Relaxation | Creep
In my lunar-phase-oriented Yin yoga classes, I point out that the New Moon is considered Yin. Yin, as you know, is dark, cold, still, quiet, concealed, and receptive. By contrast, I describe the Full Moon as Yang. Yang is bright, hot, active, loud, apparent, and assertive. These polarities are self-evident. And, as it turns out, it’s no stretch — pun intended — to frame body tissues in the same context.
Muscle contracts and relaxes. It’s dynamic. Almost instantly it can generate great force. Muscle is Yang. Fascia, on the other hand, is seemingly inert. It’s reflective. It recoils against high-, and over time it surrenders to low-level forces. Fascia is Yin.
In Yin yoga classes we seek to relax muscle so as to stimulate fascia. By holding for several minutes just a handful of floor-born postures, we use a Yin approach to affect Yin tissues. We use stillness to effect change.
Characteristics
So we know that fascia does not behave in the Yang way that muscle does, but it does possess contractile properties. Whereas muscle contracts and relaxes quickly, fascia is slow to respond. It takes at least a couple of minutes to affect it with static postures, and then, it takes even more time for the fascia to retract to its normal length. Compared to muscle, it’s a very, very long cycle.
You see, fascia is visco-elastic, and when gently pulled apart at either end it resists the pull. Its response is time-dependent, and varies with the rate of stress applied. When stressed quickly, fascia is resilient. Springy. When stressed gently, and over time, fascia is compliant. Indeed, as the stress is maintained the fascia begins relaxing.That’s a technical term, by the way, “relaxation.” This takes minutes. Interestingly, even after the stress is removed, for some time after, the tissue lengthening continues. This counter-intuitive phenomenon is called “creep,” which also is a technical term. Then after a while — minutes to hours — the tissues will have retracted to their normal length.
You probably won’t register the retraction as it’s happening, but in Yin yoga classes you could very well become aware of the relaxation, and possibly the creep, too. A good example is in the Twisted Root posture where, lying on your side and twisting your trunk away from frontal alignment with your hips, you first may feel tension deep around the spine, through the mid-section, across the chest area, and into the arm.
As the minutes tick by you may then begin to notice, proprioceptively, that your arm has moved closer to the floor. At some point, your arm may finally reach the floor — the knuckles of your hand touch, then the elbow, then perhaps the shoulder. That’s an example of relaxation, and more or less expected.
But, should you still have time remaining in the posture, you may notice the tension subsides to some degree, and as it does, you may feel the tissues of the chest and arms loosening further. How? No longer subjected to stress, a certain amount of physiological momentum carries the stretch farther. That’s creep.
Effect
Okay, great, so as Yin yogis, as athletes, what do we do with this?
Well, since Yin tissue — fascia — remains elongated for some time after its deformation, it’s important to understand that the joints (surrounded by the Yin tissues you’ve stressed) will be less stable than before. So, it’s generally best to avoid ballistic activity following a Yin session. Conversely, doing Yin yoga after rhythmic, repetitive activity is a good idea. It’s integral to recovery, and joint integrity. The fascia, ligaments, and joint capsules — all collagenous fibers — are revitalized, and the articulations themselves are reinforced through the protracted stress. Such stress can only be applied to the joints when muscles are relaxed. That is, in a Yin environment.
Lifestyle
Also important to know is that prolonged sitting is effectively an extended Yin yoga class, with a single posture. Since the body adapts to what it does — that’s the SAID principle: specific adaptation to imposed demands —, and as the stresses of sitting are continuously being applied, the body posture eventually begins to slump. This, due to the imbalances created. Lots of spinal and hip flexion, little to no extension. Lots of Yin exercise, little to no Yang. And, with constant exposure: permanence.
This condition was made painfully obvious to me a few years ago while visiting my 94 year-old mother. She’d spend most of her day sitting in one particular chair. When she did stand up and walk, she didn’t immediately straighten out, rather the contour of the chair remained with her while she was “upright,” and moving.
A balanced Yin yoga practice can counter even this level of structural insult, but it takes patience, and willingness. Sadly she had neither, but she did have a physician to prescribe meds for attendant discomforts.
Takeaway
In the stillness of your next Yin yoga class, as you are sinking toward your range limits, acknowledge the attendant sensations, and notice all that is going on beneath your postural stillness. As sediment only settles in still water, it’s only in the quietude of Yin that such inner observation can occur. Then, in daily life, pause occasionally to look at and understand how your habitual postures and practices may quietly be shifting your form, for better or worse.
For Better
A New Moon class is a great place to explore both relaxation and creep. To that end, here’s an ideal sequence of eight-minute postures.
Take this recorded class On Demand, anytime, anywhere! Scroll down to Lunation 1254, then across to video 05.08.24 | Earth.
- Caterpillar
- Supported Back Extension
- Deep Squat
- Cat Tail L
- Cat Tail R
- Pentacle