As you inhale imagine you’re drawing up blue light from your tailbone to the crown of your head. Once upright release your legs in front and come to seated crossed legged for a rebound. You may want to place a soft prop between the backs of your knees.Ĭome out the way you came into the pose and slowly round up to Seiza position. Both your head and the top of your shoulder can rest onto props to support them, especially if you can’t get your buttocks to your heels. You may want to make the knees more comfortable with a rolled-up blanket under them. Breathe into one kidney at a time as you do each side. When you’re ready feed one arm underneath the other armpit through to the other side so that you’re in a slight twist. Notice the decompression at the end of your spine and the length along your whole spine. Wide Knee Child’s with Needle Arms Continue building awareness in the kidneys and spine throughout this Yin yoga sequenceįrom Child’s pose, bring your knees as wide apart as is comfortable until you feel a gentle stretch in your inner thighs. You may want to bring your head to a block in Child’s, being sure to tuck your chin to keep the back of your neck long. For those who are more open in this pose, wrapping your arms around the backs of your legs could be an option.īring yourself down to the mat and rest for a moment in Child’s pose. As you drop deeper into the pose you may wish to fold your arms underneath you or to let your hands come to rest on the floor. Alternatively, you can rest your hands onto blocks for support. If you have a very tight backline of your body then you can bend your knees considerably and rest your forearms on your thighs. Allow your spine to extend a little more with every exhalation.

Release your hands and hinge forward at the hips with soft knees into Dangling. Breathe as if you were breathing into the back of your kidneys, then bring your hands to just above your navel and breathe into the front of the kidneys. Dangling breathing into the kidneys Lengthen the backline of the body and draw into the Water Element with your breathīefore folding forward into your standing forward fold, take a moment to bring your awareness into the energy of the Water element by placing warm hands onto the area of your kidneys. Why not embrace the nature of the Water element completely in this Yin yoga sequence by dimming the lights, putting on some soothing music and making sure the space that you’re practising in is both warm and without distractions from the outside world, such as a mobile phone. The Bladder meridian, which corresponds with the myofascial back line of the body, is also targeted through gentle hamstring stretches.įor this practice, you will need a few cushions, maybe some yoga blocks, and a blanket. For the paired energetic line of the Water element, the Bladder meridian, this Yin yoga sequence alternately compresses and decompresses the spine.

This Yin yoga sequence for the water element focuses on nourishing the kidneys with breath centred awareness and on stretching into the inner knees, thighs and groin to stimulate the Kidney meridian. Read more about the Water element in TCM – The Five elements – Water Element Yin yoga sequence for the Water element And it’s within the calm held space of such practices that we can nourish, heal and surrender up that which is no longer serving us, clearing space physically and emotionally ready for when growth once again can occur. As we learn to quieten down the noise of our external environments, we, in turn, attune our ability to listen to our truths. The Water element allows us to retreat into the world of our dreams and emotions, as we use its stillness to reflect upon the inner workings of our being through practices such as meditation and Yin yoga. Yin in its nature is introspective, dense, cold and still and sits in contrast to the outward, dynamic movement of the summer and the Fire element. The energy of the Water element in Traditional Chinese Medicine is considered the most Yin like of all the seasons. Never has there been a more fitting time to tune into the energy of the Water element, as we’re asked to stay home and minimise our social contact this winter. Focusing not just on the external, but on our internal world too. This Yin yoga sequence harmonises and nourishes the yin to our yang, allowing us to recognise all facets of our existence.

1 hour yin yoga sequence