The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › The Hot Yoga Poses › Ardha Chandrasana › Body aches?
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I’ve been doing Bikram yoga for about 6 months ( I go to class 3-4 times per week and also do a Vinyasa Flow class 1-2 times per week) and it seems to have helped with some lower back problems (I had a problem with core strength but that’s improved greatly). I’ve also lost lots of inches (lost at least a size in pants) but haven’t lost any weight. I generally feel really great, although I do have problems with depleted electrolytes and have just started putting electrolyte drops in my water. That seems to have really improved my energy level during the class and after.
Since I am pretty new to this, I’m wondering about the achy back I’ve been having lately. I go for long periods of time with no tightness in my back and then it comes right back (like right now). Am I doing something wrong or is this how yoga “works?” I am pretty flexible and seem to have deep bends and stretches in all phases of Half Moon and Camel. My back issue prior to starting yoga was muscular and not skeletal, if that makes a difference. I’m also considered pretty much a “Type A” personality, and I realize this may result in pushing myself too far sometimes! 🙂
Thanks!
DeniseAnyone? Is it normal to ache the day after a Bikram class if one has been doing it for 6 months?
Denise
Hi Denise
It would be great to know the nature of your aches, where they are and when they happen. Are there particular poses that they happen in? You posted in Half Moon so I am guessing it could have something to do with this pose. 😉
There could be some ‘holes’ in your technique in different poses and I couldn’t begin to guess those (oh, OK I could) but it helps to have more information. The Type A stuff gives me an idea too. And also the fact that you could have a core muscle deficiency that could be playing out…
What else can you tell me?
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Hi Gabrielle,
Most of my achiness is in my back, either lower back or up through the muscles between my shoulder blades (it’s not so much that that area hurts as it is tight and uncomfortable).
This morning, my lower back really hurts and is so tight. Lately, this happens when I first wake up in the morning and it takes awhile for those muscles to loosen. Today is a “bad day” for my lower back.
The first time I had an issue with my lower back was last November. The muscles tightened so much and I was in such pain that I ended up in urgent care and was given a shot of a muscle relaxant and a pain killer. I then saw an orthopedic surgeon who said I have no issues with my spine/discs but rather have core issues. He prescribed 2 months of physical therapy, which seemed to work well. After physical therapy was over, I started doing Bikram. All along I’ve been working on my core muscles (and doesn’t this yoga help that as well?) and my back felt really good but lately I just feel so sore.
Before each class, many of the students lie in savasana but I don’t do that because I feel discomfort in my back. Instead, I focus on stretching and a few non-bikram yoga poses to open up my hips (a problematic area for me that has gotten better). By the time we get to Standing Bow Pulling pose, I”m pretty warmed up. I will say that I do push it in Half Moon (all directions), as that pose seems fairly easy for me (I’ve never been told my form is wrong but that doesn’t mean it isn’t) and realize that maybe it’s a case of “just because I can, doesn’t mean I should.” Also, when it’s time to do the sit up, I roll to the side to protect my lower back. I am also able to do the full expression of Camel (beginner’s version, not the advanced).
Now that I’m thinking of it, I haven’t been to class since Monday (it’s now Thursday) and am wondering if that’s why my back hurts so much today. I don’t know…I’m so confused about this!
Anyway, thanks for any advice you can give me. I’m pretty frustrated and was hoping that this yoga would be the answer to my fairly recent back issues.
Denise
Hi again Gabrielle,
I went to the doctor Friday and he characterized the problem as “lower back syndrome” and said that 90% of people who have it once will get it again (I had it last fall for the first time). He prescribed bedrest for the weekend as well as muscle relaxers and prescription pain medication. He also said that I”m doing exactly the right thing by doing yoga and that this “attack” may not have been as bad as the first one because I am so active and doing yoga. As for what caused it, it could be anything—doing laundry, picking up something from the floor…who knows? It looks like I’m out of yoga for at least a week but I’ll be back once I can move without pain.
Onward and upward!
DeniseHi Denise
I think that you really could address this from a core strength point of view. I would question whether you are truly activating your core during your Bikram classes if you continue to have lower back issues.
Getting some one on one instruction from a therapist, Pilates instructor or someone who can really help you understand HOW to turn on those muscles is the best start for you. Doing Bikram yoga does NOT automatically turn on your core, unless you KNOW (either consciously or unconsciously) how to activate them.
What are you thinking when I say that?
Anyway, lying down and taking pain meds is definitely one way of handling the symptoms but it won’t get you on the way to recovery because it does not address the cause.
I hope you feel good enough to finding your way through this very soon
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Thanks for being patient and for updating me. I had it in my diary to respond to you today. 😉
Gabrielle,
I definitely agree as far as it being a core issue. I do know how to turn on the core muscles and not only consciously do that during class but also in my day to day life outside of the yoga studio. I’ve actually made a lot of progress in that area and work on the exercises, almost every day, that the physical therapist showed me. Apparently, though, I have a way to go!
I agree that the bedrest does nothing to address the root cause—it’s more that my lower back is so painful that I can hardly move and it needs to recover. I hope to be back to normal activites, it not yoga class, within the next few days.
Thanks for this forum!!!
Denise
Hi again Denise
That must be a relief to know you’re on the mend…
And yes, you’re absolutely right to handle those acute problems by resting. It’s exactly what your body needs (and I hope it didn’t seem as though I had an opinion about that). These days many problems stem from our incessant ‘must keep moving’ or working mentality.
You can’t do yoga with an acutely reactive back, that’s for sure.
Keep us posted
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Gabrielle,
Now that I’m feeling much better, I’ve attended one Vinyasa Flow class (this past week) and will be going back to my regular Bikram classes as well this week. At this point, I’m pretty paranoid about hurting my lower back again. Not that I think the yoga caused it (because I’ve had this problem before when I wasn’t doing yoga) but I want to minimize any negative impact that the poses could have on my lower back.
When I’m honest with myself, I realize that right now I have NO lower back pain (for about the past week) but I also haven’t been doing any Bikram yoga. Since I’ve been doing Bikram regularly (since March), I realize that I’ve been going around in a constant state of lower back pain (muscular), even though it’s just a little pain. I would wake up every morning with a painful lower back. The first time I had this pain, I was in physical therapy for 2 months where I learned how to activate my core muscles and I eventually did it as a reflex. Now I’m thinking that I’m the cause of the lower back pain because I may be doing Bikram “wrong” where my lower back muscles are concerned. My Bikram instructors just say, “Get back to class! This yoga is the best thing to do for your back!” OK, I believe that but they do not have the knowledge to tell me in which poses I need to protect my back. Before I had the problem (this time), I could get into the back bending poses pretty easily .
So here’s my question—can you tell me which poses are potentially putting my lower back muscles more “at risk?” Are there any poses that I should completely avoid (I already avoid doing a straight-legged situp)? I don’t want to stop going to Bikram, because I do believe that is beneficial (and the doctors I’ve spoken with also agree with me).
Thanks!
DeniseHi Denise
It’s great to hear of your progress. So where to start? I do believe that you can check out the blog called Opening Up Your Hamstrings With Hot Yoga, look at threads about proper sit-up technique, and also your Janushirasana pose on the floor.
I can’t assume you’re doing everything in the best possible way for your back in the other poses. I could definitely give you some hints elsewhere but I need some guidance from you in order to do so. And (without it sounding like a whole lot of self-promotion 😉 ) the Hot Yoga MasterClass manual would have all of the answers for you with photos of the techniques and the mistakes you could be making (and then photos of the way to fix them).
To be told to get back to class with no guidance is not helpful! If your back was not hurting and then it hurts after you attend class, you can definitely make pose improvements to fix the problem! And if you continue to use the wrong techniques, well I guess I don’t have to tell you how risky that is.
Start with the above poses to review, see if you find some differences from your current techniques by trying out my suggestions … If you’re already doing the right thing in these poses then we can work out the next place to look!
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Hi Gabrielle,
I’m going to be ordering the Master Class book and DVDs for sure. I will also look at the blog entries as well. Will be going to my first Bikram class since hurting my back on Wednesday.
Thanks!
Denise
Hi Denise
Thank YOU! Let me know how your first class goes. I’m here to help!
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂 -
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