We're into the thick of winter here in the Southern Hemisphere - the cold mornings, the shorter days, the pull to move slower.
In Ayurveda, this season is associated with Kapha, the dosha linked to the qualities of cold, heaviness, and stillness. Rather than working against that, Ayurveda suggests meeting winter with warmth - keeping the body insulated, moving gently, and letting practice support the season rather than fight it.
It's a helpful lens for thinking about how we set up our own winter practice.
Here are five simple ways to bring more warmth into your winter practice.
Heat packs
Warmth changes how the body receives a pose. We can place them with intention, such as; across the shoulders in child's pose to help the shoulders and upper back soften rather than brace; over the lower abdomen in savasana, to ease the belly and settle the nervous system; placed over your feet in Baddha Konasana (Bound Angle Pose) to improve circulation throughout your body.
Our heat packs are hand block-printed on organic cotton using Global Organic Textile Standard dyes, and each purchase supports Unnathi, a social enterprise in southern India employing differently-abled artisans and their families.
To help you stay warm this winter, we are offering 35% off our heat packs!
BLANKETS
A blanket earns its place in a winter practice well beyond savasana. Laid over your grounding yoga mat, it adds a layer of insulation. Draped over the body in stillness, it holds warmth within, with a grounding weight. Wrapped around the feet in restorative and yin practice, it keeps the extremities from pulling your attention away from the breath.
A FAUX RUG
Placed on top of your grounding yoga mat, over your zabuton or futon, a faux rug softens the surface and adds a layer of warmth beneath the body - particularly useful for longer yin holds, kneeling poses, yoga nidra and meditation. It's a small tactile addition that can change how long you're willing to stay.
A scarf
Around the neck, a scarf holds warmth exactly where it's needed for seated meditation, pranayama, or yin / restorative yoga, where stillness means the body cools more quickly. It's an easy layer to add without changing how you move.
Long loungewear set
Practice doesn't end when you roll up the mat. A long, hand block-printed loungewear set made of 100% organic cotton gives you somewhere warm to land for meditation, for the slow mindful moments before and after practice, or for simply staying in that settled state a little longer before the day pulls you back in.
Winter practice isn't about pushing through the cold and it doesn’t mean your practice has to pause. It just means it's worth adjusting how you support your body through it, creating enough warmth that the body can soften, and the mind can follow. Small additions like these make that a little easier.
AN INTEGRATED WINTER PRACTICE
If you're craving a clear, intentional and steady practice this winter, our current Sādhana inside Buddhi Sangha - Awaken Your Creative Flow, guided by the Saraswati archetype, the current of wisdom, learning, and creative expression - is underway, and I warmly welcome you to join.
Through pranayama, mantra, meditation, ritual and movement, it's built to deepen inner listening, strengthen self-trust, and support a clearer way of expressing what you already know.
Angela Knight
Calm Buddhi Ma
Yoga, Meditation and Yoga Nidra Teacher