I went Body Rolling with Yamuna

So last weekend I went Body Rolling.

No, not this kind of body rolling.

THIS kind of body rolling.

https://www.yamunausa.com/pages/body-rolling

Before my fellow yogi and friend Sieske (from https://www.sieskevalk.com) told me about this, I had never heard of Yamuna, or body rolling before (apart from the club version, above mentioned). It was to be held on a Sunday morning, and consisted of a 3 hour workshop, where we would be rolling around on the floor, on a ball - what's not to like!?

So with our yoga gear on, off we went to cultural Barbican, and in a quiet little community hall, Leila and her balls awaited us.

Leila, with her long curly locks, which she wore loose so flew around her as she talked and rolled on the floor, is a family friend of the founder Yamuna. She is a fascinating lady, very knowledgeable about all things yoga and, of course, body rolling. She patiently explained this wonderful practise to us, took the time to show us the different poses, the effects that what we were doing would have both on our physical and subtle bodies, all whilst lightly interweaving stories of Yamuna and her personality and life.

So what is Body Rolling?

On the official Yamuna website, they say "this is a very powerful self-fixing and maintaining tool that everyone can do regardless of his age or physical limitations" - Balls of different size and firmness are used as if the hands of a therapist or masseuse, and your body weight is used to tract and move specific body parts on the ball. You work mainly on fascia, but also on specific muscle groups, bone stimulation and.. creating space where tightness previously resided.

After working on a specific area, Leila would make you get up and feel yourself (umm, ok). The difference between the side just worked on and the one still to be worked on was astounding. And after a whole area of the body was done you would walk around, or move your arms, or just stand, and feel either 5 inches taller, or looser, or more open, or longer.

After working on the chest and abdomen, breathing because easier. When working on the legs and feet, walking felt like a new experience. Leila helped us question all the simple things we thought we knew how to do (like walking, or standing) and showed us, through the ball rolling techniques, what those activities were actually meant to feel like.

The 3 hours flew by. After telling us about where to buy the balls, Leila recommended we keep hydrated and that light headedness was quite normal. And the light headedness arrived.

Would I do it again?

Yes, I would. As with all things where you are moving your body, mindfully, whilst breathing, and generally doing something to feel good.. it did end up feeling like a moving meditation. And self love. The effects of the workshop continued for several days after and I felt more aware in my body, how it moved, how I sat, how I stood. And sought that feeling of correct alignment which we reached with the balls.

When's the next one?

Don't know! There isn't another one planned.. yet! But subscribe to Leila's newsletter here to be kept up to date!

Thank you for reading!

Have you done a body rolling workshop before? Do you practise this technique at home? And if you are a teacher, do you incorporate these techniques in your classes?