How to Avoid Yoga Injuries
Yoga is unique in that it is restorative for both the mind and the body. There is plenty of scientific evidence showing that it is very good for mental health as well as for physical problems, such as back pain and arthritis.
As yoga is a low-impact and modifiable activity, the risk of physical injury is lower than with some other forms of exercise. The most common yoga-related injuries are muscle strains, which usually lead to lower-back, shoulder and neck injuries. Similar to other forms of exercise, people over the age of 65 are more likely to develop an injury.
Tips to Prevent Yoga Injuries
Without proper care and prevention, yoga injuries can be quite common. Tips to prevent yoga injuries include:
1. Go slow initially
Try an introductory class or one-on-one instruction to get a good foundation before you attempt more advanced poses. Everyone starts yoga as a beginner. Allow yourself to slowly ease into the practice. It can take time to find the right instructor and yoga type for your needs. Give yourself time to learn and your body time to adapt.
2. Look for a qualified Instructor
Yoga is extremely popular as there are classes in almost every community across the country. The vast growth of yoga means that there is an increasing number of instructors but, unfortunately, not all instructors are sufficiently skilled. The unskilled or questionable instructors can cause injuries by pushing students too far, or by positioning your body in a pose that you are not ready for. Pay attention to your instructor’s demeanour, how they handle beginner students and review their qualifications. How long have they been teaching and where did they get their certification? Choosing a qualified instructor ensures that your teacher has been trained in injury prevention.
3. Listen to Your Body
Depending on your personality, your yoga instructor, and your fellow classmates it can be easy to get too competitive. Pushing your body too far on any given day can quickly result in a painful injury. You know that you are getting into trouble if a stretch goes from feeling like a good stretch to pain. Some days may be better than others, and if it’s a day to push yourself, then great. Many things such as sleep, diet and focus can affect your performance. Listen to what your body is telling you. If it’s a day to hold back, then hold back
If you have muscle soreness the day after exercise, that’s normal. But if something actually hurts then that’s a sign that you may have overdone it or need a different type of yoga class.
4. Don’t overdo it
In yoga you must never compare yourself to others and you must always keep your ego under control. Even if you can go deep into a pose, that doesn’t mean you should. Yoga is a balance of strength and flexibility, but you should not overstretch or go too deeply into certain poses as this may cause injury.
5. Use props
Don’t be afraid to use blocks, straps and other yoga accessories. A yoga prop is simply an object that is used to aid the practice of the yoga poses. Beginners usually greatly benefit from the use of props as they help you to achieve the otherwise unachievable, help to make a pose safer, or help you to get greater health benefits from a pose. If you are not sure how to use props, ask your instructor.
6. Avoid problematic poses
If you have any sort of medical history that affects your mobility there may be poses which are problematic, i.e. they may induce pain. If this is the case, modify these poses so that they are comfortable or avoid them altogether.
Always give your body time to warm up and cool down before your yoga class. As you ease into each pose, and out of it, you’re giving your body time to adapt so that it can do what you request of it. This also means going into poses slowly and coming out of them slowly, too.
Finally, do not go to a yoga class only once a week or once a month. The more time you give your body to learn the movements and become flexible and strong, the better your classes will be. Regularly and frequently practicing yoga will also reduce the risk of injury. Yoga is wonderful for your mind, body, and spirit. Take it easy and prevent injuries so you can enjoy your yoga practice year round.