Regardless of whether I find the time for my morning practice, I always like to wind down at night with some yoga. I used to be a morning yoga person for many years. And I still am. But I have added an extra 15 -20 minute practice at night. I do it right before my meditation. If I skip it for some reason, my body complains. Lately, I’ve been very consistent about it, and it has affected my sleep pattern and my meditation tremendously.

Evening is the time to take your time. So I like to hold the poses longer and focus on the forward bends, inversions and twists. I can throw in some gentle spine soothers once in a while, but the emphasis is on releasing, letting go and reversing the flow of gravity for a venous return. All day we are bound by gravity. So at night I never miss on my shoulder stand, plow and headstand as well as on my reclining twists to release tension where need it.

Repetition doesn’t bother me at night. Once I come up with an evening practice, I stick to it for a while until my body signals a need for change. Then I keep the introspective focus of the practice and only allow myself to play with transitions. The poses are pretty much set. Pigeon, ankle to knee, bull seat to open up the hips. Some low lunges and gate poses to sooth out the overtaxed hamstrings. And for dessert – a roster of inversions to reverse the flow, shift perspective and calm the mind.

I usually toss in some pacifying pranayama in the mix. I also make sure to integrate nourishing binds to stretch the shoulders and put the meridians to sleep. I try to avoid all standing or empowering poses at night. Instead, I prefer to cuddle into the joint creases, to disentangle the fascia binding and to massage the muscles and tendons. The night practice is all about that gentle stretching and soothing as you relax into kneeling, seated, supine and reclining positions.

If my body feels drained from the day, I don’t force it. I cut the practice down – making sure I go through the 7 royal asana – headstand, shoulder stand, plow, fish, seated and reclining twists and forward bends, to finish with legs up the wall.

Then I slip into meditation. Seamlessly. I go to bed replenished, not tired. This results in better sleep and in waking up early for my morning sadhana. I get up rested and excited about the new dawn. The more I stick to this routine, the more lucid my mind becomes the sharper I get for the rest of the day. I feel centered and grateful.

And from that place of gratitude I am ready to stick to my plan or relinquish it at any point. If I miss the evening yoga I feel a little jittery in the morning. I am riding on high gear and the intensity sweeps me into a loop of rushing and repetition. Carving time at night isn’t hard. You just have to start. TONIGHT…

Evening Yoga Routine: Gear Down (open level)

This Yoga routine takes you through a wide array of soothers – from seated, supine, and inverted to reclining poses to elicit the relaxation response, calm the mind, and stretch out those parts that get stiff from sitting, standing and walking during the day.