Yin Yoga

Trainer: Susana Fryman Level:

Yin yoga is a slow-paced style of yoga with postures that primarily concentrate on the connective tissues of the body (fascia, tendons, ligaments) as well as deep within the joints. Most postures are performed on the floor in a seated or reclined position that allow for deep stretching, often working towards opening the hips, shoulders and spine. Students are instructed to soften the muscles of the body in each pose so there’s no “work” but rather opportunity to move deeply and gently into the stretch.

Each pose is held for 3 to 5 minutes and occasionally longer. Bolsters, blocks, straps and other yoga props will be used to aid the student into each pose. Our yin yoga class focuses on meridians of the body while opening the hips and shoulders and quieting the mind. This form of yoga is suitable for all ages and levels, and although it appears to be very passive in nature it can be quite challenging as one finds the quiet stillness and appropriate depth of each pose. Yin yoga is highly recommended to help balance the more rigorous “yang” vinyasa or ashtanga practices.  Yin tissues (fascia, bones tendons, ligaments, joints) and yang tissues (muscle, blood, skin) respond differently while being exercised. Yang forms of yoga stimulate the muscles in the body, increases strength, and promote good physical health. Yin Yoga is necessary to balance one’s overall practice to keep the body from weakening and to prevent the susceptibility of injury to the joints. Yin lubricates and adds flexibility to joints.

After you experience the power of Yin Yoga, you will realize you need Yin to balance and complete your yoga practice.

Temperature: Comfortable

Level: Beginner/Intermediate

Originally from Miami, I moved to the keys in 1996 with my husband and two small children to raise them in a more natural environment and a smaller, closer-knit community. I started practicing yoga then and loved how it complimented my tennis game and other sports and fitness pursuits. It wasn’t until I began yoga teacher training with Kathy at Key Largo Yoga and cultivated a daily sadhana practice that I was completely drawn in by the more subtle limbs of yoga which go way beyond just the physical asana practice. Always a voracious reader, yoga began to satisfy my “nerdy” side and my thirst as a lifelong student; a match made in heaven because there is so much to learn! The greatest thing I have learned from yoga so far is that my practice is inherently mine in a way that is inalienable; no person or thing, no matter if I am in a confined space or anywhere in the vast world, can separate me from my practice. When I teach, whether the students are locals or tourists, my intention is to build a sense of community that is unique to every class. I’ve received so much joy, knowledge, peace, growth, and understanding through yoga that it is my dharma, my purpose, to share it, spread it, and broadcast it wide. I love to travel in our RV and practice yoga everywhere I go, and I often find myself practicing outside, or at different studios around the country. My goal is to practice yoga in every National Park in the United States.