The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › Injuries, Restrictions, Ailments, Pose Modifications › Knees, legs and ankles › KNEE PAIN FROM BIKRAM YOGA
The Hot Yoga Doctor – Free Bikram and Hot Yoga Resources › Hot Yoga Doctor Forum › Injuries, Restrictions, Ailments, Pose Modifications › Knees, legs and ankles › KNEE PAIN FROM BIKRAM YOGA
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Hi! I am a new bikram yoga convert, I actually did Kundalini yoga for 2 years before realising that it’s not doing much for me. So I went back to running (knee pains got me to switch to yoga in the first place) unfortunately after 6 months of running my knee pain returned. this time my traumatologist told me never to go back to running, put me on anti-flammatory, industry strength glucosamine, and told me to go back to yoga.
This time round I went to Bikram yoga (after knees inflammation has subsided) and I loved it! Not to mention that it cured Bikram choudhury of his knee accident which sounded a lot more dire than what I’ve got.
But after 2 1/2 weeks of yoga (11 classes) my knees are inflammed again but this time my left hip joint pinches as well. Especially noticeable after undoing the Seated Forward Bend pose – Paschimottanasana. I will be frozen for a couple of seconds of the pain on the left knee and hip, I had to undo the position with my hands, lifting the left stiffen leg out of it.
They also suffer in the Tree pose, I am now not able to do that pose but yet I was able to the first 2 weeks. It started with the left side (knees and hip) and now both sides suffer.
They hurt too when I move into the triangle pose (the one when it is at the 90 degrees angle).
I took it up to my teacher and she told me to back off when I am in all the above postures. So said I over did them and the tree pose which may look easy is actually twisting the knee to an unnatural position.
Today is my first day back after taking 5 days off and lots of anti-inflammtory. Not only am I talking it easy on the above mentioned poses and out of precaution I have not been straightening my knees (the lifted one) in Dandayamana – JanuShirasana (Standing Head to Knee Pose), Dandayamana – Bibhaktapada – Paschimottanasana (Standing Separate Leg Stretching pose) nor Dandayamana – Bibhaktapada – Janushirasana (Standing Separate Leg Head to Knee Pose).
It means that I can keep practising other postures BUT can’t help wondering that if Bikram yoga is meant to be good for knees. so why is it hurting mine? Perhaps I am not doing things correctly?
So I am just wondering if you know what could be the problem with me?
Maybe I haven’t been ‘locking’ my knees properly? I just read the bit on ‘bring your knee cap up’ so I am going to try it out tomorrow and see if it helps in anyway.
My knees are still tender.
Please help! thank you!
Hello sinbinny
I just wanted to let you know that I am ‘on the case’. I woke up to find your post, have read it once. I am just about to do yoga so can’t answer now. You are hurting in loads of poses so I will want to ask you some questions of clarification and give you some guidelines too. Unfortunately the instruction to ‘back off’ on your practice is not a one-size fits all approach. So with a few posts back and forth I hope we can help you find some joy AND HEALING in your body and some reassurance in your mind.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂well said Gab…. it does sound like a probable alignment / form issue. w/ the proper instruction i have no dout you will be back in no time +
Hi sinbinny
I am back. 😉
OK I wanted to ask you how you have been going with a focus on correct technique of locking your knee. Even though you may be strong, you can still increase the attention on that area. It will create support for your knee and space in the joint.
Alignment is affected by many things. I wonder how you are holding your feet, if your feet pronate (if your ankles drop inward), if you are flat feet at all. Great Posture From The Ground Up will help you work out if you have to consider your feet.
From the other end you may have a misalignment in your hip. There are something like 17 muscles that go through or attach around the hips.
I note that you have been adjusting some poses already. I would encourage you to continue not kicking out at all in Standing Head to Knee until such time as you have managed to confidently ‘master’ locking your standing leg knee. Then review the technique of how to kick out safely.
Opening Up Your Hamstrings With Hot Yoga will also give you some solid guidelines to use Standing Sep Leg Intense Stretch. You may be straining your body by locking out your legs prematurely and rounding your back. A straight back is key. The article will also help with grip issues. These things will all have effects on your knees and hips.
I am not sure what is happening in Standing Sep Leg Head to Knee. I would want to know more about your foot alignment, your stance, the side to side and back to front distance between your feet, where your weight lies.
Triangle: do I understand that both knees hurt or is it left knee and hip. Does it happen only when you lunge? How vertical is your shin – in the reflection in the mirror AND ALSO front to back (this is an oft-forgotten aspect) as your knee may be leaning forward toward the mirror. Weight distribution may also be posing a problem here. Again, check the most recent posting on Triangle pose
I would recommend avoiding the classic Bikram Tree pose for the moment. The twisting seems not to be helping you at all. You can bring the sole of your foot onto your inner leg surface way up into the crotch area, or above the knee or below the knee (but not at the knee). This is a nice restorative position for you.
The other restorative position to avoid knee twisting is a simple KNEEL when everyone else is doing Supta Vajrasana or Fixed Firm pose. Don’t go back. Just sit upright.
Please also go to to Posts on Janushirasana and Paschimottanasana and Posts on Sit-Up. I would like you to review how to do these poses with bent legs, the correctly positioned spine (straight for Sit-Up and Paschimottanasana) and how to use the most effective dynamic to open up your lower spine and hips, and the back of your legs safely.
I am pleased that you took it easy for some time to get some healing and recovery in your tissues.
Please get back to me and tell me what’s happening and if you are able to shed some more light using my questions above.
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂Hi Gabrielle! thank you so much for the replies! sorry for my late reply but all the notification mails went straight to my junk folder, I just found them and the whole time I have been waiting eagerly to hear back from you!
And WOW, I am really grateful that you have given my problems so much thought! and there are so much to read through! and they helped immensely!
I have so much to share with you now! little discoveries about my body!
Ok since then I have done 3 more classes, 2 before reading your posts so I was just working on the new locking of legs – ‘bring the knee cap up’ and it already helps loads!!! 🙂 the joints stopped pinching as much! and my knees feel less tight! and when I lunge forward in the triangle pose, they stop hurting too! I was absolutely thrilled!
No I am not flat footed but after watching your video of ‘great posture from the ground up’ I have to admit that I do have lazy posture and I let my feet drop inwards, especially when holding one leg up. But by ‘bringing the knee cap up’ helps correct that a bit.
it is true in your video that you mentioned that our feet got underused. when I first did those awkward poses, the bit where standing on the toes, I was shocked to find muscles straining there! It was painful to say the least, I am one of those who is always going for foot reflexology.In this morning class (the first one after reading your posts) I have tried lifting my heel up slightly in all the standing on one leg poses, especially noticeable in the tree post – I lift my knees up to the height of my crotch and parallel to the floor, not twisting all the way down and having my feet between my crotch and femur – even just standing there holding my foot, ‘locking my knee’ on the standing one and slightly lifting its ankle, I am already feeling little muscles that I never felt before! it’s incredible! I am loving it. I have also not let my big toes taking all the weight.
since the above are all new/long-forgotten sensations to me, I would like to ask, when I am doing the above – standing on one leg, knees cap up, ankles slightly up, weight off the big toe – where should I place the weight on my foot?
and yes, I have never been a person with perfect balance, maybe it is because I have small feet – Europe 36, UK 3 or US6.
I never thought that I have had any problem with my hamstrings but after reading all your posts and doing all these little adjustments to my postures, I finally realised that my hamstrings are a bit tight in the Standing Bow Pulling Pose, and I have never noticed that in any poses. I reckon I have been unwittingly compensating my hamstrings with letting my knees taking all the strain but now with all these conscientious adjustments I can no longer cheat my body. so there you go, I would love to hear if you agreed with my thoughts here.
I was a bit late this morning to do too much warm up before the class but after it I tried the half pigeon pose that you recommended in one of your posts to help opening up the hip (and hamstrings?) and I have to say on my cycle back home my knees and hip felt a lot less tight! hooray! I am going to do that before class tomorrow and I will let you know it it helps in any of the poses at all.
At the moment I am not straightening my knees at the Hands to feet pose, Standing Head to Knee pose, Standing Sep Leg Intense Stretch, Standing Sep Leg Head to Knee pose, Head to Knee Pose with Stretching Pose and all the sit-ups.
I have round shoulders and I read somewhere on your site that it affects a lot of the above poses?
What I do now at Hands to Feet pose (after the half moon pose) is just getting my arms and elbows in the right position (facing back), straightening my back but not straightening my knees at all. but maybe because I was just bending/holding there, my knees become stiff everytime I release the pose and try to come back up, wasn’t very pleasant and i am wondering what would you recommend me do here to help me progress in this pose?
the same goes to Standing Sep Leg Intense Stretch, I bend down grab my ankles and try to straighten my back and that’s it for the moment, any tip will be appreciated too?
and then I have been taking your advise on just kneeling during the fixed firm pose. I have to say I never noticed that pose hurt me before but after reading your post, my left knee pinches! how strange, think you warned me in time. so now I just kneel.
Ok, thank you for all encouragements and above all, Gabrielle, you are a star for helping us novice bikram yogis. I cannot imagine what damage I could have done to my body without your guidance. I am so happy to have found this website/community.
Namaste
Hi sinbinny!!!
:cheese: You are very welcome. Thanks for the effusive compliments.
It is amazing the progress you can make when you ‘get’ the difference between simply locking your knee joint and opening it up with a solid quadriceps contraction! And great that you can feel so many wonderful changes SO FAST.
Re Tree pose: the weight in your foot should be directed through the center of the foot almost as if you can feel it just in front of your heel. The ball of your foot presses down and so does your heel.
Re hamstrings: it is possible that your knees were taking the strain. You definitely have an awakened awareness in your body – and a mindfulness in your practice that is helping you.Re pigeon: hot yoga is great for many many reasons. One of them is the way it opens your body up. Combining good ‘yin’ stretches (of long duration) with this ‘yang’ style is very satisfying and gives some awesome results. Mmmmmm love it!
Re rounded shoulders: sounds like you are ready for my video called A Transformation Technique For Your Practice.
Re Hands to Feet: I recommend starting to engage the pull of your arms more (careful of those shoulders!!!) and lift the hips up rather than thinking of straightening the legs.
Re Standing Sep Leg Intense Stretch: am I right in understanding that you are as yet not able to get any fingers under the heels? A tip for you is to focus on almost arching the spine and keeping chin away from the chest, and just like Hands to Feet, lift the hips heavenward!PHEW 😉
Namaste
Gabrielle 🙂thank you! I will definitely try them all out, especially the elbow in the back pocket at the next class! and will report back how it goes!
you are right to think that I am not able to put my fingers under my heels yet at the Standing Sep Leg Intense stretch. is it ok to step onto my fingers with my feet while following your instructions?
Thank you!
Namaste
Wow, 4 classes after your last reply and what can I say! putting ‘elbow in my back pocket’ has indeed transformed my practice! thanks to it, I have upped my game (as the American would have put it). I can’t thank you enough!
It is especially noticeable at –
Head to Knee stretching pose – my hip left joint stopped pinching!
Standing Separate Leg Stretching Pose – I am able to put my hands under my heels.
Hands to Feet – My arms are tidily tucked behind my legs
🙂I have been practising bikram for a full month now. I notice that I have already shaped up especially around the abdomen, so very pleased!
here’s another observation –
my half moon pose looks and feels so much better when I lift my heels a little, should I keep lifting them?also my elbows hurt at the camel pose, maybe I am leaning onto them too much, should I bend them?
thank you again!
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