Build upper body strength, increase flexibility & balance, and more with Baby Grasshopper Pose!

Baby Grasshopper Pose (Parsva Bhuja Dandasana) is a fun pose for kids and adults alike! While it may look challenging, it’s actually easier than it appears, and will give you the confidence to learn other yoga balance poses.

This is a great pose to help improve flexibility and strength – especially in the arms, shoulders, core, legs, and hips – as well as increase balance and body awareness, open the hips, and improve cardiovascular strength and capacity. Mastering this pose will help increase your upper body strength and prepare you to tackle more advanced arm-balance poses. This is also a great preparatory pose for the related and more challenging Dragonfly Pose.

Those with shoulder, wrist, or elbow injuries, lower back pain, hernia or other internal issues, high blood pressure, or those who are pregnant should avoid this pose. Before performing this pose, be sure you are fully warmed up by performing some hip openers, twists, and leg stretches.

How to Do Baby Grasshopper Pose, according to Yogapedia.com:

• To enter baby grasshopper, begin seated in Staff Pose (Dandasana).
• Bend the right leg and bring it over the left leg and place the right foot firmly on the ground just outside of the left thigh, above the knee.
• Press the left palm firmly into the floor and lift the right hip up toward the sky.
• Taking the right arm onto the inside of the right leg, reach out and grasp the outer edge of the left foot. Keep the left ankle flexed while lifting the left leg up off the floor.
• Slowly lean forward, pushing into the left hand and using the grounded right foot for stability.
• Draw the chest forward to extend fully into the posture. Take several deep breaths.
• To come down, slowly lower the hips back to the mat, extend the legs out, and repeat the pose on the opposite side.