Passive Yoga: Discover the Benefits of Stretching

Who has not stopped to observe with some envy (and wishing to be able to do the same!) a cat stretching, twisting and stretching slowly, meticulously and pleasantly?

These cats are true masters in the art of stretching, and this mastery allows them to maintain a state of perfect relaxation, flexibility, alertness, strength and agility. In Thailand there is a therapy used for millennia that allows us to experience and delve into this feeling: I am referring to Thai massage, also known as “passive yoga”

This type of massage has its roots in the confluence and fusion of different techniques, all of which come from oriental medicine: meditation and serene concentration techniques typical of Buddhist philosophy, phytotherapy remedies and yoga postures from Ayurvedic medicine. from India, and acupuncture points practiced in traditional Chinese medicine.

The tradition of Thai massage

Thai massage is not only a preventive and relaxing technique, but it is actually a medical-curative therapy, it could even be considered a philosophy of life, since it encompasses all the vital areas of the human being: the physical, the mental and emotional; worked through stretching, eating, meditation, full breathing…

This type of massage is called passive yoga because its origins are linked to a series of deeply rooted beliefs in Asia: it has traditionally been defined as a series of rhythmic sequences of pressure, twisting and stretching that the therapist performs with his hands, feet, knees, elbows and arms; with the aim of harmonizing, restoring and unblocking the flow of energy (or Chi) that runs through 10 main energy channels or Sen meridians that are distributed throughout the body, balancing the 4 basic elements that constitute every living being and whose blockage or disharmony would cause pain and illness.

These elements are:

The practice and benefits of passive yoga

To carry out this restorative work, the therapist takes the patient (who, dressed in comfortable clothes, lies pleasantly on a futon), to the limit of his joint mobility to each and every one of the body structures, in order to relax the muscles, recover the interarticular space, balance the nervous system, mobilize the viscera for proper functioning, boost the blood so that it adequately irrigates all the structures and organs of the body and speed up lymphatic circulation to purify the body, giving a deep feeling of relaxation and physical and mental well-being, strength, vitality, flexibility, stillness.

After a session, which lasts between one and two hours, we have the feeling that we are taller, that we breathe better, and that we have improved our body posture. The mind clears, the muscles relax and a smile appears on the face along with a special sparkle in the eyes… in the same way that the cat, after stretching, is fully alert to any stimulus, capable of getting ready! the race of a jump, maintaining that innate elegance and balance in its typically feline movements!

In the medium term, passive yoga strengthens the immune system, tones the entire body and relaxes the nervous system, balances emotions, increases respiratory capacity and blood oxygenation, strengthens ligaments, makes joints more flexible, activates the lymphatic and circulatory system. Helps with problems of insomnia, stress and chronic fatigue, muscle pain, low back pain, sciatica, headaches, constipation…