Injury Related Yoga Styles

Virtually every athlete will suffer some sort of injury throughout the duration of their career. How they recover and prevent that injury from happening again can have a great effect on whether that injury develops into a more serious condition or if it becomes a recurring problem that persists from time to time.

Many athletes choose to perform yoga as an exercise type when recovering from an injury. In fact, a recent study concluded that yoga was an effective exercise type in it's ability to aide in the recovery of injuries. In fact, the study concluded that yoga, when regularly performed, was 92% effective in assisting in the rate of recovery across a wide range of injury types.

In order to be comfortable while exercising, wear comfortable clothes that do not inhibit movement and use a yoga mat. Some people that use yoga only for injury related means do not want to invest in a mat and use a folded blanket or other soft material to cushion their bodies. This is fine as long as it is not so thick that it actual effects posture negatively or so thin that it does not provide any support.

Yoga works to rejuvenate the body in several ways after injury:

After a back injury, yoga can be used to improve posture and strengthen the spine to prevent further injuries and aid in recovery.

While the knees are complex and yoga is sometimes ineffective in soothing injuries some exercises can work to improve degenerative knee ailments due to age or a life of exercise and even relieve some minor pain.

Yoga causes more blood to flow to the areas that it is affecting. The increase in blood flow allows more oxygen and nutrients to be delivered to the area and thus, speeds up recovery.

Yoga for Back Injuries

Most experts suggest the Hatha type of yoga for back injuries rather than a faster program because it is a gentle and strengthening program that will soothe pain and build muscle while not overworking an already injured body. If you have a mild back injury or discomfort, try this program.

Begin this program with a gentle stretch using the Mountain Pose. From a standing position, try to position yourself in a way that your weight is evenly over your feet (which should be together). While doing this, lightly press your arms against your sides. Tighten the muscles of your abdomen and inhale slowly.

Slowly kneel but try to keep your back straight. Raise your right foot in front of you a few inches and form a square with your right leg and the floor.

With your arms above your head and thumbs grabbing each other, slowly lift your body with the right leg and push the left leg pack until it is on a diagonal with the floor. Remember to keep your back straight.

Now return to a kneeling position but keep your knees apart. Bend forward until your head touches the floor and bring your arms in front you so that your shoulders are lightly against your ears. Stretch your arms in front of you for a few moments until finally returning to first a kneel and then standing up.

Remember to do all of these movements very slowly and to stop if there is any intense pain. The above exercises should be soothing and graceful, not painful and jerky.

Yoga for Knee Injuries

Once again, Hatha is recommended for knee injuries. While these exercises are designed to strengthen knees and prevent future injuries, doing them slowly and smoothly can help relieve pain and rejuvenate the body.

To begin this exercise start by sitting against a wall and let your weight rest evenly on your buttocks. Position both of your legs so that they are straight out in front you, no pressure should be placed on either of your legs while allowing them to lie flat. First gently raise your right knee and point your left toes outward. While doing so, breathe slowly. While you inhale, flex the right foot. While you exhale, point the toes of your left foot. After doing this 25 times, switch to the other leg.

In the same starting position as before, while inhaling, lift your left leg over the right leg, allowing them to cross but not touch. While lowering it back the floor, exhale. Do this 15 times and then switch to the other leg and repeat.

Return to the starting position and put a folded blanket (enough to get your knee about 5 inches off the floor) under your left knee. While inhaling, make your left leg straight and then return it to rest while exhaling. After doing this 20 times, switch to the other leg.

These exercises are very soothing and can be used by almost anyone. By doing them every day you will increase blood flow and strengthen your quad muscles to help prevent further injuries.

Interestingly, the above exercise was used in morbidly obese test subjects, that complained about knee problems from carrying their weight, in a study done in 1999. All of the subjects reported a decrease in discomfort after doing the exercise once a day for 2 weeks. Whatever your condition, any healthy activity is good activity even if you think you're not doing much.

Is Injury Related Yoga for You?

Especially in the legs, strong muscles and flexibility are important every time you take a step during the day. A knee injury can be crippling and a back injury will not feel any better. Injury related Yoga has been shown to be effective in many cases of injury and can be a valuable tool for people that do not get much exercise.

Because injury related yoga is the most careful of all styles of yoga, (while still building strength and flexibility) it has been often used for people that are too overweight to perform other activities. Too often, yoga is shown as being an elite form of exercise for the super fit percentage of the population. This is simply not true as anyone can use yoga in some way. Consider Injury Related Yoga if you are injured or overweight and then move on to something a little harder.

Facts and Statistics

Injury Related Yoga is popular among senior citizens as an estimated 65% of all seniors that practice yoga use an injury related style for its ease and lack of pressure on the body.

The average 180 pound male will burn 115 calories an hour while participating in injury related yoga. The average 150 pound female will burn 85 calories when performing the same yoga routine.

The results of a survey exploring the reasons behind injury related yoga revealed that of all the people that used this style to recover, 50% had back injuries and 35% had knee injuries. The rest were arms, (7%) shoulders, (5%) and necks (3%).