Yoga for Hip and Back Pain

Yoga for Hip and Back Pain
Yoga, yoga, yoga—doesn’t it seem like the new workout craze? Well, there’s a reason why! Yes, with practice and perseverance, yoga can lead to some pretty cool poses, but that’s not why people should do it. Besides increased flexibility, yoga has several health benefits too. Now, I’m not a yoga instructor so with some research I found an article from Yoga Journal listing the many benefits yoga has on the body: 1. Helps you gain muscle mass, which reduces the risk of arthritis and back pain. 2. Strengthens bone to help ward off osteoporosis. 3. Yoga gets your blood flowing which can decrease the likeliness of a heart attack. 4. It puts your heart at an aerobic rate, meaning your chances of a heart attack and/or depression is less likely. 5. It can help you burn calories and reduce stress. These are just five out of the many benefits of yoga. For an entire list of benefits, click here. As you may or may not know, I’ve had back pain for the past five years (and hip pain for the past year), so I took some time off from strenuous workouts. However, I’ve been incorporating weights back into my training and, while I am going light, my body is still getting used to them. One of my New Year’s resolutions was to do yoga more frequently. Sometimes, after weight training or after a long day at work (aka sitting ALL DAY), I like to come home and do a quick yoga sequence to help ease my hip and back pain. These are some of my favorite yoga poses and the ones I feel give me the best stretch. I’ve done this entire sequence in order several times, though sometimes I just pick one or two poses and hold them for even longer. Hopefully you’ll enjoy this sequence as much as I do! I personally enjoy yoga because it helps me feel at ease and it’s a different kind of workout, and I like to switch up my workout routine fairly regularly. Give these stretches a try and let me know what you think! Q: Are you a yogi-wannabe, or do you find yoga too slow? If you are a yogi-wannabe, what’s your favorite pose? Original article and pictures take http://thealmondeater.com/2014/02/why-yoga/ site