Restorative for Low Back Pain & Health

When your body experiences stress and tension, the muscles in the back can tighten and strain in response. Further, repetitive movements, bad posture, and a weak core also contribute to lower back pain, tightness and discomfort. Emotional issues can also manifest as back pain. Fortunately, all of these culprits for lower back pain can be relieved with specific restorative yoga postures. In this 90 minute practice, the muscles in the lower back are allowed to relax and the tension that is causing discomfort is released. As you connect with your breath in these postures, you have the opportunity to let go of any emotions that arise as you allow yourself to rest into the support of the bolsters and blankets surrounding you. Some essential oils may also be offered to further enhance the relaxation response.

Price $20 –

Restorative for Weight Loss?

Yes, yes, yes! Restorative yoga has been shown to actually reduce fat, especially the subcutaneous variety. If high-intensity aerobic activity is not your thing, or you’re not quite ready to jump into a power vinyasa class or other group fitness class, try restorative yoga. In a study cited in Yoga Journal, which took place over 48 weeks, there were two groups of people: one that performed a routine of simple stretching exercises and another that took part in a restorative yoga routine. Both groups lost weight, but the restorative yoga group lost almost twice as much in the first six months, and they were also better able to keep it off. The restorative yoga group also lost more than 2.5 times the amount of subcutaneous fat as the stretch group.

So, how does restorative yoga help? When we become stressed, the fight-or-flight syndrome triggers a complex shift in hormones designed to draw on our energy sources quickly in response, and can cause your appetite to increase in order to replenish that energy. You begin to eat when you are not really hungry or in need of food. Restorative yoga helps reduce stress, which in turn reduces the level of cortisol in your body. This results in a reduced production of glucose, and glucose creates fat, especially belly fat. When you reduce stress, you reduce cortisol and then glucose, which leads to weight loss. Further, it creates mindfulness which may help curb your appetite and help you make better food choices. No yoga or fitness experience necessary, all levels welcome.
(Read the article here: https://www.yogajournal.com/yoga-101/lose-weight-with-restorative-yoga)

Price $20 –

Vinyasa with Restorative

This 90 minute class will take you through a gentle yoga flow, releasing stuck or stored energy.  What follows is a mindful restorative practice with supported poses using props and long holds to passively open the body for physical, mental and emotional relaxation.  Gentle hands-on assists are offered to encourage proper alignment and to enhance the relaxation experience. Essential oils may be used as well.  All levels welcome.

Price $20 –

Yin yoga is a floor- or wall-based practice that works on the fascia and dense connective tissues in and around the joints, where vinyasa is more yang-like in nature working on the muscles and their fascia. All tissues of the body need stress to be healthy, and we use the gentle stresses of yin to gently stimulate, strengthen, and restore health to these deeper tissues which are largely ignored with faster forms of movement.

If you have a relatively inactive lifestyle, Yin Yoga is a great way to reintroduce your body to movement. When practiced weekly, yin can improve flexibility and/or prevent the loss of flexibility that comes with age or a sedentary lifestyle. This intelligent Yin practice helps to hydrate these deep tissues, promoting and improving joint health as well as body and breath awareness. There is no experience necessary to do yin, and you don’t even have to be flexible to participate.

Yin also has a mindfulness component, challenging us to find peace in what may be slightly uncomfortable positions as we allow time and gravity to let the emphasis of the stress activate change at the deepest level.

Whether on the floor or with “Legs Up The Wall”, these postures work into the energy flows, or meridians, helping to harmonize and balance our energetic body, while releasing restrictions and chronic holding patterns in the physical body, and teaching us to be tolerant of both physical and mental/emotional discomfort as we work towards a deeper understanding of our true selves.

Price $10 –

Restorative

Restorative is a very gentle practice that involves supported poses using props and long holds to passively open the body for physical, mental and emotional relaxation. The goal of restorative yoga is to slow down, rest the mind, and bring the body back to “normal.”  Some essential oils may be used in conjunction with this class.  60 or 90-minute classes

Price $10 for 60 minute class, $20 for 90 minute class – passes may be applicable