Rubber Yoga Mat

Question by sazzy: Back pain after doing shoulder stands in yoga?
I’ve had a bad back for years, ever since a car crash when I was about 9 – being too small to take on the air bag properly it’s left me with a really bad back, it tends to randomly just go for no particular reason, usually when picking up something that’s not particularly heavy. Been to the doctor’s multiple times – they’ve been no help.
I recently took up yoga, as a friend said it really helped their bad back. Mostly it does seem to be working. However, when I’m doing shoulder stands, I’m absolutely fine when doing it, no pain but once I’m back down again lying on the floor the base of my back is really sore, and I find I’m really tense and can’t relax my back for about 2 minutes afterwards, then it suddenly goes and I feel fine when I leave again.
It does seem to be getting slightly better each week I do it, but it’s still a fair ammount of pain for a few minutes afterwards.
So I was wondering if I should continue doing the shoulder stands and see what happens, or should I just stop doing them completely? Anyone who has had a bad back and has done yoga for a while I’d particularly like your opinion.
Over all I have found it helpful, and do feel a lot looser from it – it’s just a few minutes after this exercise that I get the pain – I’ve only been doing it about 5 weeks, so I’ve no idea if it’d get better long term yet, but I’d rather not wreck my back any more in the process.

Best answer:

Answer by Emzii
I’ve had a bad back for three years but mine was because my legs were that unflexible it put pressure on my back. It started when I fell over so I was afraid to do too much and hurt it, because I wasn’t using it and I was taking everything easy I became unflexible which made it even worse!

If it’s anything like my injury it was better to just keep exercising, I used to do yoga and I also do karate, both which seemed to help my back. Sometimes I have to miss certain exercises, but I try to do them if I can. I found that as I got my back more used to doing exercises it got better and better so now I can nearly do everything! My injury was at the bottom of my back though so yours may be different.

Have you tried visiting a physiotherapist rather than a doctor? I went to a sports physiotherapist even though my injury wasn’t sports based and it really helped!

Question by interested: what is the best way to integrate yoga into your daily life?
I have a busy life style.
Have taken yoga classes– consider myself a beginner, but I definitely would like to make a point to practice it at home—–what’s the best time, place—– don’t have that much space in my house………any tips?

Best answer:

Answer by reigning_confusion
I’d check out

http://www.iyogalife.com/
http://www.yogajournal.com/
http://www.yogatoday.com/

and especially

http://www.youtube.com/user/sadienardini

Sadie has a book and a dvd, but you don’t need to buy them. I didn’t She has over a 100 videos and is still making more, (not all on her youtube account) and there’s a bunch made for beginners. You can ask for help or suggestions on any of her videos and she’ll respond. So this is a good place to start.

As for the other websites, iyogalife.com has a lot of information on different types of yoga

http://www.iyogalife.com/anusara/

and you can choose from there. It also has blogs made by yoga instructors and many different types of workouts.

yogatoday.com has a different hour-long workout each day.

yogajournal.com is full of information, with instructions on how to do 118 poses and what to eat and how to cross train and so on.

That’s all I can think of right now. You should definitely get off to a good start with this, and it can all be done in your home with minimal space.

Hope I helped!

Question by chiquita: Does anyone know any tips for doing Yoga from home?
I don’t have enough money to take a class but I really want to start yoga. I like the inner peace concept and i could always use some good excersise/muscle toning and im a dancer so it helps with stretching. Can I do it from home? Tips?

Best answer:

Answer by Sahil
If you have cable then FITtvhave yoga shows that you can follow. Alternatively I accidentally found this great sources online.

http://www.yogalearningcenter.com/?gclid=CIzq-Pm8kp4CFdA65QodFhf6pg
http://www.yogadownload.com/
http://www.myyogaonline.com/

Hope this helps!

Question by Aquarius17: Can yoga therapy help a person who has tight muscles, especially on the outer side of the legs?
Possible arthritic conditions in the knees as well as weak core muscles. How long and how often does the person need to do yoga therapy before the benefits will be visible. Also, is it necessary or alright to continue to consume health supplements or medicines.

Best answer:

Answer by sliver birch
Visible benefits show up different for each individual, the need for continued health medicines are stickily up to your doctor, but I would recommend health supplements always. Yoga is known to help many arthritic people, so continue until you are satisfied.

Question by Birini: What to think or visualize during a yoga session?
I mean is there anything to visualize or think about during yoga and pranayama where we do yogic body postures ?

Best answer:

Answer by Jennifer T
Eventually you should be able to get to a point where you don’t really think about anything – your mind is kind of blank, only in the present, and you don’t think of anything outside of the room.

However, actually getting to that point is easier said than done.

Focusing on one spot on the wall/floor/mirror can help – if it is a mirrored room, particularly looking at your eyes or one spot on your body can help. It is easier to zone out if you are staring (more or less) at one point. Also, if you notice your mind getting really distracted, then just telling yourself to relax and let it go can help.

Some people find it helpful to use a manta, which is just repeating a phrase or two inside your head. It doesn’t have to be anything in particular – it could be as simple as “Stay present.” You might find as well that you use specific mantras for individual postures, reminding yourself to push the knee back, keep the arms straight, etc.

If visualizations work for you, then I would visualize the posture you are currently in, but in a deeper form than what you can currently achieve.

Namaste!