Lower back, hips and shoulders
5 Child's Pose variations, from gentlest to strongest
Also called balasana, childs pose, child pose.
A forward fold taken as a rest rather than a stretch. The versions differ mostly in how much support sits under you and how far the knees are apart, which is what decides whether it reaches the lower back, the hips or neither.
Start here
The list runs from the most supported version to the most demanding. Child's Pose: Chair Facing Back is the one to begin with. Harder is not better: the version you can do without gripping is the one doing the work.
Every version in the library
1 · Restorative · 60 to 300 seconds
Child's Pose: Chair Facing Back
A fully seated rest: sit facing the back of a chair, fold forward, and rest your arms and forehead on the backrest. No floor needed; all the calming benefits of Child's Pose from a chair.
Make it work for you: Adjust chair height / extra chest support. Reduce hip flexion. Do not force sitting to the heels
2 · Restorative · 60 to 300 seconds
Child's Pose: Chair Support from Floor
A halfway option: kneel on the floor and rest your forearms and head on the seat of a chair. Easier on the hips and knees than the full floor pose, deeper than the fully seated one.
Make it work for you: Adjust chair height / extra chest support. Reduce hip flexion. Do not force sitting to the heels
3 · Restorative · 120 to 300 seconds
Child's Pose: Bolster
A bolster under your torso reduces the depth of the fold, making this deeply restorative pose accessible while still providing calming spinal release and hip opening.
Make it work for you: Wide knee. Arms alongside
4 · Restorative · 60 to 180 seconds
Child's Pose: Classic
A deeply restful pose that passively decompresses your spine and releases tension through your back, hips, and shoulders: helping your nervous system settle and your body recover.
Make it work for you: Bolster. Wide knee. Blanket behind knee
5 · Restorative · 20 to 60 seconds
Child's Pose: Quick
A brief restful pause that passively decompresses your spine and releases tension through your back, hips, and shoulders: the classic child's pose, sized for shorter practices.
Make it work for you: Bolster. Wide knee. Blanket behind knee
Common questions
How long should you hold child's pose?
60 to 180 seconds for the classic version, and 120 to 300 seconds with a bolster. The quick version is 20 to 60 seconds, sized for short practices. Breathe slowly and come out when it stops feeling restful.
What is the easiest version of child's pose?
The chair version. You sit facing the back of a chair, fold forward and rest your arms and forehead on the backrest, so there is no kneeling and no floor. A middle step is kneeling on the floor with your forearms and head resting on a chair seat.
My knees hurt in child's pose. What can I change?
Put a blanket behind your knees, which is the modification the library gives for the floor versions. If kneeling is still uncomfortable, use the chair version, which keeps the knees open and unloaded.
Where should my knees and arms go?
Wide knees give your belly and chest room and are the library's modification for the hips and lower back. Arms can reach forward or rest alongside your body, which is the option when the shoulders object to reaching.
What does the bolster change in child's pose?
A bolster under your torso reduces how deep the fold goes, so the pose stays restful for bodies that cannot fold fully. It is also the simpler alternative to the classic version.
When should I stop and get it checked?
Stop if folding forward sends symptoms down a leg. And speak to someone rather than working through back pain that followed a fall or accident, comes with fever or unexplained weight loss, wakes you at night regardless of position, or comes with leg weakness. The box below sets out the NICE guidance behind this.
When to stop and ask someone
Nothing on this page can tell whether what you are feeling is ordinary mechanical back pain or something that needs looking at, and the published guidance is direct about that distinction. NICE asks clinicians to think about alternative diagnoses when symptoms are new or have changed, and to exclude specific causes such as cancer, infection, trauma or inflammatory disease.
In practice that means stopping and speaking to someone rather than working through it if the pain followed a significant fall or accident, if it comes with fever or unexplained weight loss, if it wakes you at night and does not change when you change position, or if there is weakness in a leg rather than only pain.
One group needs same-day medical attention rather than a phone call: numbness around the groin or back passage, any change in bladder or bowel control, or weakness developing in both legs.
- NICE NG59, low back pain and sciatica in over 16s, recommendation 1.1.1
Think about alternative diagnoses when examining or reviewing people with low back pain, particularly if they develop new or changed symptoms, and exclude specific causes such as cancer, infection, trauma or inflammatory disease.
Move within a range that stays comfortable. Stop if this brings on sharp pain, dizziness, or symptoms that travel down an arm or a leg, and speak to a clinician before repeating it.
Every version above is drawn from the clinically authored Vinys library. This page is general movement information, not medical advice, and it is not a diagnosis. What helps for a specific condition.