People these days are living in a culture of achievement. In turn, everybody tends to chase success daily. This time and the task-driven world has made everything work at a fast pace. So, achievement-driven individuals also become more focused on hitting their productivity goals. They refuse to slow down and even deprive themselves of their body’s much-needed relaxation. However, if we refuse to slow down and take a break our busy lives will also take its toll on our health. Therefore, we need to have time for relaxation and renew our senses both physically and mentally. This is when restorative yoga will prove to be very helpful.
Improves flexibility
Yoga does not require one to have muscular contractions. It allows the body to work hard to increase its flexibility. Restorative yoga enables the body to become more flexible by relaxing and softening those tight muscles. The body is still stretched when performing a restorative yoga sequence but it will have enough time to fully relax. This way, tension will also be gradually released, thereby improving flexibility.
Calms the nervous system
Restorative yoga gives you the chance to indulge in different poses at a slower pace. It gives you more opportunities to engage in deep breathing and this stimulates your body’s parasympathetic nervous system. This occurrence takes place right at the very first pose that you perform on your yoga mat. The adverse effects of stress will be greatly reduced when the parasympathetic nervous system is stimulated. In turn, the risks associated with exposure to too much stress will cease to cause damage to your body and overall well-being. These things result in a calm nervous system that brings about a relaxing effect on your mind and body deep down to the cellular level.
Promotes mindfulness
Restorative yoga does a great job of cultivating one’s mindfulness. Deeper and greater awareness will be developed as a person performs each pose at a slower pace. The slow pace, coupled with deep breathing makes it possible for an individual to fully experience the depths of each movement and pose. As a result, the person practicing restorative yoga will have increased awareness of each physical sensation. He will also become more conscious about the emotions that he feels and the thoughts that come up throughout the session. In other words, you no longer become a passive individual, but one that has a greater awareness of the environment in him and around him. This is something that cannot be easily achieved without the regular practice of restorative yoga.
Develops resilience
Regular practice of restorative yoga has been known to develop resilience. It makes a person more connected and more aware of what is happening in his nervous system. The slow pace and deep breathing techniques to make it easier for the nervous system to transition from a stressed state into one that is prepared to recover with much grace and ease. Resilience is also achieved as this practice also helps improve one’s ability to achieve a better quality of sleep.
Restorative yoga is no doubt one of the best ways to achieve deep relaxation which is a prerequisite to the body’s restorative process. Unfortunately, some people just don’t realize that there are far greater benefits to doing “nothing”. Allowing yourself to just “rest in the now” is one very powerful way to heal your mind, body, and soul.