Avoiding Yoga Injuries
Here are a few Yoga tips for safety and injuries prevention. Many yoga students come to the practice of yoga because of its intrinsically gentle reputation; however, as with any sports injuries, yoga injuries can and will occur unless safety precautions are not heeded. Some of the safety tips may seem very common sense and unnecessary to even mention, but mindfulness and self-regulation are key to preventing very painful back injuries, muscle injuries, neck injuries, and leg injuries.
Yoga Tips on Safety #1: Find a Qualified Instructor
Finding a yoga instructor that is right for you personally is a topic in and of itself, but finding a qualified yoga instructor is key to injury prevention. Interview potential yoga instructors about their education, experience, and classroom safety measures before deciding to take that yoga instructor's class. A safety-minded yoga instructor who is observant during class will be your greatest ally in injury prevention.
Yoga Tips on Safety #2: Dress Appropriately
Wear loose-fitting but not overly baggy layers of clothes. Too tight or too loose clothing can become tangled, can constrict muscles, and can become both a nuisance and distraction during yoga practice. Layers are great to take off/put on as you become too warm or cold. Another safety precaution is to avoid large or dangly jewelry; in fact, it's probably best to take off any jewelry before beginning yoga practice.
Shirts should fit snugly but not too tightly for inversion poses such downward-facing dog (Adho Mukha Svanasana) or, more obviously, headstands (Salamba Sirsasana). Pants should not be too revealing, and if you choose to wear shorts, please wear two pair, the first a more snug pair and the second a looser pair, to help your fellow yoga class avoid distraction.
Bare feet are best for injury prevention, but there are several types of yoga socks on the market that allow the toes to separate for better balance and that are equipped with sticky pads on the soles to assure grip with the sticky mat.
Yoga Tips on Safety #3: Bring Your Own Yoga Props
We may think about back injuries and muscle injuries first when considering safety precautions, but let's not forget basic hygiene. Purchasing one's own sticky mat and cleaning it regularly will insure that the rest of your body stays healthy as well.
Sharing sticky mats or borrowing a sticky mat from the yoga classroom can be hazardous as one never knows what kind of bacteria may be sticking to the mat itself. Unless classroom mats are routinely (before/after every yoga class) cleaned with disinfectant, placing that mat directly in contact with your bare skin should definitely be avoided.
Bringing yoga props, such as a yoga belt, soft brick, blanket, and cushion can really help prevent yoga injuries by helping the yoga student focus on body alignment rather than form. A y oga belt can help gently pull your body into a position and also help in injury prevention by grasping the belt to add space between hands if the hands don't meet naturally behind one's back. A yoga brick is helpful in many poses, and a blanket or cushion can help elevate the buttocks for a gentler fold or to help prevent knee injuries when kneeling.
Again, focus on proper body alignment when practicing any pose. In fact, beginning yoga training by taking an iyengar or anusara yoga class, which focuses on body alignment, can be a yoga safety tip itself.
Yoga Tips on Safety #4: Do Not Compete With Others
Yoga is about getting rid of tension and being able to relax. Competing with others creates tension thereby increasing the chance of an injury. When possible, keep your eyes closed (not really advisable during standing postures) and concentrate on proper alignment of your own body.
If the yoga student next to you can do the full Lotus pose (Padmasana) and you can only do the simple Cross-legged pose (Sukhasana), so be it. Better to focus on one's own progress than others', especially as a safety precaution.
Yoga Tips on Safety #5: Listen to Your Body
Just as competing with others creates tension, competing with your own body does as well. Listen to the wisdom of your body. Use a yoga prop to help with proper body alignment in yoga poses if it helps. You may be able to touch your toes one day during a folding yoga pose and the next day only be able to touch your knees. This is perfectly normal as our bodies' flexibility varies daily.
However, if using a yoga prop, like a yoga belt, to pull yourself closer to your toes in that folding position, still listen to your body and do not push too far. Remember that slow progression, adaptation, and learning are keys to injury prevention. Different Day = Different Way
Yoga Tips on Safety #6: Discuss Injuries with Yoga Instructor
If you come to class with an injury, let the yoga instructor know right away. He or she may be able to show you variations of yoga poses to reduce the risk of injuring yourself further. He or she may also advise you to go home and skip practice. Heed the advice.
This may also be a great time to try out a different yoga class altogether; there are many great yoga instructors who teach chair yoga or yoga for people with limited flexibility or handicaps.
Additional recources on Yoga Tips on Safety:
http://www.holisticonline.com/yoga/hol_yoga_breathing_safety.htm - yoga safety tips for breathing exercises
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