Elemental Yin & Acupuncture Series: WOOD

In this annual 5-week series, licensed acupuncturist and movement instructor, Britt Peterson, will guide you through a yin yoga practice paired with acupuncture or acupressure that cycles through the five elements of East Asian Medicine. We will focus on one of the elements—water, wood, fire, earth, and metal—associated with the season we are currently in and emphasize a gentle opening of its corresponding meridians, or energetic pathways. Each element is part of the whole, with its own personality and physiology and emotion, so by the end of the series we’ll have accessed the entire network of the human system.

Class will start with a dynamic warmup to break up residual stagnation from the day and encourage a smooth flow of qi (or prana, or life force energy). Then we’ll wind down into a slow, nourishing yin practice, where we’ll set each posture with the support of props and hold for several minutes. Throughout the yin sequence, Britt will offer hands-on assists to support alignment and ease. She will also offer musings and meditations from Chinese philosophy to invite inquiry, balance, and deep rest.

Finally, to deepen your savasana rest, Britt will provide a couple of acupuncture or acupressure points that correspond to the element we are working with. If you are not up for acupuncture, we can use small herbal seeds as acupressure instead.

This class series is open to all and is appropriate for anyone looking to slow down, relax, and breathe – or ease your way into acupuncture!

Yin Yoga is a practice that lengthens and lubricates the connective tissue of the physical body and promotes equanimity and peace in the subtle emotional body. In this style of yoga, postures are held for 2-5 minutes and practitioners work at a 50-70% capacity stretch in order to target connective tissue. This promotes lasting elongation of the myo-fascial layers and increases circulation to rid the body of toxins and support healthy collagen production. The slow pace of this practice invites qi to flow more freely through the physical, energetic, and psycho-emotional bodies and opens up space in all aspects of ourselves.

Acupuncture is the ancient Chinese medical technique that uses small metal needles at specific points on the body in order to relieve pain, regulate the body’s systems, and promote overall wellbeing. Acupuncture seeks to improve balance and harmony within both the physical and energetic aspects of our being, which can be categorized into yin and yang. An imbalance of yin and yang results in an obstruction of the life force, or qi, in the body, causing disease or physical disharmony.

Qi flows through 12 meridians, or pathways, in the body, each in turn associated with a major visceral organ and connected to a specific function. Acupuncture is designed to affect the distribution of yin and yang in these channels so that the qi can flow freely and harmoniously, preventing and mitigating dis-ease.

Class 1: WATER
Class 2: WOOD
Class 3: FIRE
Class 4: EARTH
Class 5: METAL