Yin Postures
Here are some of the yin postures we often do in class:
Caterpillar:
Twist:
Child's Pose:
Sleeping Swan:
Butterfly Pose:
Dragon Flying Low:
Dragon Flying High:
Frog:
Half Butterfly:
Pentacle:
Yessss!
Square:
Dragonfly:
Saddle:
Shoelace:
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What is Yin Yoga?
by Debbie Daly | September 25, 2010
I learned Yin Yoga in 2004 from Paul Grilley. I did not expect to enjoy holding postures for five minutes at a time, but I was surprised by how much I liked it. It slows down my busy mind and leaves me with a lasting feeling of well-being and physical comfort in my body. By holding these relaxed postures for a long time, I am also transported into a deep sensual awareness of the energy flow in my body. Yin Yoga can be done very gently and that's the way I prefer to practice it.
The physical practice
In a typical Yin Yoga class, students enter into a calm and relaxing setting and are guided through a series of gentle stretching postures, most of them on the floor. These postures are held for three to five minutes at a time. Gravity does most of the work so that the muscles can remain as relaxed as possible. This stillness takes practitioners deep into the postures, calming the mind, enhancing joint fluidity, and awakening chi flow. Sometimes strengthening movements are also incorporated into the practice.
Yin postures target the soft tissues of our joints - ligaments and tendons - by holding postures in gentler ways for longer periods of time. This soft tissue is called connective tissue or fascia. Unlike muscle, which responds best to faster, more rhythmic stretching and exercise, connective tissue responds better to this gradual, patient lengthening. Connective tissue is most prevalent in the pelvis, hips, lower back and sacroiliac joint, and these are the areas that tend to become less mobile as we age, often causing back problems. This is because older bodies produce less synovial fluid, which causes the connective tissue to dry up and contract around the joint, limiting the joint's range of motion. Yin yoga stimulates the production of synovial fluid, and most yin postures focus on the susceptible joints of the lower body. My students report an increased range of motion in their hips and lower back, and more awareness about how to move with strength and fluidity from their body's center.
While some of the yin postures are unique, if you've done other forms of yoga you'll find many familiar positions. The poses are usually called by different names; for instance, the yin version of Cobra is Seal, Pigeon becomes Sleeping Swan, and Savasana is called Pentacle. One of the reasons yin yogis have chosen to use these different names is because conventional rules of yoga alignment are not applied to yin practice. In yin yoga, you adjust a position not to make it look a certain way, but for the purpose of being able to stay in the pose for minutes at a time while remaining relaxed and comfortable. By avoiding rigid alignment rules, a more functional approach to alignment is emphasized. This helps to cultivate an intuitive sense of where to put the hands, legs, or feet to best support the stretch you are aiming for in the hips, lower back or spine. The longer time period naturally causes you to make adjustments that are based on a deeper awareness of the body's sensations. Sometimes, a particular posture will simply not be possible for your body even though others can do it easily; this experience can be an important insight into your unique anatomical makeup, especially if you find a teacher who is knowledgeable about skeletal variation. Knowing your own anatomical limitations can help you make more intelligent choices about how you move your body in any activity.
Yin and Yang Tissues
Yin and yang are the opposite forces of nature in Daoism, and an important component of well-being is our ability to create balance between the two. Activities such as bicycling, running, swimming, and weight-lifting are yang activities, whereas meditating and sleeping are yin activities. Yoga can be yang or yin, or more commonly a combination of the two. Yoga postures that emphasize rest and stillness are yin, while strong postures and flowing movements are yang. Restorative yoga is yin, and ashtanga yoga is yang. Yin yoga, of course, is yin.
Another way to view yin and yang is to analyze the body's tissues. Muscle tissue is yang as opposed to bones, ligaments and joints, which are yin. Muscle tissue is warm and moist and is designed to respond quickly, whereas connective tissue is more dense and dry. Connective tissue is designed to support a lot of weight, which is why it's so prevalent in the lower body. This is where Yin Yoga comes in. Most forms of movement, including yoga, are focused on yang tissue. When we exercise we are taught to think in terms of strengthening and stretching our muscles. In this mindset, the fascia is being overlooked; but fascia is found everywhere in the body; it wraps the body in the form of skin; it weaves through the bones; it forms a container for the organs; it forms blood vessels and wraps around cells. To ignore this highly prevalent tissue is to neglect a great part of our musculoskeletal health.
The energetic effects
Energy: The yogis call it prana, the Taoists call it Chi, and Yoda calls it The Force. Whatever it's called, there's no question that the body is intertwined with an energetic field which one is able to directly manipulate through movement. We can sometimes feel this energy directly, and we can also learn to enhance that sensory awareness with practices like yoga, qigong and meditation.
Research led by Dr. Hiroshi Motoyama has illuminated the possiblity that the connective tissues are the physical medium that the meridians of Chinese Medicine travel through. This has become known as "Meridian Theory," and you can read this article by Paul Grilley for more information. For centuries, anatomists disregarded acupuncture theory because the meridians could not be found in the physical body. Coincidentally, fascia has long been disregarded as an unimportant body material, to be stripped away during cadaver dissections in order to get to the muscles and bones. The groundbreaking research by Dr. Motoyama and Dr. James Oschman prove that bioelectric signals travel through the fascia on the same path as acupuncture meridians.
This is the most powerful aspect of Yin Yoga, in my opinion: in a short time you are transported into a deep state of energy awareness. Every cell becomes alive. Your body tingles, vibrates, makes sounds. Your body is talking to you.
The relaxation response
With such a deep sense of awareness and stillness, it's hard to keep your mind very busy. I like to think of my yin practice as an easier route to mindfulness meditation. After the practice, there's an overall increase in calmness, which tends to last throughout the day. This is the result of the relaxation response, a phenomenon that was first studied by Dr. Herbert Benson and has been further researched by Jon Kabat-Zinn and many others. The relaxation response is a physical state of deep rest that changes the physical and emotional responses to stress. This creates a healing response throughout the body.
There are several gentle styles of yoga that also have this calming aspect: Yoga Nidra, Restorative Yoga, iRest and others. Not everyone understands the difference between Yin Yoga and Restorative Yoga. The main difference is, restorative postures support the weight of the body, while Yin Yoga's primary purpose is to gently stretch and stimulate the body's tissues, usually using the weight of the body as a tool. Both practices invite a general calming and compassionate attention to oneself; both promote the cultivation of mindfulness; and both help us appreciate the value of slowing down and being still.
Origins of yin yoga
Yin Yoga originated as a Chinese Taoist movement practice, and was first brought to the US by Paulie Zink, an accomplished martial artist who learned to stretch this way while living and studying in China. Paul Grilley has done the most to introduce the practice to Western yogis, with his amazing presentations that bring ancient spiritual wisdom together with modern scientific research. The term "yin yoga" was coined by Sarah Powers, a student of Paul Grilley who has become one of the foremost yin and vinyasa teachers of today, and is renowned for her excellent work bringing together yoga, Buddhism and spiritual psychology.
Recommended resources
Article:
"Yin Yoga" by Paul Grilley:
http://www.yogajournal.com/practice/580
Website:
Online Directory Yin Yoga Postures (includes photos and descriptions):
http://www.yinyoga.com/ys2_2.0_yinyoga_asanas.php
DVDs:
Yin Yoga: The Foundations of a Quiet Practice by Paul Grilley
Insight Yoga with Sarah Powers
Books:
"Insight Yoga" by Sarah Powers
"The Relaxation Response" by Dr. Herbert Benson
"Energy Medicine" by Dr. James Oschman
Yin Yoga: Outline of a quiet practice by Paul Grilley
YinSights: A Journey into the Philosophy & Practice of Yin Yoga by Bernie Clark
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