“If your spine is inflexibly stiff at 30, you are old. IF it is completely flexible at 60, you are young.” - Joseph Pilates
How old do you feel today? Most people experience tightness or pain in their back at some point. Whether you’ve been sitting too much or ran too many miles or overdid it in the back yard, you stand up and––ouch! Whether you simply need to stretch and strengthen the muscles surrounding your spine or it’s time to address chronic physical pain, yoga is a powerful tool.
Look at nurturing your back as an investment in feeling great well into old age. This week, we’re introducing a 3-week program designed for hips and lower back therapy. A wide variety of yoga styles and levels offer classes that give you the tools to maintain a healthy back and alleviate pain if you’re suffering. Yoga addresses not just the physical body but tunes us into our emotional body, which can often be what is triggering physical pain. Difficult emotions build up and inhabit our tissues. Creating an emotional release often results in physical relief.
Yoga focuses on the subtle body, which is essentially the blueprint of the physical body and is where the system of Nadis (energy channels) and Chakras (energy centers) run along the spinal column. The Sushumna Nadi begins at the base of the spine and finishes at the crown of the head. Each of the seven primary chakras relate to emotions and manifest as pain or discomfort in the corresponding area of the spine.
For example, the Muladhara (Root) chakra at the base of the spine deals with our basic needs for survival and our relationships with family. When these emotional issues aren’t balanced, pain can manifest in the lower back and hips. Or let’s say you’ve got a major crick in your neck. The Visshuda (Throat) chakra, which represents your ability to express your truth, could be involved. Often when we observe what’s in our heart when we’re experiencing back pain, the answer lies within.
Whatever the reason you’re experiencing weakness or pain in your back, a targeted yoga practice can help! Physically, yoga will open up tight muscles in the back, hamstrings, and hip flexors, which all can contribute to back pain. Also, take the time to strengthen your core because the muscles in your trunk provide girdle-like support for your spine. Often back pain can be tied to all these factors and yoga can counteract these issues and offers relief.
A consistent yoga practice offers much more than physical benefits. You’ll quiet your mind and relax difficult emotions, which can be a major contributor to physical pain. Having an outlet to safely release anger, sadness, and fear relieves your being on every level. Our mind and body are inextricably linked. Give yourself the gift of a yoga program to help soothe your emotions and relax tight muscles and tension.