Why Baby-Wearing Yoga Was a Pleasant Surprise
A little over a year ago when Roz was just a couple months old, I signed up for a virtual "mommy and me" yoga series. You know the type: baby rolls around on the mat while you dodge their tiny, flaring limbs. For the first time, I felt grateful to be in the middle of the pandemic - I leaned heavily on that mute button on my side of the Zoom class. Ever the attention-seeker, I still cringe remembering Roz's squeals of protest at my distraction - once I even had to stop to nurse in the middle of child's pose.
Cut to the following year, when I'm feeling significantly more confident as a parent - but no more ready to attempt anything associated with peace or tranquility with Roz involved. In fact, since learning to walk, she feels even more impossible to contain. So when Molly invited us to try out some babywearing yoga, I almost burst out laughing. "I wouldn't mind being there," I said. "But I don't think you want us there." Molly felt confident it would be fine, so I acquiesced, figuring I would be lucky to unroll my mat before having to excuse myself and my enthusiastic (vocal) toddler.
Luckily, I was pleasantly surprised. As soon as the practice began, the instructor, Jenn, made us feel welcomed and safe, reminding us that while the class was designed for the parents, we were invited to care for our babies as needed - even if that meant pausing to soothe, or step away. A couple times out of the corner of my eye, I noticed a mom stop to shush a fussing baby, or track down a toddler on the move, but Jenn's guidance was so confident and absorbing I barely noticed the room shifting around me.
The other surprising piece? How much of a workout it was! I sustained a lower back injury last year after childbirth that I'm still recovering from, so I thought yoga would be a challenge I might have to cut a lot of corners on. Instead, the "variations" Jenn provided were so functional I was able to go much deeper than I assumed! While I broke a bit of a sweat during class with my 25lb kid attached to me, the next day my back felt great. The biggest shock? How entertained Roz was. Taking in the room with wide eyes, she swayed with me as I swept my arms up into a backbend; bounced excitedly as we sank into Warrior, and followed Jenn's soothing commands as she encouraged us to connect with our breath, to deepen the pose, to shift just slightly to a new variation.
All in all, I was grateful I went. I hope to make Baby Booty yoga a regular routine for Roz and I, providing us both with the deep stretch and the even deeper breaths I know we both could use