#4 ENDOCRINE & AUTONOMIC NERVOUS SYSTEM: Yin-Yang Vinyasa Flow to Improve Resilience to Stress

In class #4 of our Body Systems Yoga Series for Full Body Health, we will be focusing on the endocrine and autonomic nervous system with a 30 minute yin/yang vinyasa flow. We are linking these two body systems together because our focus will be on the stress response. Your endocrine system helps you respond to stress through the HPA-axis (hypothalamic-pituitary-adrenal axis) through the release of cortisol. The autonomic nervous system is involved in the stress response in a different way, through the use of the parasympathetic (rest & digest) or sympathetic (fight or flight) responses.

We will start with an introduction to the stress response, to help you understand your body a little bit better. In particular, we will talk about how to improve your resilience to any sort of stressors (chemical, physical or psychological). Our bonus focus will be the Ujjayi breath– which helps stimulate the vagus nerve to support more parasympathetic tone throughout our body. Then we will get into a yin/yang style vinyasa flow– moving through a series of poses to activate your body, followed by more yin and relaxing poses. This undulation of yin and yang wil help your body learn how to undulate with the ebbs and flows of stress and relaxation. This whole series is designed for all levels, with harder poses mapped out in stages to allow each person to choose the level they are comfortable with.

All you will need is yourself and your mat– option to use blocks or straps to help support you in more difficult poses.

Click here for a curated playlist designed specifically for this flow: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5DUmgkKCnawqxaW2iI5jmT?si=51ce674c28244c5d