Yin Yoga
Yin Yoga is a feminine passive, longer hold time, with tensile weight placed on particular parts of the body, including joints, emphasizing connective tissue expansion. Emphasis is placed on the large muscle groups staying soft.
“Vinyasa flow is the type of yoga that I practice most frequently, but I also really enjoy yin yoga. I think we live in such a fast-paced society today that a slower practice like yin yoga is hard to adjust to for some people who want to constantly keep moving and vigorously work out their muscles.
I think Americans tend to be more yang-friendly. I have fallen into this trap a lot myself. I tend to neglect the yin side of yoga and I am drawn to the more active yang practice. However, every time I take a yin class, I feel really great afterwards. It is always a nice treat when I am able to practice yin. I hope I can find more of a balance between yin and yang in my own practice and bring it to my students as well.
Yin is just as challenging as yang, sometimes even more so. It helps one to develop stillness when facing any difficult pose or any difficult situation in one’s personal life. One pose that might be challenging in a yin practice is a pigeon pose, but it is one of my favorites." by Alyssa Ward, yoga teacher and trainer at Clayton Yoga.