We all know that taking care of our physical, mental, emotional and spiritual health can pay great dividends in terms of making us better at work, with family, in sport, and in any other areas of life that are important to us. When our bodies feel good, we are naturally more energised. When we have the tools to be calm in our minds, we can think more clearly and make good decisions rather than reacting in the moment to what could be inaccurate thoughts or turbulent emotions.

But trying to get from feeling burnt out and overwhelmed to that better place can be difficult, because often it feels like starting a Self-care practice to gain more energy actually requires a lot of energy you don’t have to begin with!

This is definitely a problem you can encounter with yoga. Today, especially in cultures outside of India, highly energetic styles of yoga like power yoga and ashtanga vinyasa are some of the most popular styles. I remember being an exhausted athlete, student and personal trainer, trying to take yoga classes for recovery, only to find that the class was tiring. It wasn’t what I needed – in fact, sometimes it felt like I just got more exhausted, felt like I was failing because I wasn’t able to do the class “well” and then I just felt even more discouraged and fatigued.

Sometimes an energising yoga practice is great, especially if your problem is that you have too many mental and emotional demands that prevent you from moving your body enough.

But sometimes, we need stillness. We need something more restorative and relaxing first.

Starting on Monday the 12th of September, I’m going to be sharing a free, simple practice for relaxation live on Instagram. I’ll be there Monday to Friday, to share some super-restful poses that you can do lying on your mat, floor or even bed! Each live session will be short (30-minutes) and informal. We’ll be holding each pose for a minimum of a minute at a time, and will have plenty of time to chat, discuss any issues that arise, and share questions and answers.

This is a great way for you to try yoga in a very comfortable way. Not sure if you want to participate? Just come and watch, ask some questions if you like. Next time when you feel more comfortable, you can join in without needing to make any commitments or even to have anyone see what you’re doing.

Make sure you’re following me on Instagram @yoga_with_maelin to catch the live sessions. Make sure you click on the scheduled live on my Instagram bio and set a reminder so you don’t miss it! I’m really looking forward to connecting with you there!

(PS – I’m aware that we all have different schedules, and live and travel in many different timezones. If you really want to attend these lives but you have a scheduling clash, feel free to get in touch with me to suggest a time. If it works for me and others too, I might be able to accommodate you!)