Sonia Byrd - Yoga For Beginners: YOGA MAGIC - Best Gentle Yoga Poses To Relieve Stress, Improve Relaxation, and Have A Satisfying Stretch

Restorative Yoga is a calming practice. A practice that many of us need daily.

This specific type of yoga helps to release tension, anxiety and stress that stems from busy daily activities, traumatic circumstance or life-changing events. Restorative yoga typically utilizes props including blankets, bolsters, blocks, aromatherapy, etc. Props in restorative yoga assist with body alignment, relaxation and weight balance. They can also aide in alleviating pressure in certain areas of the body while practicing asanas.

Most of us are aware of the popular yoga classes that incorporate constant movement and active poses. Restorative yoga, however, utilizes the poses that allow your body to slowly stretch in to a relaxed state. Breathing techniques and meditation are incorporated into each pose prompting the body to slow down and enter a mode of stillness. These restorative poses and techniques ease symptoms related to anxiety, depression, stress, pain and trauma-related injuries.

The main ingredient in restorative yoga is time and patience. Each pose is held for a longer period of time allowing the body to enter into a state of mind-body unification. Holding the poses for a longer period of time also provides a deeper stretch, stretching to the bone, as some would explain.

Daily life can send us reeling through a multitude of emotions. Simply going to the grocery store can ingnite a high level of stress. Unexpected, life-altering events may bring about intense changes affecting the way we react to certain situations. The way we handle stressful situations can cause the physical body to remain tense with no sign of relief. The human body is capable of leading a very active life. We must take the time to give our minds and our bodies a break. If we do not, our immune system might deteriorate, and our minds will fade.

So, when do we slow down?

More importantly, how do we slow down? Once that roller coaster called life starts chugging away, most of us dont know how to stop, or how to slow down. We need some kind of assistance or daily practice that will help us to decompress. We must stop running ourselves into the ground.

Learning how to recognize a quiet moment, a peaceful place, the sound of silence We all long for each of those opportunities, but refuse to stop and realize that they are most likely right in front of our faces. Stillness is very important. And, the older we get, the harder it is to return to that state of stillness.

Generally speaking, yoga is defined as the unification of the mind and body. It is the practice of harmonizing the physical body with the spiritual body and returning to a conscious state of stillness and mindfulness.

When practicing the restorative method of yoga, time is a very important aspect. In restorative yoga, you will hold the asanas for 3-5x longer than in other yoga practices. Typically, in one restorative yoga session, you may only complete 3-5 poses. As opposed to an active yoga session, you may flow continuously through 10-20 poses.

Some examples of restorative yoga poses are Childs pose, Corpse pose, Legs-Up-The-Wall pose, etc. During each pose, you can incorporate very specific breathing techniques and meditation methods. Holding the poses for a longer period of time also allows you to adjust your body for proper alignment and balance.

Lets face it, we are all uniquely built. Not one of us is the same, physically, emotionally or mentally. Therefore, we must adjust our yoga practice to fit our own personal needs.

There are many ways to create your own unique restorative yoga practice.