Month: November 2011

Yoga Poses to Alleviate Low Back Pain from Lordosis or Swayback

Numerous adults suffer from low back pain and related bad posture. Yoga exercises can alleviate back pain in many situations. One of the conditions that can be improved by yoga practice is Lordosis, or “swayback,” which is the excessive curvature of the spine. It typically occurs in the low back (lumbar area of the spine) and can be caused by tight hip muscles, weak abs and hamstrings, and bad posture habits. Lordosis causes the pelvis to tilt forward, the abs to stick out, and the lower vertebrae to compress. This can lead to pain.

Yoga poses that relax, stretch, and lengthen the hip flexors and/or strengthen and tighten the hamstrings and abs can help realign the pelvis and spine, thus improving posture and alleviating pain. Helpful exercises include:

  1. Anjanayasana (Low Lunge) – Stretches and lengthens the psoas and other hip muscles, making it easier to take a normal posture.
  2. Bujangasana (Cobra)– Stretches the hip flexors making it easier to stand tall.
  3. Dolphin Plank Pose – Strengthens the abs. Be sure to take extra time to stretch the hip flexors after this one as it engages those muscles too.

Hold each pose for 1 – 5 minutes, breath deeply, and imagine the air swirling into the area you want to stretch or strengthen. Do this daily and over time you will notice these yoga poses relieving low back pain and improving posture.

One Month Anniversary of Doing Yoga Tummo Breath and Cold Baths

So today was the 30 day mark practicing Wim Hof’s Yoga Tummo Breath and Cold Water Baths. HURRAY!!! I realized it when I was getting in the cold water tonight. My goal was to stick it out at least 30 days, but I do intend to keep experimenting with the practice.

Surprisingly, it is not particularly easier, but at least I have been sticking it out.

Today I went under the water kind of slowly and could not stop shaking. The shaking does not happen every time. I think it happens mainly on days I am very tired. After I got out of the water my back felt like it was on fire. Now I still feel a bit strange.

Anyway,  I made it to the 30 day mark. That was my goal.

Still Practising Yoga Tummo Breath and Ice Baths – Progress is Spectacularly Imperfect

It is getting close to the one month mark of my training with and practice of the Wim Hof yoga/energy/breathing techniques and I am still doing a quite imperfect job of mastering them. So far every day I have done 30 minutes of the yoga breathing, and have immersed my body in cold water.

Today, the cold bath was one of the somewhat slower days. I was feeling tired and a bit under the weather. It seems harder to do the bath those days. The important part is not just powering through, but controlling the breath and body reactions as you move into the cold water. Even at the one month mark my body still has an impulse to want to gasp for air as I hit the water. This tendency increases on days I feel tired. However, the goal is to overcome this, making an automatic, unconscious body function conscious and controllable.

As always, once I get out of the water I feel AMAZING!!! My body is energized. My skin feels like ice, just like a vampire out of the Twilight series. Inside, I feel warm.

The breathing is a struggle still. I do many other yoga breathing (pranayama) practices that are quite comfortable for me. This one might take some time. It is related to the secret Tibetan yoga Tummo breath, but is not the complete process. We were told that with practice the rest will be revealed to us. I know this principle is true and have had it happen in other areas. This one though, is one of my very imperfect areas. The one good thing is, like the slow, ploddy turtle, I doggedly (or down doggedly) stick with the practice every day – imperfect or not.