Yoga is considered to be a grand way of discovering your inner self while improving the balance of your mind, body and soul. Yoga has been practiced since times in memorial due to its enormous benefits like gaining spiritual potency and toned muscles. Mastering yoga is synonymous to a better and a healthier you. Yin yoga is an exclusive and an only complete work out of muscles and everything that surrounds it. The major challenge that Yin yoga focuses on is the holding of breath for a longer duration of time with the yoga poses intact. The pose and breath duration may last from one to twenty minutes.
History of Yin Yoga
Yin yoga was started in China and Taiwan, 2000 years ago. In ancient times people were habitual of holding yoga poses for a longer period of time in order to extend their life span and improve their life condition. Stretching in ancient times was referred to as Dao Yin. This yoga was only taught by Taoist priests who included various breathing techniques in it.
Targeted parts of the body
Yin Yoga is almost similar to Hatha yoga as this yoga too helps in balancing the body. Hatha yoga and Yin yoga just differ in their targeted areas. While Hatha yoga targets upper layers of the body, Yin yoga targets deeper parts. Yin yoga strengthens the hip and pelvic tissues while directly targeting the spine. Yin yoga balances the whole body by targeting the tissues whereas Yang yoga just targets the muscles.
Who can practice Yin yoga and Why?
Yin yoga can be practiced by anyone. Your knowledge of yoga does not matter here while practicing yin yoga. Even if you are a newbie to yoga, you will still be able to learn and do it. Hatha yoga strengthens your muscles while lengthening it and Yin yoga strengthens the connective tissues and muscles surrounding it.
During a normal work out or yang practice or general exercises like jogging, we generally are making our muscular movements in a repetitive mode. This recurrence smashes the muscular fibers to build an endorsement. This will be ideal health tip for toning down the muscles well. Yin yoga positions help in proper alignment of the connective tissue muscles providing a good level of strength to joints by making some space in between to aid a better motion. This yoga also reduces the hazardous effects on injuries which might be caused because of the joints being stressed.
When to practice this form of yoga?
It is good to practice any kind of yoga when the body muscles are not warm. The ideal time to practice it is exactly when you wake up. The reason for this is that the warm muscles take away the result of muscular stretching. You can also practice Yin yoga exactly before your day to day regular exercise schedule or just before a session of Yang yoga. It is said that the best health tip for women is to practice this yoga for women is at the time of their menses as it helps to preserve a lot of energy. Before starting this yoga, it is ideal to maintain a good level of bone health by keeping the age factor into consideration. The major exercise programs that lay stress on muscular work out guarantee a healthy life style for many years to come.
Benefits of Yin Yoga
Health tips like performing Yin yoga help some of the ligaments and tendons which together make the connective tissue to get stressed for providing an increased flexibility and better circulation level to the joints.
- Increase patience: The asanas used in this yoga can be held for a maximum of 20 minutes time. It increases patience levels as a person has to hold a particular pose for a longer duration of time. This is one of the major non physical health benefits of Yin yoga.
- Maintained body temperature: When you practice Yin yoga, the instructors recommend warming up before its practice session. Yin yoga itself does not provide any heat to the body, but maintains the already built in heat.
- Stretching connective tissue: It helps to strengthen the joints and connective tissue thereby making the muscles turn stronger. Connective tissues which are present in the joints get enough stretching by Yin yoga. The muscles of spinal cord, knees and hips also gain a lot of strength.
- Higher level of energy: Pranas reside inside the tissues of the body and build up with the help of this form of yoga. If the internal flow of energy is worked on well with the help of this yoga, it will let you feel good and healthy.
- Mental balance: Body’s mental balance is also worked on well with this form of yoga. It is too easy to adapt to this form of yoga as it provides a lot of relaxation if worked in a proper direction.
- Improves flexibility: The stretches of Yin yoga target the connective tissues located deep inside the body. It helps increase the circulation in the joints while regulating the flow of energy.
- Promotes self love: It helps you in calming the brain while providing relaxation. It aids the nourishment of the heart and drains down the fears while helping to love one self. It buils up self confidence and makes you feel wonderful.
- Fades the stress away: It helps calming down the mind in the best possible way by allowing you to become intimate with yourself. It helps you to stay positive in any situation and slows down your mind fading the stress away.
- Afterglow: Yin yoga also helps you in getting a glowing skin as the demons of your body present in the form of toxins get washed away. It helps your mind get clear and also the body to get lighter.
It is a great healing secret and can help you lead better life by improving your life quality to a great extent.