Latest / The MODERN YIN Podcast / Why Your Nervous System Craves Yin Yoga

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Why Your Nervous System Craves Yin Yoga · The MODERN YIN Podcast

• 0:00
  Well, hello, and welcome to the Modern Ian podcast.
• 0:05
  I'm your host, Kimberly Roberts of Sofian, and I am so glad
• 0:08
  you're here. I'm going to take a moment to
• 0:11
  help you understand what this space is all about, especially
• 0:15
  if you're new here and how this podcast can support you.
• 0:20
  This podcast is really geared for busy women, especially over
• 0:25
  the age of 40, who feel like they're constantly on the go,
• 0:29
  taking care of everything and everyone.
• 0:32
  But you know what? Not taking care of themselves.
• 0:36
  And over time, that can start to look like feeling burnt out,
• 0:40
  overwhelmed, tense, tired, but wired or just disconnected.
• 0:47
  What I share here is a different approach.
• 0:51
  Instead of pushing harder or doing more, we focus on slowing
• 0:56
  down South, supporting your nervous system and creating a
• 1:00
  sense of safety in your body. Because here's the thing, when
• 1:05
  your body feels safe, everything starts to shift.
• 1:09
  Your energy improves, your mind becomes clear, your body
• 1:13
  softens, and you will begin to feel more like yourself again.
• 1:19
  Inside this podcast you'll find simple practices using in yoga,
• 1:23
  acupressure, reflexology, breath work, mindfulness.
• 1:28
  These are all designed to fit into what I call real life, even
• 1:33
  when you only have a couple of minutes.
• 1:36
  And if you're looking for more support, you can come and join
• 1:39
  me inside my Patreon. That's where I share full yen
• 1:43
  yoga classes, guided practices for emotional support, nervous
• 1:47
  system resets, and even nourishing recipes to support
• 1:51
  your overall well-being. It's really a space where you
• 1:56
  can go deeper, your own pace, and in a way that feels
• 2:00
  supportive, not overwhelming. So whether you're listening
• 2:05
  while walking, resting, or just taking a moment for yourself,
• 2:09
  I'm so glad you're here because you've landed in the right
• 2:12
  place. Take a deep breath, let those
• 2:16
  shoulders soften, and let's begin.
• 2:18
  Why is it that your nervous system craves Yan Yoga?
• 2:25
  That's what we're going to talk about in today's episode of the
• 2:28
  Modern Yin Podcast, so welcome in.
• 2:34
  You know, there's a reason why so many women, including myself,
• 2:39
  find themselves drawn to yin yoga, especially after the age
• 2:44
  of 40. And it's not just because it
• 2:48
  feels good physically, because we already know it does, and
• 2:51
  we've already known that before, but it's because there's
• 2:56
  something deeper happening in the nervous system.
• 3:02
  You step into the stillness of a pose, and suddenly it's like
• 3:07
  your whole body goes thank you, and it exhales.
• 3:13
  You start to notice that your shoulders soften a little bit.
• 3:16
  Your breath starts to slow down. Eventually your mind becomes a
• 3:21
  little quieter. And here's the thing, what most
• 3:27
  women don't realize this isn't accidental.
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  All of that, what's happening, The softening of the shoulders,
• 3:36
  the breath slowing down, the mind becoming quieter.
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  It's not an accident because Yin yoga works directly with your
• 3:45
  nervous system. And truthfully, in a world where
• 3:51
  so many women are living in a state of chronic stress,
• 3:56
  anxiety, over stimulation, overwhelm, and internal
• 4:01
  pressure, that matters a lot. So today I want to talk about
• 4:08
  why Yan Yoga feels so powerful for nervous system regulation.
• 4:14
  And I'm also going to guide you through one very simple practice
• 4:19
  that you can do right side along me.
• 4:22
  Now, if you're driving or you're somewhere where you can't settle
• 4:25
  onto a yoga mat, then you're going to come back to that part
• 4:28
  of the episode because I want you to really feel into this.
• 4:36
  So let's talk about first why women are living in nervous
• 4:40
  system activation in the first place, right?
• 4:45
  Many women today are functioning from a nervous system that
• 4:49
  rarely fully settles down and restores.
• 4:55
  We're always thinking, we're always doing.
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  We're always anticipating. I know I am.
• 5:07
  And even when rest becomes productive, we still kind of
• 5:14
  feel like we're doing something. And here's the thing, over time,
• 5:22
  your body starts to adapt to that pace.
• 5:27
  And so your nervous system becomes more familiar with
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  activation rather than relaxation.
• 5:34
  I'm going to say that again because I really want this to
• 5:37
  land. Your nervous system becomes more
• 5:42
  familiar with activation than relaxation.
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  So even when you try to rest, you're actually struggling and
• 5:53
  you can't. And your nervous system starts
• 5:59
  to feel like, well, relaxation is foreign.
• 6:04
  It's almost dangerous. But there's one reason so many
• 6:14
  women feel tired yet wired, over stimulated, emotionally
• 6:21
  reactive, and unable to fully relax and sleep deeply.
• 6:28
  It's because your nervous system has literally forgotten what
• 6:31
  safety feels like in the body, right?
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  Like it's, it doesn't know what that feels like.
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  It doesn't know what relaxation is like.
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  So even when you try to relax, your body's and your nervous
• 6:44
  system are staying on guard. You're like, oh, no, we're still
• 6:47
  in protective mode. You know, kind of like back in
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  the reptilian days where, you know, the cavemans were always
• 6:57
  on guard because there could have been anything coming after
• 7:01
  them. And we're kind of in the same
• 7:03
  situation now, except it's not, you know, a dinosaur or a bear
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  standing in front of you. It's this thing called life is
• 7:12
  what's standing in front of you, and that's keeping you so
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  activated. So why does Yan yoga feel
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  different than anything else, than any other stimulating form
• 7:27
  of movement? Because here's the thing.
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  There's no rushing. There's no performing unless
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  you're trying to. There's no pushing through
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  unless you're trying to. Instead, there's just this
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  stillness. The slowness, the time, the
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  breath, the presence, the awareness and all of that
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  combination sends a super important signal to the nervous
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  system. You are in a safe place enough
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  to soften. Now, this doesn't happen like
• 8:11
  instantly, right? Because again, if your nervous
• 8:15
  system has been bracing and activated for so long, the
• 8:20
  relaxation is going to feel foreign, right?
• 8:23
  It's going to feel uncomfortable.
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  So The thing is, is that when you consistently, and I want to
• 8:30
  say this again because this is so important, it's consistency
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  of training your nervous system to feel safe enough to soften.
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  And that doesn't happen with one yin yoga practice.
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  But gradually, over time, as you start to do it more and more
• 8:51
  often, your muscles begin to relax sooner.
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  The breath deepens sooner, the body stops bracing sooner.
• 9:04
  And that's why yen can often feel very emotional.
• 9:08
  Because when the nervous system finally starts to soften and it
• 9:13
  finally starts to let go, the body begins releasing what it's
• 9:18
  been holding and storing for so long.
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  And that could be years. It could even be decades.
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  So this is where I want to pause here and guide you through a
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  really simple yen practice like 1 pose.
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  OK? So again, if you're not in a
• 9:39
  place where you can do this or if you're driving, please come
• 9:42
  back to this section of the episode, OK?
• 9:47
  But if you're here and you're like, you know what?
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  I'm down for this. I'm going to go get on my yoga
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  mat. Then I invite you to come into a
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  reclined butterfly. So bring the soles of your feet
• 9:58
  together and allow your knees to gently open.
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  Now I'm going to encourage you, even if you're super flexible,
• 10:06
  to place some cushions, pillows, blankets, blocks underneath your
• 10:11
  thighs to support you. And then I want you to slowly
• 10:15
  recline back onto your back. Now, even if you're like really
• 10:21
  flexible and you're like, well, I don't really need the props.
• 10:24
  Just bear with me on this one, OK?
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  Do it anyway. Because here's the thing.
• 10:30
  Your body might be flexible, but right now your nervous system
• 10:34
  isn't. So use the blocks because this
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  isn't about the stretch. This is about the nervous system
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  feeling safe enough to let the body release.
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  Now, once you have reclined back, just take a moment to let
• 10:54
  your body settle, adjust if you need to.
• 11:00
  And then I want you to notice your breath.
• 11:02
  Just the unmeasured pace of your breath.
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  You're not trying to change it right now.
• 11:08
  You're not trying to force it or manipulate it.
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  I just want you to create awareness around your breath,
• 11:20
  because without awareness, nothing changes.
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  And now I invite you to bring in a gentle 4 to 6 breath ratio.
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  What is that? You're going to inhale through
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  your nose for a count of four, and then you're going to exhale
• 11:44
  through an open mouth for a count of 6, and you're going to
• 11:49
  do that again. You're going to inhale through
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  the nose for four counts, and you're going to exhale through
• 11:59
  the mouth for six counts. So your exhale is becoming just
• 12:04
  a little bit longer than your inhale.
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  And This is why the longer exhale is so important because
• 12:14
  it helps signal safety to your nervous system.
• 12:19
  And when that happens, the body begins shifting out of bracing,
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  or sometimes what I call it's like a nervous system corset
• 12:27
  that's wrapped around you that you just can't let go of.
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  But eventually, with the breath and the stillness, the body
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  begins to shift out of survival mode, out of diligence and into
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  regulation. So you're welcome to stay here
• 12:52
  for a few more breaths. You can continue to listen to
• 12:58
  the episode here as you soften the jaw, maybe a little more,
• 13:04
  create a little hollow space between the upper and lower
• 13:07
  molars inside your mouth, let your shoulders melt and dry your
• 13:14
  shoulder blades apart. Now again, there's nothing
• 13:20
  you're trying to achieve here. You're just allowing the body to
• 13:26
  feel supported and when it feels ready, slowly release the breath
• 13:38
  count and come back to listening here.
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  So why breath and yin are so effective together?
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  And why honestly, on my Patreon, all of my classes now, all of my
• 13:57
  yin yoga classes now, I pair breath work in with the
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  practice, like deliberate breath work.
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  Because the body receives messages, two different messages
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  actually at the same time. There's the stillness through
• 14:14
  the pose and there's the safety through the breath.
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  And together that's what helps regulate the nervous system far
• 14:25
  more effectively than you just going.
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  I'm going to try to relax here. This is not laziness.
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  I really want you to understand this is physiological regulation
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  and this is so important in this day and age where we're so
• 14:45
  overstimulated. And especially for women over
• 14:50
  40, because, you know, I've said this in a few different
• 14:52
  episodes, Women over 40 are often in a sandwich generation.
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  Like they have aging parents that need support and then they
• 15:03
  often still have either kids at home or older, you know,
• 15:09
  teenagers or maybe even early 20s that still need support as
• 15:13
  well. And where are you?
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  You're right in the middle of that.
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  And so you're bending yourself forwards and backwards and then
• 15:24
  there's nothing left for you. And this is where I want to spin
• 15:31
  in the modern yin perspective because if you've been following
• 15:34
  along with me on my podcast here in my Patreon, I'm talking all
• 15:40
  about what is modern yin. And honestly, really in a simple
• 15:47
  way, it's about understanding that the body doesn't heal
• 15:51
  through constant force. Now, I had a student a couple of
• 15:56
  weeks ago, he's been practicing with me through my live stream
• 16:00
  yin classes for five years now. And at the end of the class last
• 16:06
  week, he said to me today, he's like, it was like a light bulb
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  turned on over my head. I finally realized that I've
• 16:16
  been forcing myself to relax all this time when that's not what I
• 16:23
  need. I need to feel safe first.
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  So today he said I supported myself a lot more in the poses
• 16:33
  and I could feel myself feeling more safe in my body and more
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  relaxed and relaxed sooner. And you see your body, your
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  nervous system, your mind, it all heals through safety,
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  support and consistency. I want to say that again,
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  consistency, because you know, a one hour practice once a week is
• 17:01
  far less beneficial and effective than you taking 5
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  minutes, 10 minutes every single day.
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  It's like you're training your nervous system like you're
• 17:13
  training biceps, repetition, consistency, and practices like
• 17:22
  yin yoga. They start to become so powerful
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  because they create the conditions where the nervous
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  system can finally stop gripping so tightly.
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  Especially for women over 40, whose bodies and nervous systems
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  are literally craving a slower, steadier, more nourishing,
• 17:44
  supportive rhythm. And this is exactly the kind of
• 17:51
  practice and support that I share inside my Patreon space.
• 17:56
  Yin yoga sessions, Nervous system regulation practices,
• 18:00
  breath work, acupressure and reflexology rituals, Nourishing
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  healthy recipes, Meditation programs, series conversations
• 18:19
  that help women feel calmer, more grounded, and more
• 18:22
  supported in their bodies. So if this is all resonating
• 18:28
  with you, you're welcome to join me there on Patreon.
• 18:36
  I want you to realize that your nervous system does not need
• 18:42
  more pressure. It needs more safety, and
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  sometimes, in all honesty, the most powerful thing you can do
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  for your own body is slow down long enough for it to finally
• 18:59
  exhale. This is modern yin, and it's
• 19:06
  where stillness does the real work.
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  Many women think they need to push harder, and especially when
• 19:18
  they're super stressed, they're like, OK, I'm just going to push
• 19:22
  a little harder in this practice and it'll help me relax.
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  But in all honesty, you don't need to push harder.
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  Often it's just your nervous system is simply asking for it
• 19:39
  to soften. Give it the space to soften.
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  This is why I say yin yoga is so much more than just a physical
• 19:50
  stretch. It truly is nervous system
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  regulation. Today's episode supported you in
• 19:59
  any way. The next best step is to come
• 20:02
  practice with me. Inside my Patreon I share simple
• 20:06
  yin yoga. Acupressure, reflexology, and
• 20:09
  nervous system practices designed for busy women who want
• 20:13
  to feel calm, rounded, and back in their bodies without needing
• 20:18
  a ton of time. You'll also find full classes,
• 20:22
  guided practices, and even nourishing recipes to support
• 20:26
  your well-being. Until next time, take a deep
• 20:30
  breath, slow things down, and take care of you and I'll see
• 20:34
  you in the next episode. Thanks so much for pressing play
• 20:39
  today.