Ep 20: Somatic Yoga Principles - How To Incorporate Them In Your Yoga Classes

Somatic yoga is a mindful and reflective practice that emphasizes internal sensations, movement exploration, and self-awareness. Rooted in the principles of somatics, a field that explores the lived experience of the body, Somatic yoga teaches and encourages practitioners to become more attuned to their bodily sensations, movement patterns, and emotional responses.

One of the primary effects of somatic yoga is the release of muscular tension and chronic holding patterns. Through gentle, slow-paced movements and guided awareness practitioners learn to release tension stored in the muscles, fascia, and connective tissues. Somatic yoga also facilitates greater proprioception (the body's awareness of its position in space) and encourages more kinesthetic intelligence, which is learning through movement. Sharpening your sense of proprioception allows you to move with more competence and has the potential to save you from injury. Thus gaining a deeper understanding of your body's mechanics and movement potential.

Somatic yoga also helps regulate your nervous system by calming down an overactive nervous system and activating the relaxation response. Through slow deliberate movements and deep breathing, you activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is like your body's built-in relaxation mode. This helps reduce the levels of stress hormones, like cortisol, and promotes a sense of calmness and tranquility. Let's dive into the world of somatic yoga and how you can incorporate it into your classes.

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Somatic yoga is a mindful and introspective practice that emphasizes internal sensations, movement exploration, and self awareness. Rooted in the principles of somatics, a field that explores the lived experience of the body, somatic yoga teaches and encourages practitioners to become more attuned to their bodily sensations, movement patterns, and emotional responses. One of the primary effects of somatic yoga is the release of muscular tension and chronic holding patterns. Through gentle, slow paced movements and guided awareness, practitioners learn to release tension stored in the muscles, fascia, and connective tissues. Somatic yoga also facilitates greater proprioception, the body's awareness of its position in space, and encourages more kinesthetic intelligence, which is learning through movement. Sharpening your sense of proprioception allows you to move with more confidence and has the potential to save you from injury. thus gaining a deeper understanding of your body's mechanics and movement potential. Somatic yoga also helps in the regulation of your nervous system by calming down an overactive nervous system and by activating the relaxation response. Through slow, deliberate movements and deep breathing. You activate the parasympathetic nervous system, which is like your body's built in relaxation mode. This helps reduce the levels of stress hormones like cortisol and promotes a sense of calmness and tranquility. Let's dive into the world of somatic yoga and how you can incorporate it into Welcome to the Essential Conversations for Yoga Teachers podcast with me. I'm Monica Bright, and I've been teaching yoga and running my yoga business for over a decade. This is the podcast for you if you're a yoga teacher, you're looking for support. You love to be in conversation and you're a lifelong student in this podcast. I'll share with you my life as a yoga teacher, the lessons I've learned, all the stuff that wasn't taught in teacher training, my process. for building my business and helpful ideas, tools, strategies, and systems I use and you can use so that your business thrives. We'll cover a diverse range of topics that will help you whether you're just starting out or you've got years under your belt and you want to dive deep and set yourself up for success. I'm so glad you're here. Listen, I don't take myself too seriously, so expect to hear some laughs along the way. Now, let's do this together. Somatics, what is it? Let's dissect the etymology of the word. Soma comes from a word meaning body in Greek. So, somatic means body. of the body and is most often used in connection with one's health. It's also defined as affecting or a characteristic of the body as opposed to the mind or spirit. Have you heard the word psychosomatic? This describes a condition or an illness caused by the mind because of the word psycho at the beginning. rather than a condition like a sprain or another physical injury. Somatics offers a holistic perspective on understanding the body from within. It encompasses various disciplines such as somatic movement therapy, psychology, and education. Central to somatics is the exploration of the body's individual experience, focusing on the integration of mind, body, and spirit. and is all about understanding and experiencing your body from the inside out. Think of it as a way of exploring how your body moves, feels, and exists in the world. I was initially introduced to somatic yoga around 2016 ish, I think it was. I was taking advanced teacher training in biomechanics. And there was another teacher there who was studying semantics. So let me just give you a little bit of background. This advanced TT that I was taking required us to travel and stay in an Airbnb for two weeks at a time. So, we got to know each other very well. From time to time, each of us would share with the group the things we were learning, studying more deeply, or subjects we were passionate about. So, one teacher presented on the pelvic area, the muscles, the movement, the pelvic floor, the abdominal container, and it was a great lecture. I was at the start of my journey in studying injuries and pain, but I contributed my experiences with cultural appropriation of yoga and its roots and how it's commodified here in the States. Also a very interesting conversation as I was the only black slash Indian teacher in the room, as is often the case when I'm taking trainings. Thanks. There was also a teacher there who was studying somatics. Not only did she explain it to us, but she taught us a few classes and let us feel it in our bodies. And oh my God, like what a beautiful practice. It is. So let me explain it to you and give you more information about the world of somatics. When we talk about somatics, we're looking at the connections between our body, our mind, and our emotions. It's like taking a journey deep into yourself to discover how everything is connected. Now let's break that down a little bit. Imagine you have a little robot friend inside of you that helps you move and feel things. That robot is your nervous system. Somatics is like learning how to talk to your robot friend and understand what it's trying to tell you. We do this through different practices like yoga, tai chi, and meditation. These practices help us tune into our bodies and become more aware of how we're feeling physically and emotionally. What I love to witness in students is when they begin to drop into their practice. And it becomes more of a moving meditation. I'm sure you've witnessed that too. Somatics is also about learning to let go of tension and stress. It's like giving your body a big hug and saying, it's okay to relax. So in a nutshell, somatics is about connecting with yourself on a deep level, listening to your body, and finding peace and harmony within. It's like becoming best friends with yourself and learning to love and care for your body in the best way possible. Okay, let's dive into how somatic yoga connects with your nervous system. Imagine your nervous system is like a big network of messengers. in your body. It's responsible for sending signals to different parts of your body and telling them what to do and how to feel. Now, sometimes our nervous system can get a little out of whack, like a tangled up phone cord, if you could imagine that. When this happens, you might feel stressed, you might feel anxious, or you might even feel pain. Somatic yoga comes to the rescue by helping you untangle those knots and bring balance back to your nervous system. When you practice somatic yoga exercises and movements, you're sending calming signals to your nervous system. If you have a pet, equate it to gently patting your scared puppy to help it relax. The movements help to soothe your nervous system and reduce stress levels, making you feel more calm and centered. Somatic yoga also teaches you to pay attention to how your body feels in the present moment. This mindfulness helps you become more aware of any tension or discomfort you might be holding on to, so you can release it and let it go. So in short, somatic yoga and the nervous system are like best friends. who help each other out. Somatic yoga calms your nervous system, and in return, your nervous system helps you feel more relaxed and at ease. It's a beautiful partnership that leaves you feeling happier and healthier inside and out. Here's another analogy. Imagine your body is like a big house with lots of brooms. Sometimes rooms can get messy or things can get stuck in them like toys scattered all over the floor. Somatic yoga helps you tidy up those rooms and make them neat again. When you do gentle exercises and movements, you help your body feel better by paying attention To how different parts of your body feel and therefore you learn how to move them in ways that feel, it's like doing stretches and exercises, but in a very mindful, gentle, and relaxed way. Where can you see somatics being applied? Because you don't often see a somatic yoga class on a schedule at yoga studios. And the principles are being taught in a number of disciplines. So how and where are people teaching it? One, through somatic movement therapy. These are therapists who work with individuals to address movement limitations, chronic pain, and emotional issues through hands on techniques, movement explorations, and somatic exercises. If You may have experienced this in physical therapy without even knowing it. The next is through somatic education. Somatic educators offer classes, workshops, and individual sessions aimed at enhancing body awareness, movement efficiency, and overall well being. These sessions might also include teachings from the Feldenkrais Method. The Alexander Technique or Mind Body Centering. The third is through somatic psychology. Somatic psychologists integrate body centered approaches into psychotherapy, helping individuals process trauma, regulate emotions, and cultivate greater self awareness through embodied practices and experiential techniques. And then finally, somatic yoga. Somatic yoga combines traditional yoga practices with somatic principles, emphasizing mindful movement, breath awareness, and internal exploration. It offers a holistic approach to yoga that integrates body, mind, and spirit, fostering greater presence. resilience, and self discovery on and off the mat. Now let's talk about somatics and yoga specifically. Here are the key principles of somatics and I'll give you ways to apply them in your classes. The first principle is embodied awareness. Somatics emphasizes the cultivation of embodied awareness, which involves turning into the present moment and experiencing sensations, emotions, and movement from within. Through practices such as mindfulness, breath work, and body scanning, students will develop a deeper connection to their physical and emotional states. How can you apply this in your class? Can you start and end your classes with a body scan or direct your students attention to a particular body part? Ask them to assess. how it feels. The next principle is sensory motor learning. Somatics views movement as a form of learning and emphasizes the importance of sensory motor integration. By exploring movement patterns, sensations, and proprioception, that's the body's sense of its position in space, Students can refine their movement skills, improve coordination, and enhance overall body awareness. How would you apply sensory motor learning to your classes? Ask your students to become aware of a body part that they can't see. For example, lying down, without lifting your head to look, can you sense whether your feet splay out or not? The third principle of somatics is mind body integration. Somatics acknowledges how the mind and body are intertwined, aiming to merge mental, emotional, and physical aspects. When you combine psychological and physiological facets of your experiences, somatics presents complete approach to promoting healing and overall wellness. How would you apply this? Ask students to check in with their thoughts at different points throughout the class. Did you just teach something that was challenging or difficult? Ask your students what they're thinking. The fourth principle of somatics is the release of chronic tension. Somatic approaches often focus on releasing chronic tension and stress, held within the body through gentle movement, relaxation techniques, and body awareness practices, your students can gradually unwind tension stored in their soft tissues and nervous system, which can lead to greater ease and freedom of movement. Now, how would you apply this? Let's think about this in the realm of injuries. When I was navigating frozen shoulder, I practiced somatic yoga a lot. Working within my available range at the time, I invited slower, smaller movements into my practice. The idea was to one, keep moving. Two, move in ways that felt good. And three, relate back to my mind and my nervous system that I was okay. And that does wonders for pain management. I'll do an entire episode on pain management in the future because I'm dying to talk about that. And finally, the principle of somatics is self exploration and empowerment. Somatics encourages individuals to become active participants in their own healing and self discovery process by cultivating self awareness. agency, and self compassion, your students can learn to tap into their innate capacity for growth, transformation, and resilience. How would you apply this? Pick a body part, any body part. For this example, I'm going to choose the low back because this is an area where a lot of folks deal with some tension. Start off having students check in with their low back. How does it feel? Does one side feel different than the other? Do both sides feel the same? And then do some exercises for the low back and then recheck it and ask students to notice if there's any difference. If so, what? This is so helpful with the mind body connection because instead of plowing through a bunch of poses in class, You're actually teaching students to become more embodied and aware of themselves. Here are some additional ideas for you to think about how you'd incorporate somatic yoga into your classes, no matter what the format is, whether it's a deep stretch class, whether it's vigorous vinyasa flow. Okay. The first way is through mindful movement sequences. Design sequences that encourage slow, mindful movement, allowing students to explore sensations and movement patterns within their bodies. The second is breath awareness. Incorporate breath awareness practices into your classes to deepen the mind body connection. Encourage students to synchronize the breath with movement, foster a sense of presence and relaxation through connecting breath with movement, sensory exploration. Integrate sensory exploration exercises such as gentle touch, self massage, or guided imagery to heighten body awareness and foster a sense of embodiment. So one of my favorite ways to teach guided imagery is through breath practices and imagining the movement of the ribcage, imagining movement of the lungs. imagining the movement, the diaphragm, the primary breathing muscle, and imagining all that movement between the three. So we can't actually see that movement, but we can, um, do that. And that just helps people tap into their own Sensory exploration. Cueing and language. Use cues that invite students to notice internal sensations such as feel the stretch from the inside out. Notice any areas of tension or resistance and encourage observation and curiosity while you do this. And then finally, bring an emphasis on sensation. Shift the focus to experiencing internal sensation. Encourage students to explore subtle movements, micro adjustments, emphasizing the process rather than the end result. I used to love when I taught at yoga studios that didn't have mirrors because it invited this emphasis on sensation rather than what the poses or body shapes actually And even if you teach at a studio that has mirrors, can you change the orientation of the class? So that students face another way and not the mirrors. Now, don't get me wrong. I don't think there's anything wrong with mirrors. I think they can be useful, but if you are trying to incorporate an emphasis on sensation, you might want to take away. the mirrors just to help bring on this emphasis in sensation. I really hope this episode was helpful for you because incorporating somatic yoga into your classes gives you the opportunity to help students deepen their mind body connection. cultivate greater awareness, and experience profound shifts in their physical and emotional well being. When you do this, you'll create transformative and enriching yoga experiences for your students. The practice of somatics offers a profound framework for understanding and experiencing the body from within, emphasizing embodied awareness, Sensory motor learning, mind body integration, and self empowerment. Through somatic practices, you and your students can cultivate greater well being, resilience, and vitality, and deepen the connection to yourself and the world around you. Diversifying your teaching helps you continue to educate your students and stay deeply in love with teaching yoga. And it also pushes you to try new things. It's so important for us to have this conversation so that you remember that there are so many opportunities for you in the teaching world. You know that my goal is for you to love the yoga teaching life and allow it to be fulfilling and rewarding. And as always, sometimes it takes some work to get there. If you love this episode, let me know. Subscribe to the podcast so you're always in the know when a new episode drops. and share it with another yoga teacher who you think would love to be in on these conversations. I'm excited to bring you more episodes on a wide range of subjects. Thank you for helping to spread the word about this podcast. And finally, don't forget to join my newsletter that's just for yoga teachers. I'll link it in the show notes below, and I would love for you to join it so we can always stay connected. That's it for now. Bye.