Restorative yoga – what’s it all about? Isn’t that just lying down on pillows? We speak to our resident restorative teacher, Rishin Paonaskar, to give you top tips to rest and reset.
You don’t need to do very much to get awesome benefits.
Restorative yoga gives the body the chance to recover and rest, calms the mind and nervous system which in turn improves sleep. You might know or practise ‘yin yoga’ – yin is not the same as restorative (a common misconception). Yin can be challenging and intense as well as meditative whereas restorative should be completely passive, allowing the body to completely ‘let go’.
Rishin tells us that “some restorative poses could involved lying on the back with the legs up a wall or lying on one’s side with blankets and a bolster supporting the body. A typical restorative class will involve very few poses. In 90 minutes you might only do five poses and hold most poses for between 10 to 20 minutes.”
It’s imperative that you’re warm and cosy.
The body temperature can drop when you are lying in stillness, so “it’s important to therefore have clothing that’s warm enough – layers or even an extra blanket. If you’re practicing an online class, at home, you could even grab a duvet, cushions, your socks, whatever you have to hand to be super comfy.”
It’s great to use props – but you don’t need to buy anything fancy.
Props are used to ensure the body is comfortable and you will leave the class feeling calm, relaxed and blissed out. Most props can be replicated at home using cushions, pillows and blankets but Rishin recommends “a bolster is a great prop to buy if you are only going to buy one restorative yoga specific prop”.
It’s normal to be sceptical!
A great way to ‘dip your toe in’ is to do a restorative practice at home, or to try a Flow and Restore class which is a combination of Vinyasa Flow Yoga and Restorative poses – the best of both 🙂 You can book one of those classes here.
“There is no harm trying restorative yoga. The worst that can happen is that you might leave feeling more relaxed than when you entered the class!”
Join Rishin for his Spring Restorative Rest workshop at Yogarise Online
Restorative Reset
Sunday 21 March 2021
2-4pm
2hrs for £20
