This is a good read for anyone who practices or has interest in yoga. I am happy that my favorite yoga instructor is very much an “at your own level, this is your practice” instructor. In my routine, yoga is simply a way to calm and center myself, or even to recover from an intense workout. I rarely push myself to do anything but stretch and breathe. But I will surely be mindful of the concerns this article raises, and be sure to mention to my physician at my next check-up.
Rant: The same is true of any practice. My Pilates instructor is very fond of reminding us of the harm that can be inflicted when attention is not paid to form. Yoga is not a replacement for strength training and I’ve found, personally, that as I practice Pilates and focus on building my core strength and pay very specific attention to which parts of my body provide the hinge for entering poses (hint: more often than not it’s your abs or your hip flexors as opposed to your neck and shoulders which folks who spend a great deal of their time computing and driving are wont to do.) my yoga practice has vastly improved. Without proper guidance exercises and poses improperly performed (as tends to happen in huge mat classes where instructors can’t give individual attention) can shred tendons, muscles, and cartilage. Articles like these are definitely important reminders to weekly warriors who do not approach things like yoga and pilates as a discipline. Connecting to your body and being mindful of borders are the whole point of the practice. Pain is an important reminder of where those borders are which is why I get so crabby about things like “Hot Yoga” which creates an environment where feeling those borders is much harder and vastly increases the risk of injury.
(Source: , via cassieirwin)
