Yin Yoga: 5 Influencer Wellness Blogs Share Their Best Poses & Benefits

If you’ve been practising yoga for some time then you know that if your intention when approaching the mat isn’t one of mindfulness, then you could find yourself injured or burnt out,

Yin yoga is a great way to wind the mind down if you ever find yourself in competitive mode when it comes to your practice.

This slow, gentle and restorative style of yoga offers many benefits. In this curated roundup post from influential wellness blogs on the web, they share the beauty of yin yoga and poses to implement in your practice today.

To get us started, Mind Body Green shares a bit about what yin yoga is:

“The practice of yin yoga is based on ancient Chinese philosophies and Taoist principles which believe there are pathways of Qi (energy) that run through our bodies. By stretching and deepening into poses, we’re opening up any blockages and releasing that energy to flow freely.

Many of us live fast-paced, active lives, whether we’re going for a run, powering through an Ashtanga yoga class, or sweating it out on a spin bike. Yin yoga is the perfect balance to those intense exercises, providing a slower, more meditative counterpart to help you round out your workouts.

Yin yoga is also for anyone who is dealing with injuries or a chronic condition like arthritis or osteoporosis as this style in particular is a more restorative practice than other forms of exercise. Yin can also be a great starting point for anyone interested in meditation as it has such an internal focus.”

The benefits of yin yoga, according to Brett Larking Yoga, include:

“Generally, the stillness and quiet of Yin helps balance our bodies, minds, and nervous systems from the Yang of our daily lives and physical activities. This helps prevent our bodies from needing to create this balance on their own by shutting down, becoming ill, getting injured, burning out, blowing up, etc.”

From ankle stretch to savasana, Well+Good offers nine of their go to yin yoga poses:

“It should take you 30 seconds to exit each yin pose, moving as effortlessly as possible out of the postures. It’s best to lie down on your back or stomach between each posture for 30 seconds to let your chi (or the energy of the body) recirculate. Breathe through your nose as naturally as you can the entire time to ensure the body stays in rest. Lastly, remember that our bodies will never keep us in pain, but often, discomfort is necessary for healing. Be sure to drink a lot of water after. Yin yoga is like a deep tissue massage, so now it’s time to flush the toxins from the body out.”

Looking to recharge your practice, then have a go at this sequence of twelve yin yoga poses from Yoga Journal:

“This sequence is designed to nourish and circulate your qi. If this energy is stagnant (you feel stressed, irritable, and your body feels tense, achy, or painful), this sequence will help you relax so that your qi circulates more freely. If your qi is deficient (you have low energy, a weak voice, tendency to easily catch colds, and poor digestion), this sequence will help to rebuild it.”

If reviving your spirit is the aim, then check out these yin yoga poses from Healthline:

“The practice of holding a pose for an extended period teaches you to sit with and observe uncomfortable emotions, thoughts, or physical sensations as they arise.”