What is Restorative Movement?

Our bodies are designed to heal themselves by themselves, and our job is to create the right environment with nurturing self-care rituals, nourishing food choices, healing movement practices, and loving relationships.

Restorative Movement is one of the practices that can help your body heal, reduce or eliminate stress, and prepare it for a relaxed and peaceful life.

Restorative Movement is the practice of stillness, bringing your body and mind back into a state of balance and equanimity. It is a gentle practice that helps you tap into your emotional body, witnessing and feeling your emotional states and sometimes the stories attached to them.

The witnessing process allows you to heal the mind, soften the heart, and accept the deeper layers of yourself, your body, and your being.

This practice helps you restore your health, starting with emotional, mental, spiritual, and physical well-being.

Healing starts when we create enough space for rest and relaxation. This practice offers space to replenish your body, create harmony, and heal it at its core.

Restorative Movement is an inward-oriented practice that cultivates quietness in one’s busy life.

The beauty of the practice lies in the variety of props used to support and anchor the body, creating the deepest level of relaxation.

Props used in the yoga studio would include blocks, bolsters, blankets, and straps. For the home practice, you can replace them with a set of cushions, blankets, towels, and a couple of thick books.

This practice does work wonders in helping you self-regulate your body and establish homeostasis.

The poses are usually held for 5 to 20 minutes, creating space for you to pause, calm the buzzing mind, and reduce the busyness in life. They ground you back into the body.

It is a remedy that helps manage stress and improve overall health.

The practice is suitable for complete beginners or experienced yogis, as the body is met where it is right now with the help of props. The poses focus on creating comfort rather than stretching or strengthening the muscles, allowing the body to experience a state of deep relaxation and letting go.

Restorative Movement is a great practice for trauma survivors who disassociate from their bodies as a way to avoid pain and uncomfortable emotions.

Other types of vigorous movement activities, like running, cycling, or engaging in high-intensity exercise, help our bodies release endorphins, the feel-good hormones. After the spike, unprocessed emotions like grief or sadness can still surface after a short while.

Restorative Movement, with its gentle stretching practices, also releases endorphins and calming serotonin and, at the same time, creates space to embrace other often uncomfortable emotions.

To experience this nourishing and healing practice yourself, join me for a weekly Restorative Movement and Relaxation Class every Tuesday at 19:00 BST on Zoom.