While yoga shouldn’t be seen a replacement for talking with your doctor, research shows that is can be an effective treatment for back pain (source). But contrary to what many people think, the benefits of yoga for your back are not just about stretching out stiff muscles, it can also help to strengthen and stabilise your muscles and joints to keep your back healthy. Yoga can also help with psychological aspects of pain: allowing the body and mind to relax, releasing old holding patterns in the muscles, and creating new neural pathways to help with healing.
Esther’s class offers some tips for back pain sufferers to keep in mind when practicing yoga and during daily life. You’ll learn about ‘bracing and spacing,’ along with some gentle and safe movements to strengthen the core to make bracing easier. Plus some ‘nerve flossing’ – also called nerve gliding or neural gliding – a gentle exercise that stretches irritated nerves. This can improve their range of motion and reduce pain.
Do you have a sore upper back and painful muscle knots in between the shoulder blades? Then this Yin yoga class is for you. You’ll begin by tuning in and watching the natural breath, and becoming aware of habits and tendencies. We follow this with movements and Yin poses that specifically target the upper back and shoulders. This is a great session if you sit behind a computer a lot or have tension in your upper body and want to wind down after a long day.
The sacrum is the triangular-shaped bone between the left and right pelvis. The sacroiliac joints are where the sacrum meets the bones of the pelvis. If the sacrum becomes de-stabilised, pain can radiate in the SI joints and towards the lower back and groin. This series of gentle exercises is designed to help you find more balance and create stability in the pelvis and sacrum. It will also help relieve pain and strengthen your body.