Yoga combines breathing exercises, postures, and meditation aimed at building a holistic approach to well-being. Today, yoga instructors are increasingly integrating essential oils into yoga to provide a more mindful and enlightened experience.
Essential oils have great medicinal properties. These aromatic compounds are found in the bark, stems, roots, seeds, and flowers of certain plants. They can be used to get physical benefits like easing a hurt stomach or tight muscles and emotional benefits like opening your heart and allowing the flow of creative energy. When used properly, they can perfectly complement yoga practices and be a powerful part of your yoga sessions
Here are some ways in which essential oils can be used
1. Self-Massage
As essential oils are fat soluble, they can be easily absorbed by the skin. A great way to use these oils is to simply apply them on the skin and gently massage till they get absorbed. However, make sure that they are first diluted with a carrier oil such as apricot kernel oil or sweet almond oil. In addition, I would recommend to only apply high-quality oil to your skin.
Put a few drops on your hand and rub them together to create some heat and activate the oil. You can then simply hold your hands a few inches in front of your face and take a few deep breaths. It also feels great to put the hands with the oil on body parts like the belly or your chest. After you have experience with essential oils you can also start to massage the oil on your temples, feet, or back of your neck.
2. Using Essential Oil Diffuser
An electronic diffuser can disperse a fine mist of essential oils. This gently fills the surrounding air with the aroma and healing properties of the selected essential oil. Pour a few drops of essential oil in your diffuser and turn it on. The oil will soon be uniformly circulated in your room.
3. Spraying Freely
You can create a purifying essential oil blend which can be sprayed on the yoga mat before or after you exercise. Also, you can spray the oil in your yoga room, chairs, and clothes. It will help cleanse and fill the respective items with fragrances to boost the mood. Consider spraying an essential oil throughout the yoga space at the start and end of your yoga session.
4. Anointing
Touch is a powerful healing method and often used in yoga. This is enhanced with essential oils. Anointing with the appropriate oil before beginning your yoga can effectively boost both the mood and energy. Similarly, using essential oil (on the feet and temples) just before savasana can increase the relaxing power of this restorative posture. If you are a yoga teacher who is keen to adopt this method, ensure that you have the consent of your students before you do it.
The above methods can effectively make essential oils a part of your yoga experience, thereby enriching it meaningfully.
Here are some essential oils ideas for your yoga practice
Open your Heart
Try using rose, jasmine, geranium, and helichrysum essential oils to open up your heart. Each of these oils is associated with the heart chakra. They help in freeing any internal blockages that you may have to both give and receive unconditional love.
Grounding
Use cedarwood, cypress, vetiver, black spruce, and tea tree oil for grounding. These earthy, tree-based extracts help you to connect with your core values or roots. This, in turn, prevents you from being confined to logical thinking all the time. It enables you to experience the senses and live in the moment in a wholesome manner.
Lower Depression
Peppermint essential oil is great for dealing with depression. It helps revive lost energy and increases positive energy. You can apply it to your collarbones and massage gently to feel relaxed. When used in meditation, this oil breaks down your resistance regarding new situations and enables you to overcome them. It also successfully increases your intuitive awareness.
Relax the Mind
Ylang ylang essential oil helps to calm the mind and gain inner peace. It releases feelings of irritation, anger, tension, and anxiety. Moreover, this oil helps to calm the heartbeat and your breathing pattern. When these two functions take place at a gentle pace, your mind automatically unwinds and can think in a clearer manner. Massage the oil on areas that can become stiff with tension such as the shoulders and lower back. Check out our blog post about essential oils for stress relief for more tips.
Healing
Tea tree essential oil restores feelings of positivity, self-confidence, and stability. It also increases your inner strength and endurance. All of these promote a positive attitude that helps you be resilient. It contributes meaningfully toward healing you from within.
Relieving Pain
It is common for certain parts of our body to feel strained and therefore, be in pain. This is where wintergreen essential oil comes of great help. When rinsed on the affected parts, it decreases pain in the joints and muscles. This oil also eliminates tension and stress.
Induce Sound Sleep
If you experience frequent insomnia or disrupted sleep, try some gentle, calming essential oils. These include vetiver, lavender, and neroli. They are typically ideal for a vinyasa or yin session. The prized benefit is good sleep at a stretch.
Boost Creativity
Some essential oils such as wild orange, peppermint, tangerine, and clary sage are great options when you want to get your creative juices flowing. These oils enable the opening of your sacral chakra, which is the source of creativity, emotion, and sexuality. As a result, you become more creative and innovative in every sphere of life, which works wonders in day-to-day existence.
There are several essential oils available in the market, and even a greater number of proprietary blends. You want to slowly introduce the oils to your yoga practice and give yourself time to absorb their properties and power. Observe how you react to the different kinds of essential oils and accordingly adopt their usage in your life.
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