7 bedtime yin yoga poses for better sleep

Hi {{ first_name }},

From the Sleep Floundation:

"Since stress relief is important to get quality sleep, sleep experts recommend developing a routine in the evening to wind down from the day. Some people may benefit from quiet activities such as reading or taking a warm bath. Others may find stress relief through gentle stretching before bedtime."

Watch Now: 20 Minute Bedtime Yoga Stretch

In this new video, release tension with a cozy set of yoga poses for evening, bedtime, or anytime you want to relax, stretch and breathe. Watch the video above, or follow the written sequence below. Hold each pose for 90 seconds. After each pose, rest on your back for 45 seconds.

1. Lying Rest - Breathing in and out, feel the support of the floor beneath you and allow the weight of your arms and legs to rest into the ground. 
2. Cradle Pose - From a lying position, simply hug your knees into your chest and hold them there gently. Breathe into the stretch you feel in your back.
3. Half Butterfly - From a seated position, extend one leg forward and bend the other leg, bringing the foot to your inner upper thigh. Open your bent knee out to the side. Bend your torso forward to stretch your hamstrings and spine. Repeat on both sides. 
4. Banana Pose - From a lying position, From a lying position, move both feet toward the bottom right corner of your mat. Reach your arms overhead, and move your hands toward the top right corner of your mat, so that your body ends up in a curved banana-like shape. Breathe into the stretch in the left side of your body. 
5. Spinal Twist - From a lying position, bend both knees and drop them to your right. Extend your left hand out to the left and rest the arm onto the floor.
6. Happy Baby - From a lying position, bend both knees toward your chest, reach down with your hands to hold the bottoms of your feet, then turn the soles of the feet up toward the ceiling.   
7. Savasana - Rest on your back in any comfortable position. Breathe gently while you feel the effects of the sequence. 

What else helps you wind down before bedtime? I'd love to hear from you in a comment below the video.