Yet more @a-1yoga for back pain/sciatica

Yoga is a slow cure for many types of back pain including sciatica. Often the muscles underneath the gluteus maximus can get so tight they impinge on the sciatic nerve. Tight legs in general pull down on the hip bones, when the hip bones are pulled it affects the back in a negative way. "Just' by the simple act of pulling on the legs in the right way we can 'unstick' the back and move out of pain. Getting the hip crease to release and have the thigh touch the rib cage lead to a freer back. Stretching the adductors (inner thighs) and contracting the abductors (outer thighs) leads to feeling free in the body. The figure four/thread the needle stretches the muscles underneath the glutes (piriformis, glute medius, glute minimus) which are major contributors to sciatica. Do this as often as you can! Several times a day! These muscles did not get vice-grip tight overnight; they will not loosen up over night either, but they will loosen up! Think water wearing away the stone. Often we can not see progress until after many sessions. Another culprit for back pain is stress. When my back goes out it is always during stressful weeks of life, so big component to managing and eliminating back pain is managing and eliminating stress. The quickest easiest way to deal with stress is to breathe. Yoga teaches us to breathe in stressful situations. Often our exhale muscles are out of practice. We tend to only half way exhale. Exhaling those last bits of air takes practice and is a practice unto itself. When is there a need to inhale fully (without straining)? As a grownup, hardly ever. The first component of a full breath is a full exhale, the second is a slow smooth full inhale. Most times, just the front ribs expand when we inhale, through the practice of asana (yoga postures) the back body gets stronger and stretchier so that the back ribs expand just as much as the front ribs when we breathe. So by moving the legs around, by moving the femur in the hip socket we can not only; stretch the muscles that attach the legs to the hips, but also contract the muscles that attach the legs to the hips. Contracting is just as important as stretching. Like yin/yang they should be in balance with each other. Yoga create flexibility and stability (stay- ability). We need both to get out of and stay out of back pain. Man I don't know why they give me 5000 characters for this segment, so I'll keep going. Yoga goes from the gross to the subtle. First we learn where the bones go, then how the muscles engage around the bones. Breath is more subtle than that, then we learn to breath. There are many many good ways to breathe, and very a few bad ways to breathe. More subtle than breath is thought. Physical control is mind control, breath control is mind control, then meditation is pure mind control. The physical practice of yoga, over time, will/can lead to a breath work practice (pranayama). Breath work is one baby step away from meditation. Anyone can do yoga, old people can do yoga, young people can do yoga, sick people healthy people, crazy people, sane people. Anyone who practices regularly will get the benefits of a yoga practice. Yoga ends pain yet to come, which is to say it is preventative. Yoga is better at preventing pain than getting rid of pain already there. But it will happen, with time and practice you can actually feel free in your own body. When the body is in pain it is more difficult to connect with the people we care about. It is more difficult to focus on long term goals, it is more difficult to smile and laugh. Getting out of pain is the first step. If you have any questions/concerns/comments please leave them in the comment section. Be curious as to how your body works, keep/grow your range of motion. Be curious as to where thoughts come from. Keep an open mind. The physical practice was the beginning for me. There are a whole host of practices that go along with the physical. Practice contentment! It doesn't make sense to wait until all your goals and desires are fulfilled to be content! www.a-1yoga.com #yogabasics #yogaforbeginners #yogaforbackpainrelief #yogaforbackpain #yogaforback #yogaforeveryone #yogaforhealth #yogaforall #yogaformentalhealth #yogaformen #yogaforguys #yogaforelectricians #yogaforplumbers #yogaforconstructionworkers #bluecollaryoga #yogaforrecovery #yogaforfun #yogaforflexibility #yogaforathletes #yogaforallbodies #yogaforanxiety #yogaforstressrelief #yogaforseniors #yogaforsciatica #yogafordigestion #yogafordepression #yogaforenergy #yogaforrelaxation #yogaforrunners #yogaforcore #yogaforcyclists #yogafortherestofus #yogaforthesoul #yogaforinnerpeace #yogaforobesity #yogaforpainrelief #yogaforpeace #yogaforposture #yogaforlife #yogaforlowerbackpain #yogaforhealth #yogaforhealthyageing #yogaforhealthylife #yogaforhumanity #yogaforgoodhealth #yogaformind #yogaforneck #yogaforneckpain #yogaforconcentration #yogaforcalm #yogaforconstipation #yogaforfitness