Understanding Yin Yang Yoga and the Meridian System If you've ever explored Eastern wellness practices, like Acupuncture or Hatha Yoga you've probably heard about meridians. But what exactly are they, and how do they relate to your yoga practice?
The Energy Highway System
In Traditional Chinese Medicine, there's a belief that energy called Qi (pronounced "chee") flows through your body much like blood travels through your veins. When this energy flows freely, you feel vibrant and healthy. But when the flow gets blocked or disrupted, that's when you might experience discomfort, tension, or even illness. This is where practices like acupuncture, tai chi, Yin and Yang yoga come in. They're all designed to restore and balance this vital energy flow.
~ Think of meridians as the superhighways that Qi uses to travel throughout your body.
~ Specific pathways that connect to your organs and systems, directing energy where it needs to go.
~ Your body has 12 major meridians also called channels.
Yin Yang Yoga
When you practice Yang yoga with dynamic, strong postures and moving sequences you're actively pumping Qi through these meridian channels. The muscular engagement, heat building, and continuous movement clear blockages and get energy moving vigorously through your body.
On the flip side, Yin yoga takes a different approach. By holding passive stretches for longer periods (usually 3-5 minutes), we're applying gentle, sustained pressure to specific areas of our body, allowing Qi to flow along and into connective tissue, joints, ligaments and organs. While Yang practice activates and mobilises energy, Yin practice allows Qi to penetrate, settle, and essentially heal.
Together, Yin and Yang yoga create a complete practice that honors both the active and receptive qualities of your energy system, keeping your meridian channels clear, balanced, and flowing smoothly.
What to expect from a Yin Yang Yoga class
~ Expect to arrive at your own centre, to focus on tuning into yourself.
~ The sessions are designed to activate Qi flow through our meridian channel system. In the first half of the practice, I like to include the wisdom and movement from Tai Chi, Qigong practices and dynamic Hatha Yoga postures, (like sun salutations and warriors). In the second half of the practice you will experience the long hold postures of Yin Yoga, where applying just enough pressure draws the nourishment into the joints and harder to reach tissue.
~ Classes are suitable for levels.
~ I encourage the use of props, such as yoga blocks, yoga pads, yoga straps, bolsters or rolled up towels to enable ease and reduce stress. The postures are sha pes provided as a guide, working with your own mobility is how we create space for Qi to flow.
