Restorative Yoga is a transformative practice that is centred around supporting you in entering a physiological state of rest. But many people do not know what it is. Let’s start there.
Imagine a yoga class. Where does your mind take you? Do you think of pillows and bolsters supporting you in deep relaxation, an hour to practice stillness? or perhaps balancing poses, planks, and down dog? Maybe you wonder what brings people to yoga at all?
If you imagined the first scenario; deep relaxation with pillows and bolsters, then you are correct.
Restorative yoga is a practice of deep relaxation in which we use props like bolsters, blankets and eye pillows to create positions of ease that support us in strengthening our relaxation pathways by stimulating our parasympathetic nervous system response (relax and restore) and dampening our sympathetic nervous system response (fight or flight).
Restorative Yoga (RY) is also about opening, not stretching. Not matter what your starting point, restorative yoga can be adapted for virtually everyone. It can also be used to aid relaxation in injury recovery
If you have a nervous system, then Restorative is right for you.
“The art of revealing beauty lies in removing what conceals it. So, too, Patanjali [in the Yoga Sutras] tells us that wholeness exists within us. Our work is to chisel away at everything that is not essence, not Self.”
Judith Hanson Lasater
Questions about Restorative:
What if I need trauma-informed RY?
Sometimes practices of stillness can take us back to painful and dysregulated spaces. We teach trauma-informed Restorative Yoga, if you would like to know more please feel free to email us
It is a highly inclusive yoga practice. Because of their adaptive focus, poses can be adapted to the student’s comfort levels and needs.
What can I expect?
Deep relaxation that encourages your body to enter a physiological state of rest.
Will I need props?
Yes, but we can always improvise. Not everyone has access to yoga bolsters and blankets. In class we will suggest items that you can use to act as props.
How does it fit into your No Judgement ethos?
The Dalai Lama once said that love is the absence of judgement. RY meets you where you are and offers support for you to settle into in that moment. In many ways, it embodies our No Judgement ethos.
How do I join?
Head over to our class page and select the pass that suits you.
What is your top tip?
Try and practice for 20 minutes a day. This will bring results that you will notice in your day-to-day life.
How do you find shifting into a relaxation state? Do you practice Restorative Yoga? Let us know in the comments
Hannah is a Registered Restorative Yoga Teacher, she has been teaching yoga for 6 years, meditation for 7 and has been leading group fitness classes for over 10 years.