My Restorative Yoga Classes, what are they all about…

Restorative Yoga is a calm peaceful yoga class where you get comfortable using the bolster, blankets, blocks and occasionally sandbags. During the practise you can hold the postures anywhere between 2 and 10 minutes, and each posture is designed to support your whole body completely. During these holds I play music or listen to mantra, I read a poems and quotes, we practice pranayama (breath-work) and take much needed silence. The main aim to to slow down, calm down and relax. In this fast-paced, over scheduled world we live in, we have to take time for ourselves to slow down and just be. We need to balance out our active stressful lives with calmer practices. Meditation and mindfulness have been in the media for years, and the evidence of the benefits of practicing them is very conclusive. My form of restorative Yoga combines the benefits of mindfulness with a very gentle stretch where you should feel completely comfortable and supported giving you the best chance to relax. My favourite quote post class was “That should be prescribed by doctors.” People can find it hard to prioritise the calmer practices especially when they are very busy, which is ironic, as that is exactly when we need to prioritise them most. We simply have to balance out our nervous system, give yourself a chance to reset. Suffering with stress and anxiety is now common, and without calmer activities it will begin to effect your immune system. If you are someone who adores building muscle, running, cycling and faster paced Yoga classes, it is important to remember that muscle growth only happens during rest, so you need to give your body enough time to to repair/grow your muscles. It’s a necessity! When you take time to actively rest you’ll notice the effects on your body both physically and emotionally. I personally notice it helps my mind and body respond to stimuli rather than react to it, which is very important as a busy mum of three small children.

People can find it hard to prioritise the calmer practices especially when they are very busy, which is ironic, as that is exactly when we need to prioritise them most. We simply have to balance out our nervous system, give yourself a chance to reset. Suffering with stress and anxiety is now common, and without calmer activities it will begin to effect your immune system. If you are someone who adores building muscle, running, cycling and faster paced Yoga classes, it is important to remember that muscle growth only happens during rest, so you need to give your body enough time to to repair/grow your muscles. It’s a necessity! When you take time to actively rest you’ll notice the effects on your body both physically and emotionally. I personally notice it helps my mind and body respond to stimuli rather than react to it, which is very important as a busy mum of three small children.

So make time to rest and recover. Maybe come and try my next Pop-up restorative class, or join one of my Stress and Anxiety workshop’s or 5 week course, to learn more about stress and anxiety, and what we can do to help. Because all of us to some degree are anxious and/or stressed. You are definitely not alone.