Yin yoga gets its name from the concept of "Yin" and "Yang," which are fundamental principles in traditional Chinese philosophy, particularly in Taoism. Yin and Yang represent two opposing, yet complementary, forces that are interconnected and interdependent.
The Three Tattvas /Principles of the Yin Yoga Practice
Yin Yoga just from an appearance sake seems to look like a “simple” practice. As my Yin Yoga teacher Bernie Clark always says, “its a simple practice, but it’s not easy.” With knowing the principles also referred to as tattvas, it can help you understand and know how best to practice this style of yoga (1).
One quickly learns that the practice isn’t easy from their first experience of a Yin Yoga class. As time comes into play, you soon realize it’s hard to hold postures in stillness.
Winter Time is the Most “Yin” Time
Winter time is the the most “Yin”, time. The days get shorter, we start to live more in the dark literally, less sun time, especially if you are where I am in the northern hemisphere. The temperature outside gets colder, we want to retreat indoors, slow down, sleep more and drink warm drinks, even cozy up next to a fire or under a heated blanket to gain heat we are losing.
We go inside in a literal sense and a figurative sense.
We move inwards.
5 Yin Yoga Poses to Practice Daily
Yin Yoga is a practice for a deeper release in the body, right into our deeper connective tissues, past the muscles. The deeper connective tissues need time to feel and notice change, this is why the approach in Yin Yoga is to hold postures in stillness and for time. Time allows those tissues to become stronger and/or release tension that’s built up from stress, being too stagnant and/or even in some cases being too active.
The deeper tissues of our bodies, are made up of the fascia, joints, tendons and ligaments. They’re considered more rigid and plastic in nature which requires a different approach. Movement primarily focus on our muscles. Stillness with passive held postures focuses on deeper release. Modalities like massage therapy, rolfing are some other examples. Tension can be stored deeper and working our muscles with repetitive movements, doesn’t necessarily target where the tension starts. Deeper. How Bernie Clark describes this still, deeper practice, “Yin Yoga is the other half you’re missing” (2015).
Yin Yoga Sequence for Winding your Energy Down
This Yin Yoga sequence is intended to wind down your energy and help you ease out of your day.
Relax and let go of your tension in your body, even mental tension as you focus on what you feel and your breath.
Let go of anything else that accumulated throughout your day that doesn’t serve you well, thoughts, feelings or tension.
Help release, wind down your energy and let go of anything that doesn’t help you stay calm, relaxed and content.
The sequence below targets the spine, hips and shoulders.
Seated Swan Pose in Yin Yoga
SEATED SWAN POSE ...this posture is so juicy after a run or hike or even if you’ve been sitting too long. No matter if we are active or inactive our hips need some love, and deeper release.
This posture is a great way to get into your hips in a seated way where it’s pretty safe for your knees. It’s a bit more effort, then the typical seated swan, as you have to lean back and use your hands and arms to hold you up, in order to bring your knee closer to the body and keep hinging at your hips rather than rounding in the lower back.
Not pictured you can always lay down and do this posture laying down with your bottoms leg soup of the foot planted against a wall.
Square Pose in Yin Yoga
S Q U A R E POSE an amazing yin yoga posture that deeply releases our top legs hip.
This posture is generally more accessible for those with knee concerns, (but not all, seek your doctors advice before attempting if you have injuries) and for most body types as we aren’t weight bearing on the knee like we would in our other yin yoga posture, swan.
The Subtle, yet Powerful Effect of Yin Yoga. My story.
I’ve been practicing yin yoga for over 5 years now, teaching it now for 4 years. When I first started the practice I thought it was so hard. Being still (relatively), holding postures which were mostly floor based for a set time. Even though the practice looks simple, as you don’t really move dynamically from pose to pose, instead you’re holding postures in what appears to be “easy” positions where
Top 5 Yoga Podcasts to Listen to in 2019!
If you’re not listening to the following 5 yoga podcasts, where have you been?! I think they are must adds to your listening yoga needs, as they are inspiring and educational.
Since, I’m an avid listener I’d thought I’d share with you this list, so you too can enjoy all the great content out there!
You may be thinking, what makes me qualified to suggest which yoga podcasts are worth listening to?!
Firstly, I love podcasts as I’ve been listening to them for the last 3 years, which has given me plenty of time to observe what is actually worth your precious time to listen to. Secondly, I consider myself to be a weekly podcast junkie, as I listen to podcasts frequently, including on my walks to work, or when I’m working on simple tasks, cooking, driving or generally when I don’t feel like listening to music and want to absorb new ideas and information. I average about 25-30hrs of podcast listening on a weekly basis, that’s an average 5hrs per day. I love learning on the go and hearing differing perspectives and how we can just listen to information, or be guided through a meditation for any mood. Truly sharing ideas, information and learning in the process via audio recordings.