There have been so many articles written by William Broad in the past couple of years that have slandered yoga as a practice that will either cripple you or kill you. As a teacher, I think that it's important to take an approach that has therapeutic benefits and minimize the scare tactics. I have a student and friend, Dave, who I also regard as a mentor as it pertains to anatomy and physiology. He is a physical therapist who actually practices yoga and has adapted his PT practice to incorporate yoga techniques to facilitate healing in his clients. I have been working with him for over two years with not only my own injuries, but those of some of my students which range from simple aches from misalignment to acute pain brought on by hyper-mobility. None of the injuries are a result of my class, but rather they walk into my class hoping for a cure. When they describe the issues they are having, I give them Dave's number if it's something I feel he should look at first before they continue with their yoga practice. Most students are able to continue coming to class while Dave treats them which gives me a chance to see how he wants them to modify certain poses. This only furthers my teaching abilities to make my classes safer and more therapeutic for my students.
I was speaking with a friend yesterday who I haven't spoken to in a while. She is a fellow teacher who went through training with me for both 200hr & 500hr YTT. As we were catching up, she was discussing the idea of opening a yoga studio, but was not sure how successful she could be with it since there is so much saturation in the market. I began to tell her about the direction I've been going in with my teaching and personal philosophy around yoga and how it's become more therapeutic and using aspects of physical therapy to heal, transform and strengthen the body so it's less prone to injury in yoga. This inspired her to consider therapeutic yoga since she knows of several studios that don't give enough alignment queues, which could result in injuries.....hence the need for her studio.
As I continued my conversation with my friend yesterday, we were discussing certain stretches that I have learned to release muscles that often get tight over the course of a normal day. Our conversation inspired me to share what I have learned on my own path of healing and learning to navigate my own trouble spots in my body. The muscle that tends to tighten up the most seems to be the ilio-psoas muscle, which traverses the body from the back at the lumbar spine, around to the front of the body and attaches at the inner thigh. When we sit a lot, the area at the hip crease tends to shorten, causing pain upon standing. If we have a posterior pelvic tilt when standing, which thrusts the hips forward, the pain tends to go to the psoas at the low back because it's being impinged. In my experience, I have felt both. In working with Dave, he came up with a stretch that helps release the psoas to make life more comfortable. The first stretch is a gentler version of the second. The second pose is not recommended if you have a serious ankle, knee or back injury.
First, use a heating pad to warm and soften the tight muscle area. Here, I am heating the front of my psoas. Do this for at least 5 minutes before stretching.
Once the muscle is warmed up, lay down on the edge of a bed or table and have one leg hanging off. Hold your foot in your hand....DO NOT PULL or offer resistance to the leg; let gravity do the work. Tone the navel toward the spine even though you have the support of a bed beneath you. Hold this position for one minute. Breathe.
The other variation is much deeper and only for experienced yogis who do not have injuries to the ankle, knee or back. In my experience, this stretch releases the WHOLE psoas.
Again, begin with the heating pad for at least 5 minutes and then open the psoas with the first stretch above. Once you have done that, bring yourself into Ardha Supta Virasana.
If you are really tight...even for an experienced yogi, keeping one foot on the floor may be enough. Hug the (right)ankle in toward the body and anchor the knee toward the floor. Imagine you are stretching your knee down and away from you. Breathe.
Tone the navel toward the spine so there is less of an arch to the low back, bringing the lowest ribs closer to the floor. If you need more stretch, hold the back of the (left) leg and bring it towards the body. Keep anchoring the right knee towards the floor and hugging the ankle in. Hold for at least 30 seconds. Breathe.
I have many other stretches I plan to share with you and maybe even have Dave weigh in on a few.
To your continued health and vitality!!
Namaste!
Kristen
Thank you for this article. I actually found it on Pinterest of all places. I have been going to a monthly massage and 3 physical therapy sessions to deal with this pain from tight psoas and groin muscles. My stress has made this pain almost unbearable over the last few months.
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