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Very often students who have not practiced Yin yoga yet, ask me what is the difference between Yin<\/a> and other types of well known yoga practices like Hatha or Vinyasa<\/a>. I have a good response by now to this question but when in a recent post in the\u00a0Yin Yoga Forum<\/a> of Bernie Clark, a question was asked whether a particular posture was really a Yin yoga pose or not, my curiosity was raised. Included with the post was a photo, similar to the one shown here, of a student in a deep back bend supported by suspended silks.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The author of the post felt that this pose was too extreme to be considered \u201cYin\u201d and questioned if anyone would gain any benefits from doing such a pose in a Yin yoga manner. She admitted she could never do this pose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n So...is this a Yin yoga pose or not? <\/p>\n\n\n\n Firstly, let\u2019s try to avoid judging any person or posture by its appearance. Aesthetics is irrelevant. Instead, let\u2019s ask ourselves (this should always be the priority): \u201cWhat sort of experience<\/em> is the person in the pose having?\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n Secondly, let\u2019s try a definition of what makes a posture a Yin pose. There are a few ways we could go, but here is the most common view.<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cA functional Yin yoga posture is one that is held, statically, for a long period of time without muscular engagement.\u201d<\/p>\n\n\n\n \u201cStatically\u201d means, we don\u2019t move, or at least not very much. \u201cLong period of time\u201d can mean staying in the pose for 2 or 3 minutes up to 10 to 20 minutes. \u201cWithout muscular engagement\u201d means we don\u2019t have to work at staying in this shape. From a \u201cfunctional\u201d point of view, a Yin yoga pose should have the intention of creating a stress in a targeted area. If a posture meets these criteria, it is a Yin yoga pose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n What is a \u201ctargeted area\u201d and what do we mean by \u201cintention\u201d? The intention is the reason we are doing the pose. The targeted area is the region of the body that we want to affect. For example, if the intention of a posture is to create a sense of stretching or elongation in a particular region of the body, or alternately if the intention is to create a sense of compression in a specific area, and that sensation in fact does arise, then the intention of the posture has been achieved. It is a functional pose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Does the posture in the picture meet the criteria for being a Yin yoga pose? I don't know! We don\u2019t know. We would have to ask the student. Firstly, why is she doing this pose? What is the intention? If she says she is trying to target the front side of her body for a relaxed, elongating stretch, we can then ask, \u201cWhat are you feeling?\u201d If she answers, \u201cI feel a lovely stretch there\u201d, then she is doing the pose properly. Next, can she remain in this pose for a long time (2 minutes or more), without any muscular effort? We could also ask, \u201care you free of any pain?\u201d If she answers \u201cyes\u201d then it would seem to meet all the conditions of a Yin yoga pose.<\/p>\n\n\n\n For her!<\/em><\/strong> For this student, this may well be a delightful Yin yoga posture and if it works for her, that is wonderful. Just don\u2019t expect this to work for every body.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I hope this has helped you understand better what is Yin yoga. And if you still have queries, just get in touch<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n
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That last bit is important. Personally, I could not do this posture and if I could, I certainly would not be able to stay in it for very long due to my scoliosis. For me, it would not be a Yin yoga posture, but some form of medieval punishment. It would not be pain-free either. I suspect for most people, this is not an accessible position and could not be held for any length of time. So, for most people, this would not be an appropriate<\/em> Yin yoga pose. As a Yin yoga teacher, I would not suggest it for my students. But then, I do not teach aerial yoga and don\u2019t have the equipment to offer my students anyway, so that point is rather irrelevant.<\/p>\n\n\n\n