For the unversed, Yin Yoga is a relatively new Chinese version of yoga, that is getting very popular in America. Many people identify it as a very subtle stretching form of yoga. It mainly consists of passive stretches. Yoga in reality is a very calming practice. If you want your practice to be more soothing, then you have to learn and find out more about Yin Yoga. Moreover, many practitioners have reported a very calming effect of this yoga style and form. Yin Yoga is believed to be a style and form of yoga, which concentrates on the connective tissues of the hips, pelvis, and the lower spine. You have to hold the poses for a longer period of time, to get the maximum benefits.
Learn the basic foundations of Yin Yoga, to derive its benefits.
Foundations of Yin Yoga
Yin Yoga makes use of the feminine energy to act on the fascia of the body. You already know by now, that you have to hold the poses for a long time, in this form of yoga. It is believed to be associated with Taoism and also said to activate Chi around you. It is more stable and stronger. Moreover, it not only works on the fascia, but also the ligaments and the tendons. This approach will help you to promote more flexibility. Some of the body parts, that are considered non-malleable get a generous dose of movement assistance, especially around the lower back, pelvis, and hips. You have to hold the poses for 5 minutes at least. That is typically longer than the 5-6 breaths that you are supposed to hold in the case of other yoga styles.
Most people have mastered the art of multi-tasking today. So, remaining still for longer times can be a huge issue. That mental blockage may prevent some of the practitioners to get all the benefits of Yin Yoga. However, if you can control your penchant for movement, things can fall in place. You may have extremely tight and stiff body parts, where you can apply the principles of Yin Yoga. For all those, who have been newly initiated into this form, you may have a lot of queries.
The Biopsychosocial Model Of Health
To be exact, science has some of the best answers to your queries. You may ask yourself one question, ‘why do you practice yoga?’ Many of you may simply reply, as a matter of fact, that you want to get fitter. Ask yourself, more precisely, ‘What is it that you want to gain?’ ‘Health’ comes the reply. The model termed biopsychosocial model is more than just the external body. It means optimal health. This model concentrates on various aspects like biological health, physical health, genetic lineage, society, psychological health and so one.
The use of distraction force has been documented in Yin Yoga, which can provide you all the myriad answers. It is basically a long-held stress that creates a lot of tension between the bones. It stimulates the growth of bones and the connective tissues as well. When you do a forward fold in Yin Yoga, you apply distraction stress on the spine.
Main Principles of Yin Yoga
When you are trying to unearth the main foundation of Yin Yoga, it is absolutely essential for you to find out, some of the principles that governs its practice.
- While practicing this yoga form, you have to give some space to your body to open up. You have to go a lot deeper in this form of yoga. After 30 seconds are over, you can cross the body’s natural inclination to deepen the practice. The body will actually speak to you and ask you to reply to its requests. Listen to your body. In this case, the body is not used to get into the pose, but it is the other way round. You have to use the pose to go deep within.
- Once you have found the status, where you can be comfortable, you can settle into the pose. Forget all about body movements. You have to evoke the qualities such as patience, surrender, as well as acceptance. Your body must have the stillness of the mountain, the breath must be as calm as the surface of the undisturbed waters of a pond, and your mind has to go into the stillness in the air. You can always deviate from the norm, if you feel any kind of pain or are struggling to achieve a pose. You can move your body in such cases, to explore further.
- When you have reached the junction, when you do not feel any urge to move, you are there. You must hold the pose at that time for a good 2-5 minutes. The yin tissues are not at all elastic in nature, but are plastic. So, you have to hold them for a certain length of time, to makes them expand.
- Lastly, you must enter and exit all the poses extremely slowly. You have to be mindful, when you are releasing a posture. The area which has been impacted during the exercise, can actually be strong. So, transitioning slowly will be the best step forward. It will not be right to lay stress on something, that you built through the practice.
As practitioners of Yin Yoga, you are required to experiment and modify in the first place. Do, not think that all poses are for all, no matter which yoga you practice. You should give yourself some time to understand your body type. It will help you to gain the complete advantage of the yoga pose. On Yin Yoga, you are actually challenging the deeper tissues of the body, which are left untouched by other styles. On the contrary, it may take a lot of time, to get into the region through other styles. There are various sensations, that your body feels from time to time. Understand those, give them time and deepen your practice. That is the way forward with Yin Yoga.
