Welcome to your yin yoga practice Before we begin,
Just take a moment to make sure that you have everything you need for your practice today You will need a yoga mat And if you're in a cooler climate,
Make sure you have a blanket to cover yourself with during the relaxation at the end You may also need to support your body with props in some of the postures If you have yoga blocks,
Those are great But you can also use cushions or pillows or a folded blanket to support yourself And if you have a yoga bolster,
That may be useful too So make sure that you have some of those with you in case you need them Yin yoga is a passive practice where postures are held for several minutes to stretch into the connective tissues These tissues are delicate and can be injured if they are stretched too forcefully or intensely It's good to be able to feel that something is happening,
But you should never be forcing a stretch or pushing yourself into a position And you never want to be feeling any physical pain as you practice Pain is a signal from your body that the position that you're in is not safe or beneficial for you So if you do feel any pain at any time,
Come out of the pose You can come into a resting position until the next posture Or you can move back into another posture from the class that you didn't experience any pain in If you have any injuries or health conditions,
Make sure to consult with your doctor before starting a new practice Yin yoga can have many benefits for health and recovery But it's important that your body is suitably recovered that the stretches will benefit the tissues and won't potentially make the injury worse So do please check with your doctor first for your safety As this is an audio session,
I will talk you in and out of the postures verbally But if at any time you're unsure of a posture and don't know if you're in the right position,
You can always pause the recording and do a quick internet search to bring up a picture I've included names for all of the postures so that you can easily do this if you need to We'll begin the practice sitting today So make your way into a comfortable seated position If it's comfortable for you to sit with your legs crossed,
Cross your legs Sit onto a block or a folded blanket if you need to And if your legs are uncomfortable or if your knees are very high up off the mat,
Take some blocks or cushions under your thighs so that your legs can relax down If sitting cross-legged isn't comfortable for you,
Come into another position that is Perhaps kneeling or with your legs out in front of you Or even leaning against the wall Use whatever support you need to feel as comfortable as you can Loosen your spine,
Close your eyes and feel into your body Bring your awareness to your breath Follow the natural flow of the breath entering and leaving your body Bring your awareness into your body for your practice today And as you breathe in and out,
Feel into your body and observe how your body's feeling today Observe any sensations in your body Notice any places that may feel a little tight that are ready to release And notice the places that feel relaxed and comfortable Just observe what you feel,
There's no right or wrong Just take this time to feel into what's happening in your body right now In today's short practice,
We're working to release the legs and the hips Places which often accumulate and store a lot of tension over the day So from here we're going to come into butterfly pose Bring the soles of your feet together so that your knees open out,
One to each side If it's difficult for you to sit with the spine straight like this,
Sit onto a block or a folded blanket And if your knees are very high up or if your legs feel uncomfortable Place some blocks or cushions under your thighs so that your legs can relax If you're already feeling enough intensity here,
Stay with the spine straight Otherwise fold forwards,
Release your head towards your feet And keep folding until you reach that place where you suddenly feel more intensity happening Where your body suddenly says stop This is your edge Once you've found your edge,
Relax into the posture Scan over your body to see if there are any muscles that you can relax The muscles around your hips and thighs The muscles in your shoulders Observe the sensations that you feel in this position Notice the different feelings as they come and go Remember to use the breath to help release any areas of tension Inhale into any tight areas Exhale to feel the release We're staying here for one more minute Take your hands to your feet and slowly walk your hands up your legs to curl back up to sitting Take your hands to the outsides of your legs and push the knees up And take your feet to the mat and just rock your knees from side to side here Observe any after effects from that posture Next we'll come into dragonfly So straighten your legs and open them to wide this time And if your legs feel very tight or if it feels difficult for you to straighten the legs Take blocks or cushions under your knees so that your legs can relax And if sitting like this is already giving you the intensity that you need Stay as you are Otherwise start to fold forwards releasing the head towards the mat Until you feel that edge And relax into the posture Scan over your body to check if there are any muscles that you can relax In your thighs,
In your hips Check that your feet are relaxed Check that your shoulders are relaxed We have a lot of connective tissue around the hips and the thighs And physical and emotional tension is often stored here So even a short practice like today's can have a big effect on how we feel in our bodies And on how we feel in our minds Slowly walk the hands in to come back up to sitting Take your hands under your knees and bring your feet back to the mat With the knees facing upwards And rock your knees from side to side here Feeling any after effects from the posture Now it's time for Caterpillar So for Caterpillar we'll take the legs straight out in front Keeping the legs and the feet together Like before if the backs of the legs are tight or if your knees are bent Take some support under your knees You can stay sitting upright if this is already giving you what you need Or take a breath in to lift your chest And take a breath out to fold forwards over your legs Release your head towards your knees Keeping your hands beside your legs with the palms facing upwards Can help to release the upper back and shoulders Remember to use the breath to assist the release from any tight or uncomfortable areas We'll just stay here for a few more breaths Slowly walk the hands in to curl yourself back up to sitting And we'll take a back bend as a counter stretch So from here bring your hands behind your back Turning the hands so the fingers point back towards your feet Press into the hands to lift the chest and open the front of your body If it's comfortable for your neck drop the head back Otherwise keep the head in line with the body And enjoy the counter stretch And slowly come back to sitting And it's time for our relaxation So make your way down to lying on your back in Shavasana Taking any support that you need for yourself You can take a rolled up blanket under your knees or under your feet Or you can place a block or a cushion under your head And feel your body resting into the surface beneath you Feel all of the meeting points between your body And the surface beneath you And with every exhalation feel your body sinking into each of those meeting points With every exhalation your body becomes heavier and more relaxed With every exhalation your mind becomes more peaceful and quiet As you surrender into deep relaxation These next few minutes are yours for your deep rest Your time to relax completely And slowly begin to make some small movements to reawaken your body Make some movements with your fingers and your toe Make some circles with your wrists and your ankles And bring your arms up over your head for a long stretch From your hands all the way down to your feet Now bend your knees and bring the knees into your chest Hug the knees and rock gently from side to side Easing out any remaining tension from the lower back And when you feel ready keeping your eyes closed Roll to one side and come up to sitting with your eyes closed Take a few breaths sitting here to feel into your body And feel any effects from your practice Observe your mind and the quality of your thoughts And when you're ready slowly open your eyes This brings us to the end of today's practice Thank you for joining me
