Practicing active or fast-paced styles of yoga can be a wonderful cardiovascular workout that develops muscle tone and stamina, but they should be balanced with gentle and restorative styles that focus on the connective tissues of the body and restoring alignment. Some students find the stillness and slowness of these styles frustrating or agitating. These tips can help even the antsiest of students enjoy long holds and gentle poses.
Do Less to Avoid Soreness
When holding a pose for several minutes or more, do not push the body to its limit. Rather, allow the body to come deeper into the pose naturally over time. The body should feel more relaxed and looser after a practice rather than stressed or sore.
In Yin Yoga, the muscles are not active and the focus is on opening the connective tissues. Similiar styles of yoga do activate the muscles, but strain and pain should not dominate the experience. Remember that "asana" is often translated as "a seat, comfortably held."
Relax the Muscles Repeatedly
The stillness of a yoga pose is merely external. Inside, many things are happening: nerves are firing, muscles are reacting, hormones are flowing. Scan the body continuously while in a pose and ask muscles that have tensed up to relax. As awareness flows through the body, certain muscles will tense up again and again, and the mind will have to revisit them to bring relaxation. This is part of the practice and part of the retraining of the body in mind-body fitness.
Breathe Deeper to Move Energy
Let the breath move the energy in passive or yin poses. Rather than the engaged "ujjayi" breath of "power" styles of yoga, try to breathe into the whole body, deeper and longer with each breath in a pose. The breath helps the body let go of tension in the body, acting like an internal massage.
The Bandhas should not be engaged. Rather, let the experience of full yogic breathing fill the body and the mind. Let the diaphragm push the abodomen out and fill the ribcage fully, breathing all the way up to the space under the collar bones. Observe and follow the breath.
Make Adjustments in "Static" Poses
The longer a pose is held, the more that is discovered in the body. If something arises in the body that signals discomfort, ease off the pose and play with subtle adjustments until a comfortable place is found. The sanskrit word "asana" is often translated as a "seat, comfortably held." If one is not at ease in a pose, it defeats the purpose of asana.
Find Resting Poses when Needed
There is no need to stay in a pose if it is painful or exhausting. Come in and out of the pose from a resting pose that is restorative. This may be child's pose, downward facing dog, or corpse pose. There is no rush and repeated practice will bring familiarity and ease to any pose over time.
Use Mantra to Quiet the Mind
When the body is still, the mind can become very active. Ultimately, the goal is to use the stillness of the body to cultivate stillness of the mind. This is challenging at first, so mantra can help train the mind to avoid distraction. It can be a mantra that follows the breath, such as "breathe in, breathe out," or simply a mantra that enforces the sense of stillness, such as "I am calm," or "I am peaceful."
A slower yoga practice gives one more time for self observation. That sense of slowness and awareness can carry into other aspects of life and create a deeper enjoyment of the entire human experience.
Laura Susan Henry - I am currently teaching yoga in Charlotte, North Carolina. I have been many places and lived many lives, but the threads of my life ...
