Posted on January 18 2018
Yoga is excellent for flexibility, concentration, and focus. It's also great for strengthening the bond of a relationship. Many people love "Partner Yoga" as a way to connect spiritually as well as physically in support of each other.
Whether trying partner Yoga with your best friend or boyfriend or girlfriend, essentially partner yoga utilizes the same principals of individual poses, while having the partner help to deepen the pose or expand the pose.
Traditional Yoga practice focuses on breath and body movement as you move your body into specific postures. When doing this with two or more people, Partner Yoga can amplify and to deepen the stretch or modify the movement.
Partner Yoga also includes helpful adjustments from each other to attain a deeper pose. An assist from a partner or friend may enable you to attain a posture that has been difficult or that you may not have been able to achieve on your own. For example, if you are starting out, and maybe trepidatious about a headstand, having a friend spot you could give you the confidence you need. Even stretches can be gently increased by having someone aid you.
Always be careful when practicing partner yoga to avoid overstretching the other person, or injuring them. Always warm up and stretch to avoid injury and never yang or pull. The goal of yoga is a gentle movement and organic changes.
Successful Partner Yoga
If you trust your partner you will relax and enjoy the experience of partner yoga much more. Team building workshops pair people to learn to trust each other, and yoga is no different. Especially with more advanced poses, if you are confident in your yoga partner, you are able to take more of a risk.
Yoga is a great way to deepen a relationship.
There are two levels of concentration that can work together to deepen the bond with your friend or partner. Both mental and physical are part of yoga. The mental bond can be strengthened as you read each other and learn cues and signals. In yoga, you want your body to open up, but you cannot open your body without also opening your mind.
Learning physical cues is also important to trust and relationship building. If your partner seems unable or unwilling to support or catch you, in an inversion, you may wonder whether this is a person who you can trust or count on through life's experiences. Having a trusting mental and physical bond is important to face life's challenges, and what better way to learn more about your partner, than through partner exercises, such as yoga.
Have you tried partner yoga? What was your experience? Would you suggest partner yoga to others? What did you learn about your partner through your shared yoga experience?
