Transform Your Sleep: Explore Yogic Practices for Better Rest Through Breath, Postures, and Meditation September 7 2025
- rockbriarfarm
- 5 days ago
- 5 min read
As we age, quality sleep becomes a challenge for many of us. In speaking with my friends and yoga students, this is a common lament. Remember when we were 25 and got together with our friends and talked about how our sleep patterns were (like never!). Yet another thing that plagues us as we age.
There are many articles and studies that extoll the virtues of the well-equipped bedroom, complete with high thread count sheets, perfect sleep pillows and temperature control. There are sleep medications (both natural and pharmaceutical) and many regimes that are touted to improve sleep including exercise, golden milk, meditation, limiting screen time and much more. These are all potentially wonderful tools, and I have explored many of them!
Many of us find that our concerns or worries plague our thoughts at night. We toss and turn and no matter what the bedroom conditions are, we are plagued with acute monkey mind that keeps us up. Whatever bothers us during the day is magnified substantially when it grips our brain at 2 AM.
While lack of sleep can be frustrating, studies have shown that sleep disturbances increase as we age. Lack of sleep can result in decreased alertness during the day as well as an increase in both physical and psychiatric health issues, decline in cognitive function, and impaired quality of life.
How does our yoga practice fit in? We know that physical activity, tiring the body, can improve sleep quality. A recent study at Harbin Sport University that compared trials from a dozen countries and over 2,500 participants found that high intensity yoga (vinyasa, heated, power) for about 30 minutes was the best exercise for helping sound sleep. Possible reasons for this include the elevating heart rate and muscle challenge found in other cardio exercises. The difference between yoga and other exercise was the addition of regulated breathing which activates the parasympathetic nervous system which aids in rest and digestion. The meditative aspects of a full yoga practice also may help aid sleep. Other studies suggest that yoga regulates brainwave activity patterns, likely the meditative aspect, which could aid deeper sleep.
Alternatively, if you are looking for yoga to induce sleep in the more immediate timeline, it may be more effective to try more relaxing styles like hatha, yoga Nidra and yin. Hatha, a gentle form of yoga, focuses on holding poses longer and breath work to relax mind and body. Yoga Nidra is a deep, guided relaxation practice used to shift the body to the restorative parasympathetic nervous system (rest and digest) and is often used to help with sleep. Yin yoga also activates the parasympathetic nervous system with practice of sustained holds in poses (many lying or sitting) and is beneficial for relaxation and sleep.
The studies that I read about have shown that long-term practice of yoga exercises by older people can result in more consistent, good quality sleep. Articles included in my reading included works from the Government Medical College, Nagpur, India, John Hopkins, Harvard Health and the New York Times.
Our Practice - Yoga For Sleep
I have read articles and videos about which poses are sleep inducing. No two are alike nor did I find adequate explanation for why they were suggested. My theory is that as the above suggests, physical exercise tires the body while gentle stretching, meditation and breathing can slow us down, activate the parasympathetic nervous system, and help us move into sleep. Combining both styles of yoga, along with other activities that you enjoy, may help enhance your sleep.
When I have trouble sleeping, I practice Samavritti, also known as square or box breath. The word samavritti means equal ratio (sama=same, equal and vritti=movement, action). The focus is on keeping all four parts of the breath at equal lengths (inhale, hold, exhale, hold). It is very calming, and it helps us find awareness of breath and prana flow. I use it when I am trying to fall asleep and it is also nice as the start of meditation or just to take a time out during the day when we need to recalibrate.
This week during our cool down I am going to finish class with a 10-minute stretch that I would recommend before bed for its calming and relaxing properties and emotional release - and we will try Samavritti:
Neck stretch/rolls
Child Pose
Staff Pose shoulder rolls, static, and forward fold
Circles on Back
Reclined pigeon
Happy Baby
Supine twist
Meditating On Rest
Just for now, without asking how, let yourself sink into stillness. Just for now, lay down the weight you so patiently bear upon your shoulders. Feel the earth receive you, and the infinite expanse of the sky grow even wider as your awareness reaches up to meet it. Just for now, allow a wave of breath to enliven your experience. Breathe out whatever blocks you from the truth. Just for now, be boundless, free, with awakened energy tingling in your hands and feet. Drink in the possibility of being who and what you really are – so fully alive that the world looks different, newly born and vibrant, just for now. ~ Danna Faulds
Nurturing with Food – Pete’s Tomato Sauce
I would like to take credit for this recipe. In fact, I almost feel like I could. When I met Peter, I had a vegetable garden, I cooked a lot, and I learned to can tomatoes with my grandmother. My mother knew how to do it and did it with my grandmother, but my Dad really took it over after Nana passed (and he was the vegetable gardener). As in my parents’ house, Peter, like my dad, does most of the meal cooking at our house (I make soups, stews, bread, vegetarian dishes, salad). He has also taken over the vegetable gardening project almost 100%. I taught him to can and now, as apparently is our family tradition, he has taken that over and rarely calls me in for a consultation! He made the video above while I was away (I prefer to not walk into a house covered wall to wall in tomato gore) and today, as I write this, is canning the sauce. He promises by the time that the blog is ready to go out later he will have a recipe to accompany his video. If you do not want to can the sauce, but are making a large batch, freezing in gallon bags works well.
See you on the mat!
Namaste,
Julia Anne
Comments