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| Yoga for Women: A physical therapist's view on how yoga applies to everyday life |
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by Lisa B. Minn, PT - October 3, 2011
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Provided by The Pragmatic Yogi
 If you are a regular reader of Pragmatic Yogi, you’ve no doubt noticed that the frequency of my posts declined quite a bit over the summer. One of the reasons I wasn’t focused on my blog was that much of my attention was on prenatal yoga. I took a week-long course called "Teaching Yoga for Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond” which was followed by two months of independent reading, writing, teaching and research required to complete the certification for the course. As a result, I have lots of information that I will pass along in the next few weeks.
For example, here are three ways a yoga teacher might modify poses for a pregnant student who came to a regular class:
1. Use cow pose (spinal extension in hands/knees position) in place of cobra/mini-cobra. This allows a pregnant woman to do a backbend without lying on her stomach.
2. Pregnant women, at any stage of their pregnancies, should not do parivrtta parsvakonasana or side angle twist (pictured on the left below). Instead, do an open variation by placing the same side elbow on front thigh and reaching the top arm up and back (below right). This is a mild twist that keeps the abdomen and and front torso open.
3. When the baby gets big enough (usually not until the 3rd trimester), they have the potential to compress the vena cava, the largest vein in the torso. This would cause her to feel breathless or dizzy. So when women get to the point of feeling uncomfortable lying on their backs, they can do side-lying savasana (opening image) or Queen's Pose instead of traditional savasana.
"Pregnancy, Birth and Beyond" also covered yoga for women who are not pregnant but may need extra care at other times in life. Here are some ways to adapt a regular yoga practice during menstruation:
1. Generally decrease intensity. For example, instead of plank->chaturanga/hover->updog sequence during sun salutations, do a more gentle sequence of hands/knees->8-point posen(chest down)->mini cobra.
2. Do viparita karani (legs-on-wall pose) instead of any other inversions (headstand, shoulderstand, forearm balance, etc.) to avoid retrograde blood flow into pelvic cavity and to encourage the downward flow of apana,.
3. Try face-down savasana instead of supine savasana. This may facilitate deeper relaxation help relieve cramping.
And speaking of women’s health did you know that Oprah.com recently published an in-depth article called ‘Physical Therapy for Your Lady Parts’? It states, "Women's heath physical therapists (WHPT) are often the problem solvers that gynecologists, obstetricians, urologists and other doctors call when confronted with a gender-specific medical mystery, like discomfort during sex, after childbirth or while going to the bathroom."
More about pre- and postnatal physical therapy next time!
Photo of side angle variation from Laurence Turner's Pregnancy Yoga.
Photo of side angle twist from J.Crew.
Lisa Minn is a licensed physical therapist and yoga enthusiast. She has been incorporating aspects of Yoga and Pilates into her physical therapy practice since 2001 and became a certified yoga instructor in 2004. Her experience ranges from working with athletes at West Point and Georgetown to instructing elderly and wheelchair-bound clients in the fundamentals of Hatha Yoga. Lisa has conducted several lectures and workshops across the US, as well as in Honduras and Peru, where she volunteered her services. She currently resides and practices in Northern California. This and other articles by Lisa can be found at The Pragmatic Yogi.
The viewpoint expressed in this article is the opinion of the author and is not necessarily the viewpoint of the owners or employees at Healthcare Staffing Innovations, LLC.
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