Yoga Through the Year: A Seasonal Approach to Your Practice

by Jilly Shipway

Create a Powerful Connection Between Yoga and the Wheel of the Year Find balance in your yoga practice and your life by connecting with nature and the cycle of the seasons. Yoga Through the Year reimagines yoga as a way to unite complimentary opposites―heaven and earth, sun and moon, male and female. Providing inspiration, guidance, and more than 100 illustrations, this book shows you how to work with the prevalent energy of each season and develop an authentic practice that makes you happier and healthier. Learn how to best work with the challenges and opportunities present throughout the wheel of the year. Explore mindfulness exercises, visualizations, meditations, and yoga poses and sequences that are specially designed for each season. This remarkable book's approach can be personalized to fit your needs all year long. With it, you can develop your own rhythm in response to each seasonal change.

216 pages, Paperback

Published July 8, 2019

Reviews

[AngryGreyCat · Rating 3 out of 5]

Yoga through the Year raises interesting seasonal based questions for one to ask about one’s yoga practice. The goal being to ground your practice in each season giving it a timeliness. Then, particular positions are given to use for that particular season. For example, Winter to Spring included:

Blossoming Hands
Flower Arms
Albatross Sequence
Warrior 2
Wide-Leg Standing Forward Bend Pose
Lunge Pose
Downward-Facing Dog
Child’s Pose
Bridge Pose
Knees to Chest Pose
Wide-Leg stretch
Blossoming Hands
There is a great deal of description included and the sequencing and number of repetitions. The book is encouraging the beginnings of a home yoga practice.

I found the questions it raised interesting, I personally have difficulty meditating and think it would be helpful to have questions to perhaps use as guides. I did find that the fact that the text had no pictures to be a huge problem. I am in no way a very experienced practitioner and would like to see pictures, even if only line drawings, of the poses I am attempting, rather than just written descriptions. I would think that most beginning practitioners would expect illustrations of some kind in a guide. To be published 8th of July 2019 by Llewellyn Publications.

[Nicole Field · Rating 4 out of 5]

When a book starts with an discussion with Patanjali's (imaginary) sister--"Listen to the earth--that's all. Listen to the earth."--you know that you're onto something of a winner.

Maybe I liked this so much because it made me mindful of a similar conversation Virginia Wolff once had with an imaginary sister of William Shakespeare in her essay A Room of One's Own.

But that was just the beginning of a book that was very special all the way throughout. I easily loved the philosophical meanderings just as much as the discussions about yoga poses, why the author chose them for each section of the year, and how to do them safely.

This book is split into several sections within each of the eight sabbaths around the wheel of the year. Each part of the year, after the introduction, goes through the following:

- Summary of the relevant themes in each season
- Yoga practices inspired by each season
- A seasonal meditation
- Something the author calls 'tree wisdom'
- Some meditation questions relating to each season

[Book Him Danno · Rating 3 out of 5]

The reason for the book to receive 3 1\2 stars is the lack of pictures. It could be due to it is an advance copy and not finished I am not sure. Each pose and how they work in the seasons of the year and how each home is able to better help you understand yoga and how to better approach it.

The author gives lots of descriptions which helps but if this was a book someone new to yoga was picking up the pictures or drawing would be a huge benefit.

Thank you to the Netgalley and the publisher Liewellyn Publications for the advance copy of Jilly Shipway Yoga Though the Year.

[January Gray · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a must have book if you are into Yoga or wish to start, or if you are like me, have trouble doing it on a regular basis! Ha, ha! This book is the perfect guide to keep you focused and to practice Yoga regularly, not just when you "find the time." Curious about Yoga? This book is a GREAT place to start!

[Annie · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really like the Seasonal Setup of this book. Going to make excellent Reference book to refer back to.

[Lelia · Rating 1 out of 5]

"Yoga Through the Year" presents a unique perspective on yoga by aligning practices with the seasons. While the concept of connecting yoga with nature can be appealing, some readers may find the approach to be less accommodating for beginners.

The idea of adapting yoga practices according to seasonal changes aims to create a deeper connection with nature. However, this reliance on external factors might not resonate with everyone, especially those who are new to yoga. For newcomers to yoga, it’s crucial to build a practice that is flexible and responsive to the individual’s body rather than strictly adhering to a seasonal framework. Some might feel that this approach could potentially complicate their journey rather than support it.

While the intention behind the book is commendable and offers an interesting perspective, it may be beneficial for readers to approach their yoga practice with a focus on personal comfort and body awareness, especially when starting out.

[Cherry · Rating 4 out of 5]

I really love the concept of this book. The meditations, the division of the book into seasonal phases was great, and other exercises and thoughts were really lovely. I think the book would benefit from some colour and inspirational artwork to enhance the presentation of the great ideas. As much as I like the cute drawings of the yoga poses, they weren't very helpful to me - I would have preferred photos or diagrams with a little more information about the poses they were indicating. Overall I found this book interesting and inspiring.
Thanks to NetGalley for the review copy. The opinions expressed are my own.