Reader, when I first started practicing yoga, I needed something that matched the energy of my brain and the intensity of my energy...mostly moving about, but with short pauses to hold. It served me for years until I realized there were times when it was actually creating more intensity in my life rather than calming my nervous system and my subtle energetic layers.

I started practicing a type of yoga I created that I Energetic Rhythms Yoga based around the 4 phases of nature and the menstrual cycle. This was and is still a more active, or yang, flow-based practice, but aligned more with the energy of each phase of a cycle.

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This, too, served me for years.

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These practices kept me energized, yet focused and mostly grounded, but when I tried my first Yin Yoga class, my mind was blown.🤯

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I thought my restorative practice that I typically went to was enough to calm my nervous system and help me feel nurtured during low energy and hormone phases that tend cater to a heightened stress response when triggered, but quickly found that Yin paired with down-regulating breath practices served my system even better.

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It calmed the energy and tension that I had become numb to.

Even in high energy phases, rather than meeting that energy with a higher intensity practice, as is my natural inclination, I have found that inviting a gentler Yin practice at least once in my week makes a world of difference in the way I move about life and respond to everyday stresses, like when faced with a kindergartner having a meltdown about getting ready for school in the morning or bed at night.🙄

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I discovered that what my nervous system and overactive mind really needed was an even stronger dose of grounding... and that's exactly what a Yin practice gives you.

It has shown me even more so the power of stillness and the importance of balancing effort with surrender.

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Here's why it works:

Yin helps the body feel safe enough to let the muscles fully relax in one posture for an extended period of time so that the fascia, or the web-like structure that holds the emotional patterns of the body and keeps the muscles, tissues and bones in place, can take up the stress of the posture and begin to open and release. And while doing so, also letting go of stored emotional gunk.

And when paired with the power of the breath, has the capacity to calm the nervous system and enhance your ability to hold and move through the stress that does arrive in life, allowing you to move through it with greater ease... so those meltdowns from your big or little kids don't quite make you want to run and hide nearly as much.

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This is why I've started including it in my regular rhythm of yoga practices and why I'm offering it at the studio (virtually and in-person) once a week as well. So you, too, can stop trying so hard and feeling like you need to push through life all the time.

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Now, I'm not switching my entire platform and messaging about yoga, what I'm doing is inviting a shift...

an evolution...

an expansion. And you can too.

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I'm also not in the camp of going "all Yin, all the time" right now in my life as some may be, because I believe we need the balance.

We need the qualities of drive, motivation, strength, focus and so much more that come from an active, flow-based practice.

Annnnnnnd, we need the permission to slow things down even further and show more compassion, tenderness and safety to the body and nervous system, even if you're one of those people who thinks you can't do yoga because your mind is racing all the time.

Yin (and mindfulness in general) teaches us to let go of the need to follow all those thoughts. To watch them without getting swept away with them.

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The key to healing your body, your nervous system, the stress in your life, and thriving is to be able notice the thoughts, without judgement... learning to witness the experience, fully empowered and yet surrendered to the moment, rather than becoming a victim of it.

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If you're reading this and you're ready to give it a try, my Restorative/Yin Yoga class might just be for you. All sessions are recorded and posted to a platform that you can log into and access at any time you want. And you can check it out here.

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💚 Cathy

P.S. All my services and classes are 10% off this month to celebrate my 10 years of being in business! Here are the codes you need to know to get the 10% off:

For individual classes or services, use code: 10YEARS

For packages and memberships, use code: TENYEARS

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