Australian_Yoga_Journal_October_2017

PHOTO: CHESIIRECAT/ ISTOCKPHOTO.COM

AS A PHYSIOTHERAPIST and yoga

teacher, I am witness to the great

physical benefits my patients develop

from a regular yoga practice including

increased flexibility, improved posture

and better core strength. But I am also

privy to the injuries one can sustain

from a pose that is performed incorrectly

or when form and alignment is not

monitored.

Whilst the beauty of yoga has always

been that it does not discriminate, that

anyone can have a go, its popularity and

accessibility (thanks, in most part, to

social media) has also meant that many

people are self-prescribing an asana

practice without correct teaching or

knowledge of the risks of certain poses.

In my experience, most injuries

within yoga are a result of poor

alignment, lack of strength and guidance

in carrying out a pose, and poor body

awareness. They may arise from

attempting a pose that is too advanced

for our abilities or through being poorly

monitored in a class that has too many

students.

The three most common

yoga injuries

Wrists

Wrist pain is the most common

complaint I get from students when they

start yoga. When looking at the anatomy

of the wrist, there are both bony and soft

tissue structures. Both the joints

themselves and the muscles and

ligaments around them take time to

become used to bodyweight pressure.

Much like when you start running —

your body can’t handle running a half

marathon straight away, so you use

smaller runs to build up the strength to

run that distance. Yoga should be the

same. The key to reducing wrist pain is

to gradually incorporate more load into

the wrists and ensure strength through

the surrounding muscles and joints.

For teachers, if you are planning a

class (particularly for beginners), think

about the total number of poses you have

students doing where they are loading

through their wrists. Start small and

POSES

and perils

Avoid injuries in your own practice and

learn how to teach your students the best

ways to increase strength, improve

alignment and reduce or avoid pain.

48

october 2017

yogajournal.com.au

By Felicity Dan