Yin Yoga

Yin Yoga puede a primera vista parecer demasiado lento, demasiado simple y, bueno, demasiado aburrido.

Yin Yoga

If you're accustomed to sweating your way toward glamorous poses, Yin Yoga may at first glance seem too slow, too simple, and, well, too boring. Pero esta compleja práctica de posturas de piso largas y pasivas es profundamente nutritiva y tiene innumerables beneficios para cualquier practicante de yoga, dice la maestra de yoga del Área de la Bahía de San Francisco y la maestra de meditación Sarah Powers.

On a physical level, Yin enhances the natural range of motion in the joints. By keeping your muscles soft, you release deep layers of connective tissue, creating more ease in any style of yoga and in seated meditation. On an energetic level, Yin enhances the flow of prana (life force) in the tissues around the joints, where energy often stagnates. Powers compara la práctica para hacer una sesión de acupuntura en usted: las secuencias a menudo están orientadas a fortalecer ciertos canales de energía (llamados Nadis en yoga o meridianos en la medicina china), que finalmente apoyan los órganos, el sistema inmune y el bienestar emocional.

And then there are the mental benefits: Holding poses for three to five minutes often brings up discomfort. Yin conditions you to stay with the intense sensations that arise, rather than quickly moving into the next pose. "It trains you to become more comfortable with discomfort instead of becoming alarmed," Powers says. "It marries meditation and asana into a very deep practice."

All that and you don't have to trade in your dynamic practice to reap the benefits. Powers, que enseña a Yin junto con Yang (su versión de Flow Yoga), alienta a los estudiantes a hacer poses de Yin antes o después de una rutina regular, o como una secuencia independiente. She recommends a Yin session at least two to four times a week. "You're conditioning the tissues to become more elastic, so practicing has a cumulative effect," she says. "The more you do it, the more you'll want to do it."

Practice Tips

There are three crucial things to do as you practice Yin. First, come into a pose to your appropriate edge in a respectful way. Second, become still, just as you would during meditation. Third, stay for a while, as you would for an acupuncture session. In the beginning aim for three to five minutes, but if one minute is enough, start there and grow into two minutes.

Sequence Focus

The sequence that follows balances what traditional Chinese medicine calls the kidney meridian—essential for mind-body health. "When kidney chi is revitalized, you'll feel vibrant," Powers says. The sequence includes passive backbends, because the kidney channel flows through the lower back. Seated forward bends act as counterposes and stimulate the urinary bladder meridian, which intersects all of the other meridians in the body.