In my very first Yin Yoga class I felt like I wanted to punch my teacher in the face! From someone that teaches 'non-harm,' this might sound like an extreme reaction to holding a pigeon pose for 5 minutes! So let me explain a little more..

Yin Yoga is often wrongly portrayed as a 'relaxing' practice to 'bliss out'. Whilst this may be the experience for some students, this can also be quite misleading. Because like any deep healing practice, Yin Yoga can also be very revealing and uncomfortable.

The reason for this is Yin Yoga requires stillness, awareness, and the ability to surrender.

But in a world full of distractions where we are constantly filling every moment with scrolling, consuming, and doing, just being still can be extremely confronting.

It can bring up uncomfortable emotions we've stuffed down, make us aware of long-held physical tension, and put us in a place where we can no longer distract ourselves from our reality.

But now that I understand the immense benefits of this practice, I have learned to lean into the discomfort because I now know that this is where the magic happens!

Here are 3 reasons why Yin Yoga is such a powerful and healing practice...

1. On a physical level holding a posture for a long time allows us to make changes to our body deep beneath the superficial muscle and actually target the fascia, connective tissue and over time even the bones! We can compare this to stretching out a plastic bag, if we pulled it quickly it would just rip- but if we slowly and gently apply pressure it would eventually lengthen out and change shape. The same applies to our bodies. Furthermore, because Yin Yoga targets the fascia which is integral in every structure of the body, Yin Yoga helps improves flexibility, circulation, joint mobility, and the tone and function of our internal organs.

2. On an emotional level holding a pose for a long time helps us to identify and heal repressed feelings. They say 'Our issues are in our tissues' meaning that when we experience emotional discomfort we hold this in our muscle tissues. For example, every time you are stressed you may clench your jaw creating tightness in your neck, or when you experienced heartbreak you may have protected yourself by habitually folding your arms over your chest creating tight shoulders. Opening up the body also means healing these emotional blocks. 

3. Our nervous system really benefits from stepping out of the fast pace of constant stimulation and action and into the slow lane of Yin Yoga. Having said this, if you are usually in a state of fight or flight, you may initially find Yin very irritating! But all the more reason to persist with this practice of stillness as it will massively help to regulate your nervous system. This helps with feelings of anxiety, stress management and feeling more balanced and calm in your day-to-day life.

I have had such a transformational journey with Yin Yoga. It has massively helped me identify and heal my physical and emotional blocks and has given me tools to regulate my nervous system in this fast-paced world. I now know to lean into any discomfort the practice brings (and I no longer want to punch my teacher in the face which is great news for the teacher! Haha.)

I am running a 25-hour Yin Yoga Teacher Training course in May where I am sharing what I have learned through practicing and teaching Yin in Ubud, Byron Bay, and on the Mornington Peninsula over the last 10 years. Whether you are a student or a current Yoga Teacher, if you would like to find out more about this transformational practice, you can sign up here: