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Why is it that most yoga teachers believe that spinal flexion helps alleviate back pain? Let's explore.
What is spinal flexion? Flexion of the spine occurs when your rib cage rounds closer to your pelvis or thighs. In most yoga classes, flexion is achieved by performing common Forward Folds, such as Balasana (child's pose), Uttanasana (standing forward fold), and Paschimottanasana (seated forward fold). However, there is no anatomical support for yoga teachers' choice to put students with low back pain immediately into a forward-folding position.
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For those of you taking my Yoga without Back Pain series who'd like to practice at home, here are the asanas we have covered so far. Thanks to your fellow student Shauna for asking that I send out the list.
By the way, you'll each get a complete list of the pranayama, meditations, and asana that we've practiced after the fourth class, so make sure I get your e-mail address for that. And now, the asana from lessons 1 and 2: [Performing all with bandhas engaged] Tadasana (mountain pose) Vrksasana (tree pose) Utthita hasta padangusthasana (standing big-toe pose) Natarajasana (dancer) Salabhasana (locust) Dhanurasana (bow pose) "Moving" cow pose Upavistha Konasana (seated wide-angle pose) Savasana Virabhadrasana II (warrior II) Trikonasana (triangle) Tadasana Dwi Pada Pitham (two-legged table) Apanasana (the "vital air" pose, with legs crossed over) Jathara Parivrtti (belly twist, with legs extended) Savasana Remember to practice with excellent spinal posture, deep and full breathing, and your bandhas engaged, and these should feel great! See you next week . . . As you know, I love to talk about the mind-body connection and how we can use our minds to our advantage in every realm of life. One of the leaders in this arena is Kelly McGonigal, PhD. She is also a yoga teacher, so I love her approach and her dedication to relieving people's pain. Be aware, though: If you watch her segment on Yoga for Back Pain, two of the four moves she advises doing are not usually good for low-back-pain. If you've been my client or taken any of my Yoga without Back Pain classes, you know exactly which moves I am talking about! Most yoga teachers make the same mistake McGonigal has made. That reality was the inspiration behind my posting of "why yoga classes can make back pain worse" on my YouTube channel. My functional fitness background continues to serve me well as I delve deeper and deeper into the worlds of yoga and back-pain management . . . Jonah Lehrer, author of the new book Imagine: How Creativity Works, recently wrote a fantastic piece for Wired magazine called, "Trials and Errors: Why Science is Failing Us."
The entire article is worth a quiet, concentrated perusal. The section of greatest interest to readers of this blog may well be the section on back pain. Lehrer discusses the oft-documented finding that vertebral disc damage (such as herniation and bulging discs) is not correlated with pain. Medical journals have been reporting these results for more than a decade, yet physicians have continued to use MRIs and x-rays to "diagnose" back-pain patients with disc damage--even when that diagnosis does nothing to explain the pain a patient is experiencing or guide their treatment. For a succinct yet descriptive blog post about the region in Italy where I and a few lucky guests will enjoy my Spring 2012 Yoga Retreat, this year-old post by Tina Ferrari takes the cake.
Puglia as a region is "the most beautiful in Italy," according to my Italian teacher, and "untouched by mass tourism," as Ms. Ferrari reveals. Beauty, tranquility, and a luxurious traditional trullo that only our small group will share? What better place to turn inward as we explore yoga asana (postures), pranayama (breathing), and meditation. The best part about the region and our trip there? The food is amazing, as illustrated by Helen Graves's blog post about cibo pugliese (the food of Puglia) on her Food Stories blog. There's still time to join us next spring! Why deprive yourself any longer? This piece by Elizabeth Landau on CNN.com is a beautiful account of how mindfulness can change the shape of both physical and emotional pain.
Back pain is the type of pain that I see and work with most frequently in my events and classes. When a person is experiencing pain--or is accustomed to feeling pain--the mind runs amok with negative thinking. Whether it be anxiety, depression, blame, shame, or the anger that Monty Reed (in Landau's piece) describes, those negative emotions actually cause pain to increase or intensify. Judging yourself for having a particular feeling or emotion, or believing you are victimized and disempowered, can cause anyone's back to hurt! |
Sara Hauber
Coach, listener, observer, and sometimes teacher; constantly curious student of life. Former back-pain expert with a back full of metal and a heart overflowing with Love. 
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