Why do binds in yoga?

When I began yoga I was told that binds are "difficult" and for "experienced yogis" and so for many years I avoided them. However, over the past few years I have come to realise that both of those statements are false and that binds can be both an amazing addition to a yoga practice and can be accessible to everyone whatever their level of yoga experience, fitness and flexibility.

Binds will help to deepen your understanding of poses by encouraging you to make adjustments, to explore how you experience the alignment, and to play and have fun with poses.

Binds can also help you to go physically deeper into poses to increase flexibility and develop the focus required to maintain the poses.

So, what is a bind? In general terms, a bind is when one part of the body grabs and pulls another part. For example, holding a foot with a hand and so using your arm muscles to pull against your leg muscles. Many of the more commonly practiced binds involve linking the hands behind the back and rotating both the shoulders and the torso, providing a wonderful way to open the shoulders in a safe and secure way. And to me, that's the true beauty of binds; by restricting movement they provide you with the freedom to explore a posture.

Like me, many people may be deterred by pictures of people taking binds in what can appear to be challengingly deep postures. However, as in any practice, binds can be made accessible through the use of props and in particular straps which can be used to link hands that don't meet and to wrap around feet that seem to be a long way away!

So, whatever your level of yoga experience, we encourage you to consider trying some binds for yourself and we think you may well be surprised at how they feel.

We incorporate binds into our Hatha, Core and Relaxation classes, Wednesdays at 5.30pm and Fridays at 6.30pm so come along and have some fun trying them out.