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Back
Safety in Yoga
Yoga
is an excellent therapy for healing sore and injured back
muscles, yet one of the most common injuries in yoga is straining
the back muscles. Here are the basics for taking care of your
back during yoga.
Warm-up
Jumping right into your practice or posture is a common way
to injure yourself. Take time to warm up the spine and the
back muscles using repetitions of gentle postures/movements.
Focus on warm-ups that move the spine in its six directions:
arching and rounding the back, twisting the torso from left
to right and left and right side bends.
Back Bends
Back bending postures should not strain the back. Back bends
open the front of the body, and this is where you should feel
the stretch. A safe backbend will compress the low back but
not strain it or cause any pain. For deep backbends make sure
the lower body (buttocks and legs), abdominals and mula bandha
are strongly engaged.
Forward Bends
Forward bending postures stretch the back muscles, releases
tension and feels good. But forward bends also compress the
anterior (front) spine which could further injure a slipped
or ruptured disk. Forward bends should be approached very
carefully. Move into them first with the back flat and the
spine long, then if it feels safe round the spine to stretch
the back muscles.
Breathe
Make sure you are not holding the breath in the postures.
If you are in an asana and you can't breathe deeply, then
you have gone too deep into the pose. If you feel mild pain
in the postures, breathe into the sensation and explore it.
Note where the pain begins and ends and its quality. A sharp
intense pain means you need to stop.
Do Reps
If your back muscles are weak, postures that strengthen the
back, such as belly down postures and bridge pose, should
be done using repetitions of short hold times. These postures
should not be held long, only long enough to feel the muscles
working without pain or fatigue.
Warrior Poses
Modify the position of the arms in the warrior postures (warrior
1 and 3, warrior angle, reverse warrior) if the back feels
strained. Instead of having the arm(s) raised, bend the elbow(s),
keep the hands on the hips or in Namaste position, or lower
them down to a comfortable position.
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