Yoga Injuries

It seems counter to the idea of yoga itself that an asana practice can inflict as much damage as practitioners claim it can correct, but asana is physical and it's not immune from repetitive stress, muscle strain and tears, ligament damage and even broken bones.

I discovered an insightful article at Yoga Journal by a yogi who details a rather severe set of injuries incurred over years of ignoring her body's pleas against inversions.

While yoga is a wonderful practice, and it's certainly available to most people. not every pose will fit or suit a person. We come to our mats with varying body types, at different ages and levels of fitness and with very different needs. My own recent struggles with neck and shoulders spread to my ribs because I was determined to push myself and build my upper body strength despite the fact that I am aware it is my Achilles heel in terms of flexibility and stress storage.

In many ways, a serious asana practice opens a person up for the same types of physical abuse to which any other athlete is prone. Being "yoga" doesn't exempt a person from pride and the silly idea that pain is gain. Indeed, you will run across yoga teachers who don't subscribe to the necessary adage of "listen to your body" but encourage mindless pushing to the "next level".

As I slowly regain mobility, I feel the urge to run where walking serves me just as well, but I am determined to hold myself to the speed at which my body needs to fully recover. Like the Patricia Sullivan did, I have surrendered to the idea that there might be poses I will never return to or will only practice with modifications in the future. That's okay. Yoga isn't anymore  a race than life is.