Meet Yin Yoga: The BFF practice for Athletes and Busy People that you totally have time to do

Originally Posted Oct 23, 2018 Written for The Chi Junky

If you search on social media for #yoga you’ll feast your eyes on complex arm balancing postures, gymnastic style handstands, twisting poses that almost appear to be optical illusions all set within the most aesthetically pleasing sceneries possible.  Challenging poses can be beautiful when they appear effortless.  Online, physically challenging poses satisfy our craving for laying eyes what a physical human body is capable of. Active vinyasa and asana is king of our online curiosity (Can I get a #yogaeverydamnday ?). 

With all the spotlight an active style yoga practice gets online, you might not realize he does have a younger sibling. She’s more of a wallflower, more likely to rest in the shadows.  You won’t find her on sunset beaches but in dimly lit studios doing her work.  She won’t take you through 26 poses in an hour but her minimalist sequence will be independently challenging. Her efforts aren’t as publicly celebrated in hashtags and photo ops but they yield amazing insights for the practitioner.  Make no mistake - she’s one powerful introvert. Her demands require not your physical strength but your steady attention.  She likes her alone time so she’ll only expect you to visit a couple times a week. She is yin yoga.

 Yin yoga doesn’t work at surface level.  Its poses are aesthetically similar to Hatha Yoga postures but unlike its fiery counterpart, Yin Yoga asks you to relax as much as possible into the pose - and then stay there for anywhere from 3 to 20 minutes.  These long, still, holds put stresses on the body’s joints and connective tissues (fascia) leading to increased flexibility, improved range of motion in joints, stimulating circulation as well as an opportunity for deep relaxation and meditation.  

Yin yoga is different from a Restorative Yoga class for the reason that in many practitioners there is a sensation involved in many poses from the passive stress of these tissues.  Restorative Yoga aims to make the body as comfortable as possible to find rest and relaxation (I often refer to Restorative Yoga as “Guided Nap Time”) whereas Yin Yoga aims for you to feel “productively uncomfortable” and use these sensations as a focal point for meditation (… well at least the way I teach it. :))

In most people, Yin Yoga is most beneficial when it is practiced no more than 1-2 times per week (so not as to over stress the tissues). Anecdotally, I've had students that are distance athletes credit incorporating regular yin yoga practice in their training schedule with shaving 5 minutes (!!!) off their half marathon race time. Busy students credit their yin practice with less tension related aches and pains and an effective stress relief practice. It's accessible for those who are otherwise active as it doesn't add hours to your weekly routine.

The longer holds in a yin yoga class provide you with time to fully experience a yoga practice on a level deeper than what is visible to others or to your camera. It's quality over quantity, substance over style. It doesn't stand in the spotlight but its charms are hidden in the shadows. Hang out with Yin Yoga from time to time and she'll teach you a lot about yourself.

The Truth About Yoga and Weight Management

{Hey I’m a yoga teacher not a medical professional – if you’re trying to lose/gain weight, making adjustments to your diet or lifestyle including a new yoga practice you should always consult your doctor first. Ok?}

As a hot yoga teacher, I can’t tell you how many times people come up to me and ask me if yoga’s going to result in weight loss or if they’re going to gain more muscle mass. “How many calories do you think this class burned?” is might as well be a Power or Flow FAQ.  I can tell you – there aren’t very many yoga teachers that like addressing the topic, myself included.  The topic of weight can bring up a lot of reactions in both teachers and students alike.

Now you might assume because I’ve written this post I’m advocating for a “one size for everyone” yoga body which is NOT AT ALL where I’m coming from here.  If you’re concerned, your health is something only a qualified medical professional can truly evaluate (not a yoga teacher).    Athletes and healthy bodies come in ALL shapes and sizes.  Baseball players, wrestlers, basketball players, golfers, tennis pros, and long distance runners all look completely different.  Can you tell based on looks how good someone’s blood pressure is? No.  I’ve looked ripped at the expense of my health (hello coffee instead of sleep and diet soda instead of food!). I have more body fat now and I’m definitely happier.  Healthy happens on the inside – aesthetics are a poor measure in my line of work of one’s fitness or spiritual capacity.

So that brings us back to our original theme – how does yoga help if you’re looking to manage your weight?

Yoga is a stress buster. Have you ever emotionally eaten before?  I have… And it makes sense why too.  Acute stressors activate the sympathetic nervous system – the fight or flight response in the body which suppresses digestion and appetite in the short term and increases muscle tension to help you to run in a survival situation (not as useful when you get a “shit-o-gram” from your boss but evolution doesn’t have an I.T. call in centre). If you’re a meal skipper, watch your reactions to acutely stressful situations. Chronic stress elevates cortisol (a stress hormone) levels making your body’s natural response to seek sugar and fats in preparation for famine (a chronic stressor to our ancestors before the advent of Loblaws).  If you want to eat cupcakes and PB and J at every meal – don’t beat yourself up.  If you’re too stressed to remember to eat meals everyday – don’t be frustrated. Look to find a way to treat yourself to some de-stress time – and yoga’s a great way to do that (yes even low calorie burns like restorative or yin, even with cupcakes and PB and J).  You’ll find the less stressed you are, the easier it becomes to find balance.

Yoga helps get you in touch with your body. I remember when I first started practicing there was always a cue to “listen to your body.”  My reaction would always be not to listen but to think about how my body feels.  Have you ever eaten when you’re not feeling hungry?  Have you ever not eaten when you’re feeling hungry?  It’s because “mind”.  Your mind can talk you into pretty much anything if you aren’t aware of it.  Yoga is mind-body exercise that will help you to decipher what is mind and what is body and instead of pitting one against the other (mind says eat when body says I’m good thanks, body says eat mind says I’m good thanks).   By getting in touch with how your body feels, you’ll notice how it responds to exercise, what you eat, and the other stuff that comes up in your life and satisfy your own unique needs when it comes to your choices.  Get your mind and body working together you’ll experience way more balance, way less inner turmoil, and generally be happier whatever happens or doesn’t happen for you in life.

Yoga reminds you to see reality as it is, not as your mind interprets it. Remember that our associations, reactions and attitudes to do with weight are programmed into us by society – nothing more nothing less.  Dogs and cats don’t get bummed about their weight – they get bummed when they perceive that they don’t feel good.  The reality is your weight doesn’t dictate your worth as a human being and whatever your body shape is there’s an example proving just that (my personal fave was Adele saying “Music is made for ears not for eyes”).  At the end of the day, objectively you’re looking to adjust the relativity of your mass to gravity’s pull (that’s actually what weight is!).  Maybe you’re looking to improve your health, maybe you like looking a certain way.  Whatever your reasons or intentions are for making a change you have the option to find ways to not suffer in the process. Make sure your choices are what’s right for you and take the shame out of feeling like you “should” be a certain way to fit society’s mold.

Yoga helps you enjoy the present moment. At the end of the day being happy and enjoying what you’re doing will help you no matter where you are in your process (regardless of whether that’s aesthetic, health or weight centred).  If you’re able to enjoy what you are doing right here and now, you’ll be able to find ease no matter how much your process may challenge you.  Practising being fully in the moment on the mat, will help you be fully in the moment in your life.  Less impulsiveness will mean you are operating out of a place higher than survival (remember that fight of flight we talked about earlier?) be better equipped to love yourself no matter what, and get connected to what makes you truly amazing – your spirit.

Your Starter Guide to 3 Key Chakras, Yin Yoga and Essential Oils

{I’m a yoga teacher not a medical professional – as always ask your doctor before starting any exercise, stretching, wellness routine or aromatherapy program!}

Anyone who has been to one of my Saje Aromatherapy Yin yoga classes knows I like to talk about chakras… a lot.  My love affair with the chakras has been a life long one – always mystified by the mental and spiritual connections experienced by physical tension in the body (why are my hips so tight!? why does my jaw clench all the time?!) it wasn’t until I discovered Yin Yoga with friend and mentor Ashely Holly that I really experienced how essential oils can relax our minds and give us some headspace to start working through our tensions so we can look clearly at ourselves from the inside out.  This self-discovery can happen with or without these oils (or with yoga at all some might argue) but if you’ve ever wondered “Why is this lady putting this stuff on my head?” and what affect this might have on your energy centres then this is the blog post for you!

A chakra is an energy centre, usually anchored on clusters of nerve ganglia – it’s not a physical thing but rather an energy centre associated with a physical centre of the body – much like meridians in Traditional Chinese Medicine.  Depending on who you talk to about chakras you’ll get a bunch of different answers on what a charka is.  Basically it’s a connector between the physical and the energetic body. To achieve optimal energy – the practitioner aims to find balance in the chakras – not too open not too closed.  The idea is to find the “Goldilocks” (just right) state of energy.

Traditionally in meditation, incense was used to ground the mind through the senses. In my sphere of influence – I like to use essential oils in much the same way.  Smell is a powerful sense – one that we have mostly become unaware of as we don’t use it in day to day life as much as our ancestors did when seeking out food (now it’s limited to “Is this milk off?” haha).  You can use smell and scent to ground the various chakras as well.

This guide will use the Saje Aromatherapy’s Pocket Farmacy – which is a great starter kit that we use in our Saje Aromatherapy Yin classes and the core chakras that can be balanced using the kit.  Don’t use aromatherapy without consulting a physician first as there are contraindications for pregnant women as well as those with certain health conditions and allergies:

1st Chakra – Muladhara: Connected to the right to exist and the elements necessary for survival. Located at the base of the spine in the pelvis.

Pocket Farmacy Blend – Peppermint Halo:  This oil blend contains Vetvier which is used to ground all the chakras (or energy centres in the body). It’s the base or ground in which that all of your energies stand on! Grounding is always easiest when you can get out of your mind and into your body – soak in the smell and focus your attention there. Use it along your hairline or at the temples – keep it away from your eyes!

Yin Yoga Pose: Toe stretch.  Balancing your feet that are the base connector for your body to the earth.

3rd Chakra – Manipura: Connected to the elements of the will. Located in the solar plexus, navel. Linked to digestion as it transforms the physical (food) into the energetic (energy).

Pocket Farmacy Blend – Eater’s Digest: The eater’s digest blend contains mint oils helping to ease digestion. Mint is one of those “just right oils” – as it’s both cooling and warming. It stimulates the flow of prana or chi in the body and is said to enhance positive self image (who doesn’t feel great when they’re minty fresh?).  Use it on your belly (not in it!) rolling from the top of your ribs on the left drawing a square without a lid down to the navel line, across the belly button and straight up to the right rib.

Yin Yoga Pose: Twisted Roots.  Supine or reclined twists are well documented as digestion move along-ers and manipura stimulators.

4th Chakra – Anahata:  Connected to the elements of love, compassion, grief and sadness. Located in the heart / chest centre it’s connected most often in the west to relationships.

Pocket Farmacy Blend – Immune:  This little guy contains Rosemary.  Rosemary is typically associated with Ajna (6th chakra) but it’s also relevant for the Heart Centre as it’s said to promote spiritual understanding – enhancing the connection of one’s self to all of that around it. Use it by rolling from the inner wrist through the shoulder across the chest and down the other side.  Connecting the left energies (yin) and right energies (yang) of the body to find connectedness and balance when opposites connect.

Yin Yoga Pose – Supported Fish: Opening the heart centre by providing a propped backbone with a bolster, supported fish always reminds us that the earth has our back so we can open our hearts!

As with any yoga practice, bells and whistles aren’t necessary – just a body and breath. Sometimes we can use the tools provided by aromatherapy to set our mind to a more receptive state allowing us to ground it in an experience or happening – be it aromatherapy oils, a sound, or a physical experience.  If you have questions, please don’t hesitate to reach out!  What has your experience been with aromatherapy and yoga?

Slow is the New ASAP: How Slow Yoga is Challenging AF

[HEY I’M NOT A DOCTOR OR PERSONAL TRAINER, JUST A YOGA TEACHER WHO LIKES EXPRESSING HER OPINION SO IT’S ALWAYS WISE TO CHECK WITH YOUR DOCTOR AND HEALTHCARE TEAM BEFORE STARTING, ADJUSTING A YOGA PRACTICE OR TAKING ON EXERCISES.  MAKING CHANGES TO YOUR PRACTICE SHOULD BE DONE UNDER THE SUPERVISION OF QUALIFIED PROFESSIONALS (YOUR YOGA TEACHER INCLUDED) TO MAKE SURE THEY SUIT WHERE YOU’RE AT. I’D DOUBLE UNDERLINE THIS IF YOU’VE GOT AN INJURY OR PRE-EXISTING MEDICAL CONDITION. GOT IT?]

Ever been in a Power class that put the brakes on your pace?  Here are some good reasons why practicing yoga SLOW really helps to ACCELERATE your practice:

You have to focus on your alignment – and your body will remember when you move fast.

Although whipping through a Vinyasa (Down dog, Plank, Chaterunga, Up Dog / Down Dog) might get your heart pumping – if you’re not totally dialed into our form the heart pump might come at a cost to your alignment.  If your alignment goes, chances are your ability to practice without injury will too.

Slowing your practice down affords you more time to be disciplined and articulate in your form because you’re not just trying to keep up, race back to downward dog (I see you!), or anticipate the next movement.  You’re allowed to be in the pose – fully… and transition – fully with your attention in tow.

Every time you practice, you teach your body how to move.  If you slow it right down you will build valuable memories in those muscles of good form that you can call on in your race to the downward dog later in the week.  You gotta walk before you can run (and yoga is no different).

You build strength by taking momentum out of the equation and challenging yourself to slow down.

The exercise principle “Time Under Tension” theorizes that when you slow down resistance activity (like for instance lowering through chaterunga, holding for a pause or two) you stimulate hormones that will help you to build strength and muscle tissue.  This stimulation occurs by increasing the difficulty of the exercise by removing any momentum. Now, there are definitely more variables at play that’ll determine the amount of strength or muscle you build (diet, blood sugar, hormones, genetics etc…) but slowing down will INCREASE the perceived difficulty of your practice.

I should say – there isn’t bulletproof scientific evidence that slow = muscles.  Anecdotally though I can tell you – a slow practice is definitely an advanced one – and part of that is just that it’s pretty hard to slow down when you’re in “get shit done ASAP” mode all day.

Slowing down can be a workout for your ego alone. In my own experience, after years of practice I realized I wasn’t strong enough to do a simple vinyasa without modifying when I was challenged slow things down.  When I went back to a fast paced vinyasa class it felt like a walk in the park.

Wonder what that might do if you slowed down during your life… Might be something to this “slowing down” crap, eh?

You increase your ability to focus by adding a meditative quality to your practice (and it’s still challenging).

I’m not a believer in multitasking at all but this is one area where I actually think it’s possible…

If you are able to slow down your practice you deliver a meditative quality to a physically demanding practice.  You are able to do hard stuff more easily just due to the fact that you are relaxed.  You have more time to INHALE FULLY and EXHALE FULLY instead of being in the race.  You have more time to feel and focus on the feeling of breath over time – which in conventional faster vinyasa classes can be overlooked when we practice simply trying only to keep up.  Slow down the movement, slow down your breath. Slow down your breath, slow down your mind – meditation.

Easy peasy right? No. By no means am I saying that when you’re new to slow Power your inner dialogue will immediately shut off and you’ll start levitating to the front of your mat – lost in the music of your own lungs.  It takes time – but in each practice you can afford yourself that time it’ll pay off.

By practicing slow power yoga, you’ll find fast classes feel easier, you’ll build good form, and you’ll notice during other challenging life situations you might have built the “muscle memory” of being really really present. If you’re able to slow down, be disciplined during challenge on your mat, chances are you’ll be able to do the same when you’re presented challenges in your life.  

Moving slow will give you the strength to move really fast when life calls for quick action – but instead of with momentum you can move quickly with ease.