Back problems are often a hazard, making it difficult to do the common things that most take for granted: lift objects, bend down, or even sitting in a cushy armchair. While GPs recommend diets, pills, and hospital treatments to help cope with enduring symptoms, more and more people have been turning to non-western approaches to help them overcome their problems. Why? Because they work. One alternative technique has been particularly popular for back pain sufferers: yoga.
What yoga does
There are many types of yoga: there are gentle forms that help calm the mind and body, and there are more psychically demanding types that serve as a great workout. Yoga works to help you improve your posture, your alignment, and gain a greater awareness of your body, doing so through a combination of breathing exercises and poses.
Osteopaths and yoga experts recommend a style that is known as hatha yoga for people who are suffering from back problems, as it is one of the gentlest forms that involves careful stretches, easy breathing exercises, and practices of the basic yoga poses. They discourage yoga variations such as Bikram and Ashtanga, as they can be hard on the back. Hatha yoga can make it easier to recover quickly from back problems such as Sciatica, Osteoarthritis and Fibromyalgia, and can also prevent them from occurring in the first place.
What can you do?
Here are some yoga exercises you can do to strengthen your back, alleviate pain, and make your muscles more flexible:
1) Begin with some stretches before moving on to the more complicated poses. Get into the Mountain Pose: stand up straight with your feet touching, balancing the weight of your body over the feet evenly. Keep your arms at your sides, slightly pressed into the body. Tighten your buttocks and stomach muscles but maintain a firm posture. Whole holding the pose, breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth.
2) The Crescent Moon Pose: this pose strengthens the legs, the shoulders, and the back, giving you extra stamina. It is best carried out in 2 steps:
Kneel down to your knees while keeping a straight back. Step forward with your right foot so that your foot is a little past your right knee, and keep your leg parallel to the floor.
Hook your thumbs together and stretch your arms high above your head. Then lift your left leg off the floor, stretch it, and divide your weight between the front and back legs. Also be sure not to lift your chest too much " you dont want to have a completely hollow back.
3) The Child Pose: this pose is great for stretching the spine, hips, and thighs. It should help relieve you of both psychical and emotional stress. This pose is best done in 3 steps:
Kneel onto your knees, keeping the knees slightly parted, sitting with your feet pointing outwards.
Gently place your forehead on the floor and swing your arms forward, so that your shoulders brush your ears.
With your head still touching the floor, bring your arms around to your sides, palms facing upwards.
These traditional ways of healing the body can therefore be a great supplement or alternative to western back treatments. As long as each pose is exercised with caution, hatha yoga can ensure that your mind and body feel better and refreshed. - 14130
What yoga does
There are many types of yoga: there are gentle forms that help calm the mind and body, and there are more psychically demanding types that serve as a great workout. Yoga works to help you improve your posture, your alignment, and gain a greater awareness of your body, doing so through a combination of breathing exercises and poses.
Osteopaths and yoga experts recommend a style that is known as hatha yoga for people who are suffering from back problems, as it is one of the gentlest forms that involves careful stretches, easy breathing exercises, and practices of the basic yoga poses. They discourage yoga variations such as Bikram and Ashtanga, as they can be hard on the back. Hatha yoga can make it easier to recover quickly from back problems such as Sciatica, Osteoarthritis and Fibromyalgia, and can also prevent them from occurring in the first place.
What can you do?
Here are some yoga exercises you can do to strengthen your back, alleviate pain, and make your muscles more flexible:
1) Begin with some stretches before moving on to the more complicated poses. Get into the Mountain Pose: stand up straight with your feet touching, balancing the weight of your body over the feet evenly. Keep your arms at your sides, slightly pressed into the body. Tighten your buttocks and stomach muscles but maintain a firm posture. Whole holding the pose, breathe in through your nose, out through your mouth.
2) The Crescent Moon Pose: this pose strengthens the legs, the shoulders, and the back, giving you extra stamina. It is best carried out in 2 steps:
Kneel down to your knees while keeping a straight back. Step forward with your right foot so that your foot is a little past your right knee, and keep your leg parallel to the floor.
Hook your thumbs together and stretch your arms high above your head. Then lift your left leg off the floor, stretch it, and divide your weight between the front and back legs. Also be sure not to lift your chest too much " you dont want to have a completely hollow back.
3) The Child Pose: this pose is great for stretching the spine, hips, and thighs. It should help relieve you of both psychical and emotional stress. This pose is best done in 3 steps:
Kneel onto your knees, keeping the knees slightly parted, sitting with your feet pointing outwards.
Gently place your forehead on the floor and swing your arms forward, so that your shoulders brush your ears.
With your head still touching the floor, bring your arms around to your sides, palms facing upwards.
These traditional ways of healing the body can therefore be a great supplement or alternative to western back treatments. As long as each pose is exercised with caution, hatha yoga can ensure that your mind and body feel better and refreshed. - 14130
About the Author:
Andrew Mitchell, clinical director of the Osteopath Network, writes papers about musculo-skeletal conditions and Milton Keynes osteopath. The Osteopath Network has more than 550 clinics located throughout the UK and offers treatment at weekends and after hours.
