What is Restorative Yoga

If you’ve ever booked a restorative yoga class expecting deep rest, only to find yourself moving through a slow sequence of postures, you’re not alone.

The word “restorative” gets used widely in yoga now. It often describes classes that are slower, gentler, or more accessible. And while those classes absolutely have value, they are not the same thing as a true restorative yoga class in its original sense.

So what is restorative yoga, and what is it actually for?

Restorative yoga, as it is commonly taught today, was developed and popularised by Judith Hanson Lasater, a student of B. K. S. Iyengar.

It grew from the Iyengar tradition, which places a strong emphasis on the use of props to support the body in a very precise way.

The intention was simple, but quite radical; To create conditions where the body can rest deeply, without effort.

Not stretch more. Not improve flexibility. Not build strength.

Rest.

In a true restorative practice, the nervous system is the focus.

The shapes themselves are not the goal. The goal is what happens when the body feels fully supported.

When the body is held, rather than holding itself, something is able to shift.

Our muscles begin to release without being asked, and our breath can change without being controlled.

Our system starts to down-regulate, ans this is where the practice lives.

It is about allowing.

A classic, and true restorative class is very simple on the surface.

Infact it often looks from the outside that we arn't really doing anything.this is where the misconception often stems from.

We typically move through a small number of poses, often between four and six. Each pose held for several minutes, in my class between 10-15 minutes, Generous use of props helps to fully support the body, and we take pauses between transitions.

There is very little movement, and certainly should be no sense "am I doing it right?"

You are not flowing from one shape to another. You are placed into a position and invited to stay. And staying is often the most unfamiliar part.

Props are not an optional extra in restorative yoga. They are central to the practice.

Bolsters, blankets, blocks, sometimes chairs or the wall - including the ground beneath us, All of these are used to remove effort from the body.

As I often say to my students, in restorative yoga we like to 'fill the gaps.'

If there is a space between a part of your body and the floor, or between your body and a prop, that is often where muscles are quietly working to hold you in place. By placing something soft into that space, a blanket or a bolster, the body no longer needs to do that work.

The aim is not to achieve a shape.

The aim is to make the shape feel like it is holding you.

When props are used well, there is a point where the body no longer feels like it is “doing” the pose at all.

That is where the practice begins to work.

People often assume restorative yoga is the easiest form of yoga.

In some ways, it is physically undemanding.

But in restorative class we are aiming for something else.

Stillness.

We are exercising our stillness muscles - not our physical ones.

The willingness to be with yourself, with your body, your breathing, without distraction.

For many people, that is unfamiliar territory. The body may be still, but the mind is busy. Or the opposite happens. The system drops quickly into sleep because it finally has the chance.

Both are part of the process.

There is a growing trend where slower classes are described as restorative.

A slower hatha class or a gentle flow can be calming, grounding, and beneficial in many ways.

But if you are moving, holding your own weight, or transitioning regularly, you are still in a different kind of practice.

Restorative yoga is defined by support, not the pace of the class.

It is the difference between easing off slightly and being completely held.

If I am honest, this is something I feel quite strongly about.

When the word restorative is used to describe a yoga class that is still asking the body to move, hold, or work, it can be misleading. Those classes are valuable, but because they are offering something totally different.

And if someone arrives needing true rest, expecting to be fully supported, and instead finds themselves in a slow flowing sequence, the experience does not match the promise.

Over time, this blurs the understanding of what restorative yoga actually is, and the depth of the practice can be lost.

It is also often described as a class for beginners, or those with injuries, or bodies that are stiff or older.

And can absolutely be accessible to those students, but it is equally a practice for individuals who may have been practicing different styles of yoga for many years.

In truth, it is a practice for anybody with a nervous system.

It is for everybody.

But it is not designed as a stepping stone into other forms of yoga.

It is its own practice.

In fact, some people find it more challenging than a movement based class, simply because it removes distraction.

You cannot 'see progess' from regular attendance only feel it, or sense it.

Which can feel unfamiliar at first.But it bcause part of the practice The 'yoga off the matt'

Once we begin to become more aware of our stress, and our softening, we start to strengthen the diolog between mind and body we start to notice our rythem and patterns and start to place more awness on the imporance of regular rest.

In an ideal world, we would not need a yoga class to show us our releshonship to rest.

We would recognise when we are tired and simply stop. Sit down. Lie down. Close our eyes. Let the body soften without needing structure or guidance.

But for many people, growing up with internizellz capitalizm that is not what happens.

Modern life does not make rest straightforward. There is always something to do, something to think about, something asking for our attention. Even when the body stops, the mind carries on.

You lie down, and instead of resting, you plan. You replay. You organise. You problem solve.

Or you reach for your phone, or the tv.

So while rest itself is natural, access to it is not always easy.

This is where restorative yoga becomes useful. Maybe even radical.

It creates a set of conditions that make rest more available.

The ryurt is warm, and beuatufil to be in The body is supported. The structure is simple. There is nothing to decide, nothing to manage. You are guided into stillness in a way that removes friction.

For some people, this is the first time they have experienced rest without interruption.

Over time, the aim is not to become dependent on the class.

It is to become more familiar with the feeling.

So that rest is something you can recognise, and gradually access, even outside the space.

I once had a client who came every week and chose to lie in shavasana for the entire session.

No sequence. No variation. Just one supported position.

From the outside, it might have looked like she was doing very little.

But for her, that was the practice. And I loved her confidence and self awness to meet herself exactly as she needed each week.

That was her restorative yoga. her way of connectiong to her rest.

In my own sessions, restorative yoga sits alongside sound, reiki stillness, and simple guided voice.

The shapes are there, but they are not the focus.

The focus is what happens when the body feels safe enough to let go.

Sometimes that looks like a supported posture. Sometimes it looks like lying down and not moving at all.

There is no single correct sequence of the practice.

But there is a clear intention.

To create the conditions for rest that most of us are not accessing in day to day life.

Restorative yoga is soft in its approach, but it is to be unerestimated.

It works at a level that is often overlooked because it does not look like much is happening.

But when the body is given enough support, enough time, and enough permission to stop, the effects can be significant.

And once you have experienced that kind of rest, truly supported, without effort, without expectation, it can be surprisingly difficult to go back to anything less. The body recognises it. The nervous system remembers it. What may have once felt unfamiliar begins to feel necessary. Not as a luxury, but as something quietly essential.

If you are curious about restorative yoga, or if you feel like your system has been asking for rest in a way that is hard to access on your own, then experiencing a true restorative class can be a very different kind of practice. One that offers something many of us are not getting elsewhere.

As a fully qualified yoga instructor through Yoga Alliance International, trained in both yin and vinyasa, and for a number of years now , have specialised in restorative yoga.

I offer dedicated restorative yoga classes in Totnes, South Devon, designed to support deep relaxation, nervous system regulation, and genuine rest. My sessions are held in a calm, candlelit yurt space, with all props provided and carefully arranged to fully support the body. If you are looking for restorative yoga in Totnes, yoga in South Devon, or a space for stress relief and deep relaxation, I look forward to welcoming you to a future class as this offering returns.