Itʼs time to release. To let go of what is heavy, to find new openings, and to begin again.
Nature is reminding us right now of this importance as well; leaves are falling, the temperature is descending, and flowers are being put to rest for the season. If you are local to Utah, you have more than likely been witness to these changes as our world shifts from activity and warmth the rest and cooling. We are not separate or different, we need this time and season in our lives to shed layers of our existence that have run its course.
Need some ideas on how to release this month in your yoga practice? Us too. Read on to find our top on the mat tips for supporting your release practice!
Consider what areas you are attached to in your physical practice
Whether you feel you need to be making constant physical progress or have expectations for what certain areas of your practice should look like, these attachments will ultimately lead us stuck in the very areas weʼre trying to find peace in. Instead, work on taking your eyes to what is happening on your mat and your mat only. Pay attention to what your body is trying to communicate to you and do your best to make adjustments as necessary, leaving what is happening on the mat next to you. We are all in our own process and itʼs always just for today.
Focus on your foundation
Whether youʼre standing or seated, feel the grounding of all the parts of your body that meet the mat. Press down and use this sensation to drain heaviness out of the body while feeling supported and safe to release and explore the depths of what is being offered to you in this moment.
Accentuate your exhales
Before beginning practice or as you are closing out your physical practice, take a longer exhale to inhale ratio. Exhales can help us physically, mentally, and emotionally let go by finding a release pattern and freeing up space in the body. These breaths can be done in and out from the nose, or inhaling through the nose and exhaling out the mouth like a sigh. Try it out and notice the relaxing impacts on your mind, body, and spirit even after just 5 rounds of this breathing technique!
Spend a few extra moments in Savasana
Make this time as comfortable as possible with props and any other additional support needed, set a timer for 15-20 minutes, and let your mind and body melt away tension in this cooling and healing aspect of your yoga practice. Looking for further suggestions to release in your life and practice? Check these out!
A yoga posture to explore: Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose)
This posture is found in many different types of yoga including Ashtanga yoga. It is a great hip opener to relieve sitting throughout the day while releasing the adductor muscles and relaxing the abdomen. From a seated place, begin with the soles of the feet together; keep your pelvis underneath you and the spine long. Explore staying upright for the following exercises rather than folding forward. Either take the hands to the top of the ankles or behind the hips while maintaining a long spine. Try each of these variations for 5-10 breaths before stretching the legs out and mindfully exiting the shape.
Place a folded blanket underneath the sitting bones -
This can help by to keep the pelvis neutral, which can be especially helpful if it feels the spine is dropping with the lower back rounding. Great for if youʼre feeling especially tight in the hips or low back area.
Blanket or block underneath the legs -
A lovely variation when the knees are not touching the floor! Elevate the thigh right above the knee to help settle and support the knees. As the hips begin to release and the legs descend lower, consider gradually changing the height of the blanket or block.
Block between the soles of the feet -
Pressing a block between the feet creates a bit of a different sensation for the inner thigh and deep within the hip joints. Keep yourself active in this one with light pressure into the block and a gentle activation in the glutes to keep the spine tall and the front of the body open.
A poem to read: In Blackwater Woods by Mary Oliver
Look, the trees are turning their own bodies into pillars of light, are giving off the rich fragrance of cinnamon and fulfillment, the long tapers of cattails are bursting and floating away over the blue shoulders of the ponds, and every pond, no matter what its name is, is nameless now. Every year everything I have ever learned in my lifetime leads back to this: the fires and the black river of loss whose other side is salvation, whose meaning none of us will ever know. To live in this world you must be able to do three things: To love what is mortal; to hold it against your bones knowing your own life depends on it; and, when the time comes to let it go, to let it go.
An affirmation to repeat: Letting go celebrates my courage.