Discover how restorative yoga works on a physiological level to calm the mind, balance brain activity, and promote deep, lasting well-being.
It might seem counter intuitive to write about the science behind the benefits of a restorative yoga practice. Particularly as the purpose of Restorative Yoga is to cultivate deep peace within by not stimulating our senses and therefore reducing the mental activity from reading, listening, smelling, tasting or touching. However, in the modern society that we exist in there is a drive towards science to prove the efficacy of what we do.
This might be because we perceive that we have less time in our days or lives. Or perhaps it is because there are so many “bio hacks” and quick fix claims that we’ve become sceptical of anything that promises to deliver results. I’d say that it is likely somewhere in the middle for most people and that is an important thing to acknowledge. There are multitudes of reasons to join a Yoga class let alone a restorative class. So, lets dive into some of the evidence that can support the benefits we feel after a restorative practice.
An increased activity of Alpha Brain waves
During restorative states such as meditation and savasana there is an increase of brain wave activity that has been studied. Sometimes this is discussed as though one type of brain waves is happening whilst the others are not. This is not the case, all of the brain wave pattern types are active, in some activities we have a dominance such as Gamma wave dominance in meditation and Theta and Delta dominance in sleeping. Although theta wave dominance can happen when we are awake and is usually a receptive and creative state for the brain when awake.
The benefit of an increase in Alpha brain wave activity is that it’s a Hertz of 8-13 that is often associated with a tranquil wakefulness that comes about from non-arousal of the mind and relaxation of the body. Which describes what we are looking for as we experience the shapes of restorative. There is not a lot of evidence to show exactly what happens when the brain has an alpha brain wave dominance. But it is shown to be a state of relaxation for the mind, which has been linked to an increased amount of brain activity in sorting and filing neural processes in the background. I like to think of it as tidying up the office and putting things where we can find them easily again.
We also know that a calm and relaxed mind has a better chance of quality sleep patterns and less impulsive decision making. The more time we spend moving in and out of this alpha wave dominance will experientially teach us how to modulate our stress responses through the day. We can turn off when we need to for sleep and we can learn to pause before making important decisions.
Relaxation for your health
There are many studies that show the body’s ability to relax the breathing apparatus to slow breathing during yoga. As well as the lowering of blood pressure, even in most inversions where there is an increase in blood pressure but then a gradual reduction as the postures is held and supported. The art of relaxation is not assumed to be a natural skill and takes time to allow people to somatically embrace what softness in the body can feel like. Even though there are yoga asana techniques and pranayama practices that have evidence backed studies, the effects will only be evident when the student is given appropriate guidance and instruction to induce the state of relaxation for these benefits. As odd as it sounds, it can be work for people to learn the art of relaxation.
Relaxing can only happen when we feel safe
Most people in the yoga world will be familiar with our autonomic nervous system. This is the bodies instinctive fight or flight system and the rest and digest system. In more recent times the Polyvagal Theory presented by Stephen Porges allows us to expand the ideas we hold about the autonomic nervous system. He also includes a state of social engagement and the dorsal reflex which is our shutdown or “play dead” response. There is a lot about the Polyvagal theory that is accessible online and is still being explored actively in academic institutions and clinical psychology treatment rooms.
The reason it’s helpful for restorative is that it gives a framework of understanding the difference between relaxation and being comfortable or becoming numb and shutting down in your body. It can be hard to notice what is happening for a student. Our jobs as teachers are not to diagnose or judge. However, if we can recognise that someone is shut down we can take care in how we approach them and invite them back to a safe space to relax and rejoin the practice. OR if someone is socially engaged, they’re likely relaxed but looking to connect so we can find ways to guide them into deep relaxation for example with inversions or postures where the head is below the heart. There is nothing wrong with how students come into class as long as they are safe to be there. By understanding some of the ways the autonomic system can function allows us as teachers to have tools to recognise body language to cultivate a sense of safety and acceptance. We might never know exactly what is going on for the individual internally. But we can approach each student individually and recognise key physical responses to guide the choices we offer. We know that a rest and digest state in the nervous system allows for regular blood flow to all the crucial organs. It softens muscle tension and can slow our breathing rate down. All of these physical responses are important to help our bodies naturally detox through its own pathways of elimination in the body.
Even without evidence from scientific studies there is plenty of anecdotal evidence from students to espouse the benefits of yoga and in particular restorative yoga. It is not the Yoga teachers’ job to prove these benefits are supported by science, but we can definitely teach from a place of understanding if we expand our knowledge base. Often in a class only a little is needed to share what we know about the benefits. You don’t have to be an expert but be honest with what you know, where you learnt it and the limit of what you can say based on that knowledge and you will be fine. If a student wants more knowledge; then they are probably ready to start some formal training in the Yoga Teacher pathways.
References
Silence: Harnessing the restorative power of silence in a noisy world - Joanna Nyuland. Hachette, 2020 https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1250830
The Polyvagal Theory in Therapy – Deb Dana
A Handbook for Yogasana Teachers: The Incorporation of Neuroscience, Physiology, and Anatomy into the practice, Mel Robin
Teaching Yoga with Intention, Judith Hanson Lasater PhD, PT
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