Restorative Yoga

Restorative yoga is a very gentle, slow style of yoga in which you rest in supported poses for several minutes each. Props such as bolsters and folded blankets hold you, and the teacher can adapt poses so you can practise on a chair or even in bed. It is often chosen by people with less mobility, older people or anyone wanting a calm, quiet class. Restorative yoga itself has hardly been studied, but studies of yoga in general give some evidence it may ease stress and back pain a little: see “Restorative yoga: what the research says”.