Happy Balsamic Moon!

Some people believe we have a natural connection to the moon and function within the pulls of the lunar calendar. Because of this, there is an idea that certain activities are most potent at different times of the month.

The Balsamic Moon, usually lasting three and a half days before the new moon, is a potent time for REST. The time of planning, accomplishing, and celebrating has come to an end. The time to invite stillness, reflection, and nothingness has arrived. 

Some ideas for honouring and celebrating The Balsamic Moon...

• Taking a “ceremonial” bath or shower. Make it RELAXING and make it about YOU. Whatever that means to you. Light a candle, put on a face mask, exfoliate, play your favourite tunes. Notice the water on your skin and imagine your day, your month or the winter season flushing out of your body and down the drain. 

• Going for a walk in nature by yourself. Leave behind your pooch, your partner or kids, pop your phone on silent and take yourself out for a walk. Be present with yourself and the environment around you. Notice the air on your skin, the sounds, textures and colours around you. Notice your feet on the earth. Just be.

• Connecting to your breath. Find a cozy spot in your house, set a timer (make it a peaceful alarm) and spend five or ten minutes noticing your breath or practicing your favourite breath exercise. Lowering your gaze or closing your eyes as you notice the natural movements of breathing.

• Carving out time for meditation. Take time connecting to your inner wisdom. Meditation for the majority of us is the practice of observing our mind-chatter. Meditating during this moon phase can sometimes offer us additional “downloads” of useful information in between those moments of busy mind. These messages from our intuitive selves can bring clarity, purpose or suggestions for the month ahead. 

• Daydreaming or doing nothing. Daydreaming is often seen as a useless activity, but in moderation it can allow the brain to feel more rested. “Doing nothing” as an adult is a radical concept on it’s own! Give yourself permission to take a break. Lay on your back and watch the clouds or pop yourself in a cozy place, like on a couch, and take a couple minutes to literally do nothing. 

• Taking a restorative yoga class. Our online restorative session this Tuesday, June 8th, from 7:30-9 p.m. will be all about the slowww and easeful practice. Come join in.

Are we friends on Instagram? If not, we should be!

I would love to hear how you carved out intentional time to honour this important moon phase! Get in touch to share how it felt for you by DM’ing me or tagging me in a photo of you pre or post ceremony @thebalsamicmoon

Want to incorporate The Balsamic Moon Phase into your monthly calendar? I have already compiled the 2021 Balsamic Moon Dates here.

Much love,

Bri

Restorative Yoga At Home

Countless restorative yoga classes were cancelled when the pandemic hit. This is because of the perception that restorative yoga cannot be practiced at home. Surely your yoga students need access to the prop closet!

I know restorative yoga can feel impossible at home without all the fancy studio gear...but I am here to tell you it is simply not true! Rest is created when we feel safe and cozy; for most of us this is inside our own homes. All the qualities you love about a good in-studio restorative class can be cultivated wherever you are. Believe it or not, there are tonnes of things you already have within reach to help you access states of comfort and ease without needing all the fancy props.

The most IMPORTANT aspect of a restorative yoga session is the space you practice in. Think warm, quiet, still, safe and dark. Where in your home can you find a space that feels good? Where can you dim the lights and get away from noise? Perhaps somewhere you won’t be bothered by a humming appliance, the sounds of street noise or even the constant blowing of an AC unit. GO THERE. Let your housemates know (even the furry friends) that you’re unavailable for the next _X_ amount of minutes. Collect all your supplies, grab a warm blanket and a pair of socks, and put your phone on silent. Make the space yours. Do whatever you need to do to make rest accessible to you. 

Now onto the props.

YOGA MATS:

We use yoga mats for restorative practice at studios...to be frank...because that is just what is done. If you have a yoga mat, great! Even better, practicing on a plush carpet. If you do use a yoga mat, you might want to place a blanket on top of it for extra warmth and comfort.

BOLSTERS:

Almost every restorative posture uses at least one or two bolsters. The more the merrier. If you don’t have access to one, don’t fret, bolsters can be substituted with firm cushions (like the ones that might make up your couch) or a rolled up yoga mat with a couple blankets stacked on top. 

This is an easy way make your own bolster:

NOTE: There is a bit of effort involved, so use pillow(s) and towel(s) that won’t be missed for other purposes to save you from building and dismantling your bolster after every use. The steps below are for creating one bolster at a time. If you want to practice with two or more, gather double the supplies.

Fold towels into a similar shape and size as your pillow. For most of you this means folding your towel into thirds (lengthwise)

Make a pillow sandwich - using towels as the “bread” and the pillow as the “contents”

Take your pillowcase and bunch it up in your hands (think of bunching up a sock before putting it on your foot). Stuff the top corners of your pillow sandwich into the corners of the pillowcase. At this point I find it best to sit directly opposite the pillowcase end (right side of this photo) so you have good control of all sides. Begin to pull the pillowcase over your sandwich. This part is the trickiest, so take your time ensuring you pull the towels taut so there are no big lumps or creases forming in the centre.

Flip the sandwich as you get halfway down so you can check the front and back sides.

TADA! Your pillow bolster is complete. As you can see, the texture from my towels shows through. I don’t find this bothers me. You can always layer your new bolster with a soft blanket to solve this.

The end result should be a soft but firm structure that offers you support when building your restorative postures.

YOGA BLOCKS:

In my opinion, if you are going to invest in any yoga prop for this practice I suggest blocks - I’ve seen some super affordable blocks at Winners and Sport Chek. The reason for this is they are so versatile. I use them in restorative postures (like the photo above) but I also use them in my movement practice as they allow the floor to come to me if I can’t reach. They’re a way to rest my head or knees to allow for a softer, more easeful stretch. The blocks above are 4” foam blocks, which is my preferred thickness. The most common material is a soft foam or a cork brick. I prefer the foam as they’re much lighter, which makes them easier to cart around and I don’t fear for my toes if I drop one. 

Some substitutes for blocks include a stack of books (think of your dusty encyclopedia collection, old university textbooks, or your romance novel collection), small stools, firm cushions and even a firm stack of blankets. Get creative! Try a few things out and see what feels good for you. 

Note all the pillows as a substitute for yoga blocks.

YOGA STRAP SUBSTITUTES:

• A housecoat belt

• A regular belt

• Stretchy exercise bands

• An extra long scarf

EYE MASK SUBSTITUTES (for that dark quality)

• A sleeping mask

• A tied scarf

• A soft hand towel or sock

• An old sock filled with flax or rice secured with an elastic band or sewn

BLANKETS:

Blankets have two uses; warmth and support. The blanket you choose to help keep you warm should be your favourite blanket in the house. Think cozy and soft.

As for the support blankets...think firm and easy to fold and stuff. Mexican blankets are preferred in most yoga studios, but any tightly woven blanket will do. Oversized towels might do the trick, as will additional pillows and thin books.

Here we used an ironing board in place of a bolster. She felt great, so that means it was a good solution for her.

Hopefully your creative juices are flowing and you’re inspired to look at everything in your house as a yoga prop.😂 I truly believe we can sink into our rest postures with ease no matter what we have access to. With a little practice you can get comfortable with the idea of creating comfort... and trying it out to see what works best for you and your body. 

Tag me on Instagram (using hashtag #yogapropsubstitutes) if you have a great prop idea you would like to share. For now, I invite you to gather up a bunch of your yoga props and try a reclined posture with me. 

Start your ten minute rest session now...

Ready to get back to cultivating rest with me? Find my current online offerings here.

Thanks for reading. I hope this was helpful.

Peace and Love,

Bri

P.S. WANT TO SAVE 20% ON YOGA PROPS? Halfmoon Yoga is having their bi-annual friends and family sale from May 17-21, 2021. Use the coupon code COMMUNITY20 at checkout. 

www.shophalfmoon.com