Ananda Balasana (Happy Baby Pose): Basics, Steps, Benefits & More

Out of many yoga poses Ananda Balasana is one of the gentle and soothing poses as well as the easiest yoga poses. it is an excellent grounding pose as well as contemporary practice. Also, it is a common stretch often done in Pilates and yoga classes.

Usually, Ananda Balasana (also referred to as Happy Baby Pose) is practiced at the end of a yoga asana. When performed correctly, It relaxes the lower back, strengthens the legs, lengthens and realigns the spine, opens the hips, calms the brain, and helps relieve stress and fatigue also. Instructors often suggest this is an ideal pose for beginners.

Moreover, Ananda Balasana is commonly found in the Kids’ yoga sequences. because In this pose, Babies love to play with their feet.

Ananda Balasana Basics

Ananda Balasana Meaning

The name for this pose comes from the Sanskrit, where-

• ananda, meaning “happiness”; 
• bala, meaning “child”;
• asana, meaning “pose.”

A person doing Ananda Balasana looks exactly like a child playing with his feet. When a child plays with both legs raised, he looks very happy. That is why this asana is also known as Happy Baby Pose.

This asana is more suitable for a powerful hip-opener as well as being a great alternative to yin or restorative styles in various yoga classes.

Practice Guide For Happy Baby Pose

The practice guide to perform Happy Baby Pose serves as a valuable resource for yoga enthusiasts seeking to advance their practice, offering a structured and detailed approach to mastering this asana.

Preparatory Poses

• Balasana (Child’s Pose)
• Virasana (Hero Pose)

Steps to do Ananda Balasana (Happy Baby Pose)

• To do Anand Balasan, you lay a yoga mat on the floor and lie on its back.
• Keep both your hands and feet straight on the floor.
• Exhale, bend your knees, and bring them up towards the chest.
• Inhale, raise both hands upwards and hold both the toes. grip the outsides of the feet with the hands.
• Make sure your arms are pulled through the insides of the knees as you hold the feet.
• Bend the fingers of the feet down towards your mouth.
• Keep the shoulders relaxed with the neck and the head on the ground.
• Pull down your feet as possible.
• Inhale again, and bring your knees close to your chest with the elbow close to your inner knees and as you exhale, press the knees down towards the chest to the side of you. Feel the deep stretch inside of the thighs, knees, and hips.
• In this position, you will appear in a Happy Baby pose.
• Hold the posture for about 8 to 10 breaths. Make sure the soles of the feet are flat and perpendicular to the knee and the thighs are perpendicular to the bent legs.
• To come out from this pose release the hands and bring the legs down and go to Savasana.

Follow-up Poses

• Adho Mukha Svanasana
• Savasana — Corpse Pose

Beginner’s Tip to do Ananda Balasana

If you are a beginner and just starting out with yoga practice, you may find it difficult to grasp your toes with your hands, so you can use each foot to hold the yoga strap hanging around the middle arch. Try doing this asana together.

Happy Baby Pose Benefits

Yoga has been practiced in Indian homes since ancient times of many top benefits of yoga. Here we mention Some amazing benefits of the Happy Baby Pose.

• Happy Baby Pose is a very beneficial asana to stretch your hips. This is a great hips opener. By doing this asana, there is a strain on the muscles of your hips, which helps in enlarging the hips by stimulating them.

• Ananda Balasana calms the brain and helps relieve stress and fatigue not only in the body but also in the mind. And activates positive nervous energy. It has the ability to turn the busy mind of the youngster into a carefree baby.

• Happy Baby Pose gives a nice massage to the abdomen and helps in stimulating the digestive system. It keeps away the problems of easy constipation, bloating, etc. Apart from this, the benefits of Ananda Balasana also cure chronic stomach problems, serious health issues like piles, irritable bowel system, etc.

• The happy baby pose positively affects the lower back, lengthens, and realigns the spine.

• This Pose helps to bring a deep stretch to the hips, triceps, biceps, hamstrings, calves, chest abdominal, and groin areas.

• Regularly practicing this asana helps in reducing the heart rate.

• This asana also helps in relaxing the sacrum.

• The benefits of Ananda Balasana reduce the onset of lower back pain and other problems. It stretches the back and spine and relaxes the inner waist, inner thighs and hamstrings.

Precautions

• According to the experts, this asana is considered best when yogis practice early in the morning. Mornings are preferred as the food is digested as well as the body has the energy to perform the asana. due to some reason, you cannot practice it in the morning, you can practice this asana in the evening as well. but at least keep a 3-5 hour gap between your practice and meal.
• If you are pregnant and menstruating, you may not wish to do the Happy Baby exercise.
• People suffering from high blood pressure should also avoid this asana.
• As a result, In the case of the knee and any kind of injury must avoid practicing this asana.

Conclusion

Anand Balasana is also known as Happy Baby Pose and also known as Dead Bug Pose. This asana has a positive effect on the body. Along with this, thighs and hips also become slim.

This asana is known for its innate ability to calm the mind and prevent stress on the body. Also, helps to eliminate all the tension in the lower part of the body.