Athletes commonly experience injuries during events. These injuries are usually the result of overuse of certain parts of the body, but they can also occur during high-impact collisions while playing. Broken bones, sprains and hairline fractures are just a few of the many injuries a player can sustain. Many sports injuries require a recovery time that is both long and delicate to undertake. Whether you are a highly trained athlete or a weekend warrior, you can use yoga in conjunction with physical therapy to ease the pain of a sports-based injury and to keep your muscles resilient.
Benefits of Practicing Yoga
You can supplement your rehabilitation regimen with yoga to decrease recovery time. Props such as pillows and chairs allow you to modify the poses to accommodate your injury, thus allowing you to target the afflicted area without risking further injury. Yoga chiefly promotes flexibility, but other benefits include increased strength and reduced chronic pain, headaches, and lower back and musculoskeletal problems. Consult a doctor or physical therapist before supplementing your current rehabilitation regimen with yoga.
The Rise of Yoga Therapy
In the West, yoga's system of poses is popular as an exercise, but its original intent was medical. In the 1990s, yoga started receiving attention in the West for its therapeutic value. Cardiologist Dr. Dean Ornish discovered that yoga, combined with proper diet, exercise and group therapy, could reverse blockages in the heart, something originally thought impossible. In 2007, "The New York Times" writer Nora Isaacs described Yoga Therapy as "an emerging field in the U.S., although commonplace in India." She cited a controlled study published in the "Annals of Internal Medicine" that found "yoga therapists improve function more than those given a self-care book or sent to exercise class." In 2007, 93 percent of 755 integrative medical centers offered yoga.
Athletes That Practice Yoga
When he was 17, Bikram Choudhury, founder of Bikram's Yoga and lifelong athlete, suffered a knee injury from a weight-lifting accident and heard he would never be able to walk again. However, in only six months of practicing yoga at Bishnu Ghosh College of Physical Education, he was "totally recovered." Professional athletes who have practiced yoga include tennis player Venus Williams, golfer Ty Tryon, soccer player John Scales, figure skater Naomi Nari Nam, boxers Lou Savarese and Evander Holyfield, and basketball coach and former player Pat Riley.
Yoga for the Recovering Athlete
As with most forms of therapy, you can personalize yoga therapy sessions to fit your needs. Some of the most common poses in yoga therapy are balasana, sasangasana and uttanasana for lower-back pain; ardha matsyendrasana for midback pain; ustrasana, salabhasana and swatzstikasana for upper-back and shoulder pain; and baddha konasana, trikonasana, hanumanasana and utkatasana for pain related to the hips, hamstrings and quadriceps. The surya namaskara series is universally beneficial for all practitioners. You will rarely practice these poses as is. A yoga therapist usually needs to modify the poses before you implement them in your rehabilitation regimen.
References
- HealthandYoga.com: Benefits of Yoga
- "Sports Injuries Guidebook: Athletes' and Coaches' Resource for Identification, Treatment, and Recovery"; Robert S. Gotlin, ed.; 2008
- "Yoga for Wellness: Healing With the Timeless Teachings of Viniyoga"; Gary Kraftsow; 1999
- "The New York Times": The Yoga Therapist Will See You Now
- Bikram's Yoga College of India: Bikram Choudhury
- Holistic Medicine Resource Center: Athletes Practicing Yoga
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