Yin Yoga for Fall

We are in a transition, within the transition. What I mean by that is we are part way through Fall and yet not quite at winter.

We have moved away from the ultimate extroverted, Yang, fire element of summer (which was a big transition to make) to the more introverted, Yin-like time of autumn.

I have a Fall-themed Yin Yoga practice for you at the bottom of this post.

Fall in Traditional Chinese Medicine and Taoism is a time for letting go. It’s also linked to the emotion of grief.

For those who love summer, it’s typically grieving the loss of Summer.

 I actually LOVE fall it’s my second favourite season (spring being #1).

But as excited as I am about sweaters, scarves, boots and misty rainy beach walks, I also grieve the loss of daylight. As a Canadian, I know it won’t be long before it’s getting dark at 4:00 pm 😳.

So, adjusting our lifestyle this time of year is key for maintaining health and harmony in both our bodies and our emotional well-being.

Here are a few things to keep in mind and set intentions around for the remainder of Fall.

This time of year is a great time for rest and reflection.

Fall is the time to let go of unneeded energies from your life. This could be relationships or friendships or habits that are no longer serving you. This is a time to let them go.

It’s also a good time to purge your home of unused clothing or other physical clutter.

Fall is the time of the Metal element in Traditional Chinese Medicine. The organs associated with the Fall are the Lungs and Large intestine.

According to Traditional Chinese Medicine Fall weather is mostly very dry. Dryness can damage both the lungs and the large intestines.

Increasing warm fluid intake is a good idea this time of year as well as eating seasonal foods such as pears, squash and pumpkin. Cooked kale and broccoli are vegetables that can also help nourish the fluids of the body. Walnuts and hempseeds nourish the fluids of both the large intestines and the lungs. 

It’s time to favour cooked food over Raw.

It’s also a time to let yourself sleep and rest more. Dim the lights, and cozy up.

The lungs are responsible for our Defensive Qi (immunity) so taking some extra care this time of year can help prevent us from picking up those seasonal colds that are so common this time of year.

One of the simplest ways to ward off colds is to wear a scarf.  Keeping the neck warm is a great way to protect your body from the cold weather and colds invading our defensive Qi.

A recipe for harmony this fall:

1) Take extra time to go inward
2) Practice extra self-care
3) Stay hydrated with warm liquids
4) Eat warm nurturing seasonal foods (I love roasting veggies in the oven)
5) Pull out the scarves
6) Letting go of unneeded energies and stuff that no longer serves you.

The above tips can help you to adapt to the seasonal change and improve your health, both emotionally and physically.

And to help you settle into Fall with more ease here is a Fall-themed Yin Yoga Practice For You.

Happy practicing

nyk

P.S. This Video is a sample of a previous Zoom class videos like this (and a bunch more) are available in my On-Demand Video Library more on that here