thanks to San Diego yogini Julianne Russell for being our yoga model. Follow her on Instagram for more amazing yoga pics.