The Power of Yin Yoga…

Yin Yoga is a relatively new branch on the Yoga tree, founded by Martial Artist and Yoga Teacher Paulie Zink in the late 1970’s it was brought to the West in the late 1980’s as Taoist Yoga to evolve into what is known today as Yin Yoga named by teacher’s Paul Grilley and Sarah Powers.

Yin Yang

The Yin Yang theory is the most fundamental TCM concept, it dates back to 700 B.C.E. Yin means dark or shadow (it's the black portion in the symbol). Yang means light or sun (it's the white portion in the symbol).  They represent opposite yet complementary energies. Everything in the universe contains Yin and Yang, although one may be more prevalent than the other at any given time, they are never separate and do not exist without each other. When in balance a state of harmony persists. The movement of light and dark throughout a twenty-four hour period is the motion of Yin and Yang expanding and contracting, flowing, one into the other in an endless dance.

Yin & Yang Pairs:

Yin Yang

Earth Heaven

Night Day

Moon Sun

Hot Cold

Female Male

Water Fire

Space Time

Left Right

Stillness Movement

The Practice

There are only 26 Yin Yoga poses total, most of them performed sat or led down, with the support of props such as bolsters and blocks to help the practitioner to get as comfortable as possible - this is important as each pose can be held for anything from 1-5 minutes (and sometimes even longer!). In contrast to other branches of Yoga, no alignment queues are given in Yin Yoga. The practitioner is simply guided to a ‘target area’, the area in which the pose is intended to stretch, compress or load. Once set up in the pose the practitioner is then able to tune into their breath and the sensations that are arising in their body. Usually after a few minutes they will find their body has relaxed and they are able to melt even further into the pose.

Physical Benefits

Remaining in stillness for a prolonged period of time switches the ANS (autonomic nervous system) from the SNS (sympathetic nervous system/ fight or flight) and into the PSN (parasympathetic nervous system/ rest and digest), it is in this state that true healing and restoration occurs. Unlike Yang based practices that strengthen and lengthen muscle tissue. Yin Yoga reinforces, repairs and strengthens the body’s plastic tissues; bones, tendons, ligaments and fascia by applying a controlled amount of stress to specific areas for a prolonged period of time.

Emotional Benefits

There are many lessons to be learnt here, including how we deal with discomfort. Our human-ness doesn’t like discomfort, we will typically avoid and resist feelings of emotional and physical discomfort at all costs, on and off of the mat. Yin Yoga is a great tool to practice increasing tolerance to discomfort and, with regular practice notice what was once experienced as discomfort, transcend into bliss. This tolerance can be transferred into everyday life.

Energetic Benefits

According to TCM, energetic pathways exist in every living being, these are called meridians. They transport the flow of life-force/prana/qi to the body’s organs that keeps them functioning. Each meridian connects with one or more organs, each has it’s own individual emotional qualities. When the flow of life-force is excessive, depleted or blocked the energetic system is moved from a state of harmony to disharmony. This results in emotional unrest and disease. Each Yin Yoga pose stimulates one or more of these energetic pathways thus reestablishing equilibrium of the energetic system.