Sharjah24: Young girls on a school field trip at the ongoing 13th Sharjah Children’s Reading Festival (SCRF) tested their strength, balance and flexibility during a therapeutic early-morning ‘Yoga Balance’ session held in the sports workshop space at the festival venue this week.

SCRF’s diverse programming features a wide range of physical exercise classes alongside its cultural agenda to encourage children to adopt healthy habits and stay active from an early age. 

Guided by professional instructors, the girls performed ‘animal yoga’ – a special routine for young yogis with an interesting twist where the positions resemble four-legged, winged and slithering creatures in the wild. The routine is designed to provide an outlet for children’s energy during an otherwise sober meditative practice.   

The participants practiced classical asanas as well, moving in sync as they stretched out into downward-facing dog, stood tall on one leg in tree pose or sank down into child’s pose. 

Throughout the festival, the sports workshop space is also hosting boxing, choreography, power and endurance, and high intensity interval training (HIIT) sessions among other activities, targeted at all age groups.