Injury Free Yoga Leads to Stress Release and Weight Loss

Feb. 21, 2010 - PRLog -- With over 16 million Americans spreading out their yoga mats,  yoga injuries are on the rise.  Yoga has recently gotten a misleadingly glamorous reputation. It's borrowed some of Hollywood's luster without losing its mystical allure.

While some yoga students contort their bodies into aching, injured human pretzels-because they assume advanced, unnatural poses are the most beneficial ones; others won't try yoga because they feel it's only for the super flexible.  Most of us will benefit from some kind of yoga practice-but it's important to be cautious. By knowing how to avoid injury, yoga practicipants can lose weight, release stress, and increase flexibility.  

Many yoga-related injuries can be prevented by keeping both mind and body flexible. By letting go of a competitive spirit--that unstoppable drive to do more, go faster, and stretch farther is invaluable, except during yoga class.   Suzanne Andrews, licensed occupational therapy practitioner and certified yoga instructor who uses therapeutic yoga in her practice states, " It might seem like more is better, but overstretching and over straining your ligaments will actually slow you down. Ligaments are what help keep your joints in place, and overstretching them causes injuires.   Muscles have to be both flexible and strong to properly support major joints like the knees.  To practice yoga safely, one should keep their body in top shape by balancing gentle yoga stretches with strength-building exercise."

Yoga also involves the bearing of extra weight upon joints. It's easy to put too much pressure on your wrists, ankles, hips, or shoulders. But there is no added benefit to straining any of these joints. If one experiences any pain, numbness, or a sensation of pins and needles, it is advisable to stop and seek the help of a licensed medical professional.

Yoga practice should not strain one's hips,  lower back, or neck.  When yoga is taught by a degreed therapy health practitioner, yoga students have the advantage of an instructor who understands how the human body works, both anatomically and physiologically. Since not everyone begins with strong core muscles,  even basic poses can cause some students to have hip pain.  One must be especially careful not to overextend their spinal muscles. Quick movements or strenuous practice can nudge one's vertebrae painfully out of alignment.

When it comes to safe yoga, muscles and bones don't get all the attention.  Yoga exercise also affects circulation. Be very watchful  with inverted poses- in which the head is below the heart such as a headstand.  Head stands also cause unnecessary strain on your cervical (neck) spine.  Blood pressure rises when one take this unnatural position. And advanced, inverted poses have been linked to a rare but serious kind of stroke.

In 2001, actress Sharon Stone put a memorable face on the condition, called "arterial inversion." Physicians reported that the strain and abrupt head movements of strenuous yoga practice were to blame.


The great news is, almost anyone can benefit from practicing a gentler kind of yoga.  Yoga is perfect for  seniors,  out of shape, or those overweight and when practiced correctly helps people lose weight by instilling mindful good habits that offer an alternative to stress eating.  Yoga breathing itself has many benefits including decreased appetitie, increased energy, lowering  heart disease and stress levels which increases cortisol: a carbohydrate craving hormone.

Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia demonstrated how just one session of yoga can lower blood levels of the stress hormone - cortisol.   "Participants cortisol level were measured before and after they practiced yoga, then again before and after they sat quietly while reading. After the Yoga sessions, cortisol levels dropped. There was no drop after the resting sessions. Consequently,  Andrews further researched and found there is a direct correlation between weight gain and stress.  9 out of 10 of her patients stated they over eat as a direct response to stress. Yet many could not practice yoga because many of the DVD's are too advanced.  Andrews incorporated gentle beginner's yoga into her patients treatment plan and kept meticulous records for 4 years.  Her patient's ability to overcome stress increased by 80% and their oxygen saturation increased to normal levels.  Her study reported unexpected findings:  her patients with insomnia were sleeping better and her overweight patients were losing weight, including herself - she lost 60 pounds by practicing gentle yoga. From her findings she produced, Beginners Dynamic Yoga For Stress Release and Weight Loss available at:
http://www.healthwiseexercise.com/shop/cart.php?target=pr...

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Host of Functional Fitness on PBS TV and occupational therapy practitioner, Suzanne Andrews specializes in increasing your ability to live better, longer and healthier regardless of your age or ability level.