Sweet Surrender

Find stillness and greater depth by holding poses longer in a Yin Yoga sequence.

By Andrea Ferretti, sequence by Sarah Powers

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. But this complex practice of long, passively held floor poses is deeply nourishing and has myriad benefits for any yoga practitioner, says San Francisco Bay Area yoga and meditation teacher 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 likens the practice to doing an acupuncture session on yourself: Sequences are often geared toward strengthening certain energy channels (called nadis in yoga or meridians in Chinese medicine), which ultimately support the organs, immune system, and emotional well-being.

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, who teaches Yin together with Yang (her version of flow yoga), encourages students to do Yin poses before or after a regular routine, or as a stand-alone sequence. 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.

1. Butterfly Pose Sit on a blanket or cushion. With your weight on the front edge of your sitting bones, bend your knees, press the soles of your feet together, and let your legs drop out like butterfly wings. Take your heels at least a foot away from your hips. With your hands on your ankles, bend forward from the hips to your appropriate edge, then relax your upper spine and let it round. Rest your head in the arches of the feet, on top of the stacked fists, or cupped in the hands while the elbows rest on the feet. If you can, stay for 3 to 5 minutes in all of the poses in this sequence. Inhale as you come up, then stretch your legs forward and lean back on your hands. Pause for a few moments in a neutral position after each pose.

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