Yoga practice for Autumn: best tips and poses
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Autumn is the season of transformation. It is, in fact, the Fall time, with days getting shorter, but it also corresponds to the season of planting new seeds to flourish in the Spring. Like any other season, there is also a difference when it comes to doing the best yoga practice for Autumn, and some changes must be taken into consideration.
Let’s revisit the link between Yoga and Ayurveda. According to Ayurveda, each system has three doshas, or main energies: fire, air, and earth. Also, each season has a predominant dosha. During Autumn, air, or Vata, is the main present energy.
Vata is related to movement, motivation, flexibility, and initiative. Its qualities are cold, dry and light. It’s also related to our nervous system, which means it’s directly related to mental health.
In fact, Fall is one of the seasons when more people feel unstable, both psychologically and physically, because all of the movement and transformation of Vata can be overwhelming, especially if we don’t know how to work around with it. The feelings are usually of being unsettled, ungrounded and unstable.
Although it’s not possible to change seasons and the weather, luckily, disciplines like yoga, teach us how to deal with these energies. A few changes on the routine, an adjustment of our lifestyle and slight differences on the way we practice yoga, that promote the opposite qualities of the Vata dosha, are enough to enjoy a great Autumn season!
Tips for a great Yoga Practice for Autumn
Consistency and organization
The first valid and important advice is for you to create a consistent and organized routine. Schedule your practices for the same hour every day, and the same amount of time. It will make a difference!
Longer Permanences
We always prefer what is not so healthy for us. Even more, if you are already a person with more Vata than the other elements, you love jumping around, you look everywhere while you do your yoga practice, you hate to always repeat the same sequences, and it goes on.
To have an effective yoga practice for Autumn, make an effort to spend more time in each asana since it will ground you and stabilize you. Discipline yourself to stay focused and concentrated while you practice.
Focus on the Lungs and large intestines
Different doshas are associated with different vital organs. Vata is associated with lungs and large intestines, so it’s great to choose poses that focus on these organs.
Surya Namaskar
In this specific case, during the Fall season, avoid the jumps, do a more grounded version of Surya Namaskar with gentle and firm transitions between poses.
Gentle Forward Bends
Include poses with gentle forward bends in your practice. Poses like Uttanasana, Padangusthasana or Baddha Konasana help us to keep our focus inward after all the expansion of Summer, and before the rebirth of the Winter.
These poses are typically grounding as well, which is great for keeping the balance and being centered in ourselves, although all the transformation movement is happening around us.
Poses that awaken the fire on the core area, but are still and stable, are also great. Try Utkatasana (try it until you feel your legs burning) and Navasana.
Twists
Twists are purifying and activate circulation, improve heat and help to detox the body. Make sure you enter and get out of the pose gently and add standing and sitting twists to your practice during this time of the year.
Pranayama
Pranayamas are always a great help when it comes to finding our balance, so they become even more important in Autumn. During Autumn, the best pranayama you can choose is Nadi Shodhana.
Nadi Shodhana is known as a breathing technique that balances all doshas. It’s excellent to release physical tension, but it also clears the mind, promotes tranquility and reduces stress. It’s the one to do, once you feel anxious, nervous, stressed or exhausted.
It’s important to realize that every season as a purpose in our lives. In fact, they show us that we are cyclic, that if for a while is time to go out, meet people and conquer the world, sooner or later we always have to go “back home”, to re-focus in ourselves.
Knowing and recognizing this, is the key to a balanced and happy life. All you need to do is to learn more about the changes you need to do for every season, in order to keep your balance. Try these changes and have the greatest yoga practice for Autumn.
You may also like:
- Yoga: the ultimate guide for types and benefits
- Pranayama progression: how to improve your breathing with yoga
- Mudras: what are they and how can they help me?
