June 20, 2022

How To Use Essential Oils for Yoga

When practicing meditation and yoga, creating the perfect environment around you can help set the mood, relax your mind & soul while enhancing your practice. Involving essential oils into your routine, whether this be topically or through inhalation, will allow for a more profound, more peaceful time with many stimulating benefits that can further relax your body.

Essential oils and these types of practices go perfectly together and are highly recommended. Depending on your goals and what mood you’re wanting to set will depend on the oil you choose, in this blog we will recommend 9 essential oils that are best suited for yoga, including their scent and benefits.

1. Eucalyptus Essential Oil

A camphorous & clearing aroma for the mind & body.

Well known for its healing effects on the respiratory system, Eucalyptus is a great choice to reach for when practicing yoga to help deepen your breath and clear the mind. Eucalyptus will help cleanse the area both before and after your practice.

The benefits:

Deep cleansing.
Improves mental focus.
Help clear airways and open the lungs.

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2. Frankincense Essential Oil

A spicy & woody aroma to slow our minds.

Our pure Frankincense oil has a warm, spicy and woody aroma. Frankincense oil helps to overcome nervous fatigue and silence a busy mind, encouraging us to reflect on the past and seek clear inspiration for the future. Praised in meditation rituals, Frankincense essential oil helps deepen the breath and still our minds.

The benefits:

Stress relief.
Stimulate and improve circulation.
Perfect to use in meditation.
Help balance hormones.

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3. Lavender Essential Oil

A nurturing floral for the mind & body.

Lavender essential oil gently cools and calms our spirits. Lavender essential oil is popular for its relaxing and healing qualities, and has been known to improve sleep and general wellbeing.

The benefits:

Helpful for muscular aches and pains.
Calming, soothing, improves sleeplessness and has a soothing and calming effect on the nerves.
Helps with tension, panic, anxiety and nervous exhaustion in general and is effective for headaches, migraines and insomnia.

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4. Ylang Ylang Essential Oil

A deep floral aroma to slow the breath.

Ylang Ylang Essential Oil is quite sedating and may help with feelings of depression, irritation and anger. Known for its soothing and comforting qualities, Ylang Ylang can have a calming effect on the nervous system and an uplifting effect on your mood.

The benefits:

May improve mood.
May help lower blood pressure.
Promote relaxation.

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5. Bergamot Essential Oil

Citrusy, sweet & soothing for the mind.

The slightly sharp yet citrusy sweet scent of Bergamot essential oil soothes our upsets and allows us the space to let our troubles drift away. Helping us uphold the intentions we set for our practices.

The benefits:

Promote a positive outlook.
Appetite stimulant.
Calming.

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6. Patchouli Essential Oil

Sweet, earthy & grounding for the mind & body.

The deeply woody and sweet scent of Patchouli gently beckons the mind down to stillness, where it can reset and rejuvenate in blissful silence. Helpful for those with vulnerable immune systems from being run down, overworked or overtired.

The benefits:

Calming and grounding properties.

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7. Peppermint Essential Oil

Fresh, invigorating & uplifting for the mind & body.

The beautiful, fresh and invigorating aroma of Peppermint essential oil is uplifting and therapeutic for the mind and body. It's cool, crisp scent imparts a sense of freshness, purity and cleanliness. A great essential oil to reach for to clear your mind before your practice or to refresh energies post practice.

The benefits:

Uplifting, energising and invigorating.
Mental clarity.
May help to relieve muscle & joint pain.
Support digestive health.

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8. Clary Sage Essential Oil

Earthy, herbaceous & healing for the mind & body.

Beautiful Clary Sage brings the music of our spirit to life. A helpful guide to the creative soul and a shining light for the melancholic and anxious mind. Clary Sage is a renowned antidote to mild depression, anxiety and stress. It is also useful for helping us to recover from nervous fatigue. It is thought that this essential oil is mildly euphoric, and can be useful to inspire or restore creativity and help with sleplessness.

The benefits:

Calming.
Hormone balancing.

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9. Sandalwood 10% Essential Oil

Warm, woody & grounding.

A warming balm for a sore heart and a restorative break from a non-stop hectic lifestyle, Sandalwood transports us to a meditative space.

The benefits:

Calming, grounding, soothing.
Helps dry skin conditions.
Immunity.
May assist with respiratory conditions.

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How to use essential oils for yoga

Although there are several ways to use essential oils the best ways to use them whilst practicing yoga would be through inhalation or topically.

Diffuser: The quickest and most simple method of using essential oils. Essential oils can be inhaled straight from the bottle or added to a diffuser or essential oil burner. Perfect for a quick pick-me-up or to help improve your mood and will help create the perfect environment during your yoga practice.

Topically: Using oils topically when practicing yoga will help release muscular tension or physical/mental emotions you may be feeling. Use a 2.5% dilution; 50 drops per 100ml carrier oil or Mix 1 drop of chosen essential oil with 5ml carrier oil and apply to wrists, abdomen or back of the neck.

Use this time to focus on yourself, and create the perfect environment for you to become your most relaxed and blissful state.

Diffuser blends for yoga & meditation practice

Meditation Blend

4 drops of Frankincense
1 drop of Sandalwood 10%
2 drops of Lavender

Zen

3 drops of Bergamot
3 drops of Sweet Orange
2 drops of Frankincense

Fresh Start

2 drops of Clary Sage
2 drops of Ylang Ylang
2 drops of Sandalwood 10%
2 drops of Frankincense

Spirit

2 drops of Cedarwood
3 drops of Frankincense
3 drops of Spearmint

Retreat

4 drops of Sandalwood 10%
2 drops of Lavender
1 drop of Clary Sage

Dreamscape

1 drop of Cedarwood
1 drop of Frankincense
3 drops of Bergamot

Shop kits & blends

ECO. Anxiety Blend Essential Oil (1465915801655)

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ECO. Calm & Destress Aroma Trio (638688395319)

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ECO. Calm & Destress Blend (638691344439)

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Author: Ali Macrae
Content Creator

Ali is the Content Creator at ECO. Modern Essentials. Ali oversees the company's social media platforms, helps coordinate brand collaborations and is a leader for ECO.'s content creation.