Yoga injury

Interpertation of pain and injury in context of Ashtanga Yoga practice

System thinking pain and yoga injury

Foreword from Stu Girling First of all I want to say that I really love the way Iain writes and that he has the conviction to always say exactly what he is thinking. For this particular post I felt it was necessary to put a little bit from me up front as the views put forward are so opposite to mine. So why am I posting it you may ask. Well the answer is very simple. As a resource site…

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First Do No Harm: an M.D. on Asana-Related Injuries

Body worlds

Doctors and yoga teachers have the same first principle: Do No Harm. If we do things blindly, and if we don’t mine data, we won’t fulfill that principle. — Dr. Raza AwanWhat I love about listening to Dr. Awan talk about yoga injuries is that he has all the relaxation of someone with no conflict of interest. He’s the medical director for Synergy Sports Medicine in Toronto, so he can show up for an intense yoga injuries discussion forum on a Thursday night, drop some data-bombs, and go back to work on Friday morning like nothing happened.

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No Magic to Protect You in “Wild Thing”, And No Magical Way in Which Yoga Changes the World

Shoulder art

The claim that Wild Thing can be done safely might involve the same wishful/magical thinking as the claim that yoga and meditation will automatically “shift consciousness”, whether individually, communally, or “vibrationally”. Both claims seem to depend upon overlooking concrete material conditions in favour of nurturing faith in vague metaphysical principles. Concrete material conditions demand specific learning objectives.

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What Are We Actually Doing In Yoga Asana “Wild Thing” Pose: Impossible, Injurious, Poignant

Sunset

I’m closing in on fifty interviews for this project, and it’s getting richer every week. I’ve spoken to a trauma survivor who has been repeatedly triggered in asana classes by both invasive touch and psychological insensitivity. I’ve spoken to a medical doctor (as well as 30-year practitioner and teacher) who remembers the moment when he actively suppressed his critical thinking medical-mind so that he could overlook the unfounded medical claims that a leading instructor was making about postures.

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Sitbone Pain from Yoga Asana

Hamstring attachements

Unfortunately enough yoga practitioners suffer from sitbone pain that it has been nicknamed ‘yoga butt’.  We may more correctly refer to this condition as ‘proximal hamstring tendon injury’.The length of time that it may take to heal and the way it will influence your physical practice make it a concern for both new and experienced practitioners.

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What Are We Actually Doing in Asana?

Matthew Remski Books

I just completed the first week of interviewing for “What Are We Actually Doing in Asana?“ As I expected, and resonant with my own experience with asana, I heard stories of re-embodiment and renewed courage. Many experienced relief from chronic pain, both physical and emotional. Many felt that physical yoga practice was integral to the most significant period of personal change in their lives. Some people came to asana as though they were coming home.

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What Are We Actually Doing in Asana? (introducing the WAWADIA project)

Banyans Yogis

On January 2nd 2014, I posted a request to Facebook: ______ Dear Facebook yoga practitioners – I’m doing some research into asana-related injuries for an upcoming writing project. I would like to gather formal interview subjects, but also to hear, via private message whatever details you care to disclose. If you’d like to be an interview subject (Skype), let me know by personal message. Please do not use the comment function below. By “asana-related injury” I mean any type of…

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Preventing Yoga Injuries (III)

warrior 2 co-contraction

A central concept in all healing arts is that of correcting imbalances within the body. The principle of re-establishing balance can be found across all cultures from Navajo sand paintings, Ayurveda, Traditional Chinese Medicine to modern allopathy. And anything with true healing power also has the capacity to cause injury when practiced without balance. For example, joint mobility is beneficial for a number of reasons–provided it is balanced with joint stability. In this blog post I discuss the concept of joint proprioception and its relationship to joint stability and yoga, concluding with a tip for “re-setting” muscular proprioception following hip openers.

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