My love for Yin has taken me on a whole new path. Yin is a 'newer' yoga practice. It was formalized by Paul Grilley and further taught by Bernie Clark. They have spent countless hours educating themselves and others on the fascia - the dense connective tissue in our bodies. They've become almost intimate with the joints and the fascia and how certain yoga poses, when held for longer period of time, can actually create more elasticity and hydration in this tissues. Now, who doesn't want this?

Yang Yoga has always been looked upon as a way of creating more strength and fluidity in the body. Mastering asanas (poses) through aesthetic alignment (tuck your pelvis in, grab your toes, lift your arms up and backbend) is more of the philosophy that yoga followed for years. But, not all bodies are created equally. Yoga poses are not a one size fits all. At least they shouldn't be.

After acquiring my 200 training hours and becoming registered as a yoga instructor, I decided to further my education in Yin. My intuition (and body) guided me to pursue this because: I loved how my body felt after practicing it, I knew that it complemented a Yang style exercise routine (running, cross fit, dancing, etc), and, I wanted to learn the details of Yin so that I can teach it correctly.

Teaching Yin yoga is not just about queuing all persons into a pose in the same way. Functional alignment plays a key role. A teacher should understand what is stopping a person from moving deeper into a pose or what sensations are felt while in the pose. This helps the teacher guide the student and offers modifications based on what is perceived and felt by the student.

Yin yoga works deeply into our body with passive, longer-held poses.

Yin yoga targets the deepest tissues of the body, our connective tissues - ligaments, joints, bones, and the deep fascia networks of the body - rather than the muscles (which are the physical focus of Yang yoga practices).

Energetically, Yin yoga improves the energy flow, enhancing the flow of chi in the organs. To be healthy, we need healthy organs as well as healthy muscles. Yin yoga also offers wonderful emotional and mental health benefits. 

Benefits of a regular Yin yoga practice

• Increases circulation and improves flexibility
• Calms and balances the mind and body
• Reduces stress and anxiety 
• Releases fascia
• Encourages deeper relaxation
• Improves joint mobility
• Brings balance to the organs through meridian stimulation

Yin is not a better practice than a Yang style yoga. It complements. Yang style yoga (vinyasa flows) allows us to strengthen our muscles, Yin stresses the tissues that support our muscles. We need both in order to maintain optimal health.