What is Restorative Yoga?
Restorative yoga is a practice that brings the energy of the body into balance, releases deeply held tension and calms the nervous system. In this yoga practice, there are gentle movements, breathing exercises and physical poses that are held for five-minutes or longer with the support of blankets, pillows and other props. These longer held poses allow the body to release into the pose with support so there is no physical strain or effort. In this way, the practitioner receives the full benefit of the pose without creating any additional stress in the body or on the nervous system.
This type of practice is counter-intuitive to adults who have come to think that more effort, more work, more sweat and more pain means more and better results. One of the greatest challenges of restorative yoga is accepting the fact that doing less brings the most significant transformation in the body and mind. This is not a gentle, wimpy or easy practice! Restorative yoga is a gentle unfolding of the damage we do to our bodies each and every day through emotional stress, through our repetitive actions and by ignoring the signs of exhaustion, un-ease and chronic pain. Athletes will find that restorative yoga is the most excellent compliment to their activity as it eases the joints and can help heal chronic and minor injuries that would otherwise prevent a quick return to a favorite sport or activity. If you tend to enjoy a more athletic yoga practice, such as Ashtanga Vinyasa or power flow practices, then restorative yoga can help deepen your practice. Yogis of all styles will find that their endurance and strength actually improves through a regular practice of restorative yoga.
At Yoga Matrika, our restorative yoga classes are a combination of mindfulness meditation, healing movement and stretching. No experience with yoga or meditation in any tradition or style is required. Beginners are always welcome to this safe, supportive and non-competitive environment. This is a practice that is equally as wonderful for students with injuries or chronic illness as it is for the healthiest and most robust athlete. The “results” of a regular practice can’t be predicted, but they will be positive and significant. It may be that you have had shoulder pain for most of your adult life and, after two months of restorative yoga practices, you find that your pain is diminished and your range of motion increased. Or, you may genuinely believe that you are a very balanced person without pain, but slowly realize that, with a regular restorative yoga practice, that you lose your temper less often and feel more compassionate towards others—-you might just find that you are happier!
We provide all of the equipment that you need for your practice, but encourage all students in all classes to bring their own yoga mat. We have mats for you to use if you need one, but mats are really a personal use item. Try not to practice yoga on a full stomach, but it is fine to have a small snack (banana and yogurt, a bowl of cereal, etc.) an hour or so before practice if you are very hungry. Wear comfortable, stretchy clothing in layers so that you can wear less when you are moving and put on a layer or two when you are going to relax into a pose for a longer period of time. You may want to bring a water bottle with you.
Join us at 6:00pm on Mondays, starting January 10, 2011, at Yoga Matrika for this unique yoga practice for all levels. Your instructor is Sharon Fennimore Rudyk. If you have questions about this practice or would like more information, please call Sharon directly at (412) 855-5692 or see our New Student FAQ.
This post was written by Sharon Fennimore Rudyk, the owner and director of Yoga Matrika, an intimate, community-based yoga studio in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania: http://www.yogamatrika.com/. For information on prenatal and postnatal programs, please see: http://www.matrikaprenatal.com.
Mindful Focus of the Week
Last week, the focus for Mindful Yoga was “the organs.” We learned to support asana using the internal structures of the body and acknowledge our organs for all that they do.
This week, our focus is the sacral center (2nd Chakra). I always pick a focus based on what I am working on in my personal practice and recently, for the first time in years, I managed to aggravate my sciatic nerve. It’s hard to say how I did it—-Demonstrating a reverse triangle when I wasn’t warmed up? Carrying a heavy messenger bag on one shoulder? Sitting with my legs crossed for too long? Good news is that it doesn’t matter how it happened, only that it’s over now and the experience provided inspiration to give some juicy love to the sacrum this week.
The sacral area is associated with creativity and when we create and acknowledge sensation here we are filled with optimism, passion and direction. Life is vibrant!
If you can’t make it to Mindful Flow on Tuesday night at Yoga Matrika in Pittsburgh, then here is a little exercise that will take less than 10-minutes that you can do anywhwere to change your energy and open up to a little creative juice:
SIT
On the floor with your legs crossed OR on the edge of a chair.
BREATHE
Take at least 10 deep breaths so that the in-breath takes a minimum of 4-counts and the out-breath is released to an equal count. It may take a few minutes to slow the breath down and open to this depth. Take as much time as you need.
MOVE
For one minute, start to take your upper body in circles over your hips. Keep circling in the same direction for the entire minute, inhaling as you circle forward and exhaling as you circle back. The breath should be relaxed and the movement should be at a speed that allows you to take full deep breaths.
After a minute, change directions and take your upper body in circles over your hips in the opposite direction. Breathing in as you circle forward and exhaling as you round back.
LIE DOWN
For five minutes, lie down on the floor with your hips propped up on a folded blanket or pillow. If this causes any pain in your lower back, then bend through your knees and place your feet flat on the floor. Breathing in, feel your belly rise towards the ceiling. Exhaling, feel your belly release towards your spine.
Slowly sit up and move on to the next wonderful thing with a little more spring in your step, oxygen in your blood and a juiced up pelvis—-Vroom! Vroom!
Posted by Sharon Fennimore Rudyk
Owner and Director of Yoga Matrika
http://www.yogamatrika.com/
This great idea is inspired by Gurmukh’s wonderful book, “The Eight Human Talents” published in 2000 by Harper Collins. Highly recommended!