Everyone says, “calm down'“

There have been a lot of messages from the universe lately suggesting that I am noticeably more wound up than usual and people are noticing. Sadly, I am beginning to notice it too. Or maybe it’s not bad that I’m finally getting the message. My physical body, my mental body, and my nervous system would probably appreciate my doing something about it.

But do I even remember what that actually feels like? This is the question that I am posing to myself today. The next question is “how” to make a shift within myself.

Since I love so much about yoga and how it has changed and supported my life over the past 10+ years, it is my go-to. My experience with yoga started with vinyasa style and has slowly shifted to a slower flow and more recently to include an intentional breathing practice. When my client came in with an osteoporosis diagnosis and a life that felt out of control, it raised the same question as stress, bone density, and osteoporosis do not do well together. If we are constantly running a higher stress level, it affects hormones that are detrimental to building and maintaining healthy bones, called our stress cortisol.

Sometimes it can feel that it would take moving mountains to change my lifestyle and habits to make a shift. But I know my yoga practice can help.

Vinyasa, slow flow or breathing practice, that is the question.

Let’s talk about reasons and benefits for each one as it might pertain to osteoporosis.

Keep it moving with vinyasa

I like to say yoga found me. In reality a friend had a punch card she needed to use up and invited me to go to class with her. It was a vinyasa class. So many people had told me over the years that I should try yoga that I’ve lost count. But I went and struggled through the class. I could not believe how many “push-ups” (connecting vinyasas) we did. But after class I knew in my deepest gut that I needed to go back without understanding why.

I had read that vinyasa style yoga was originally designed to help teenage boys expel excess energy. When I started yoga this is just what I needed. I needed a class that was going to match the pace at which I was running in my life and then to gradually slow me down. And that is just what a 75 min class seemed to do. I was so busy following all the verbal cues, trying to breathe when I was supposed to, move the correct limb when I was supposed to, and keep my balance in the poses, that my brain was actually resting from my to-do-list, the “I should’ve saids”, the argument I was planning, and life planning moments, etc.

My body got exercise and my brain had a chance to shut down and focus on one thing at a time. I would leave class feeling tired but my brain would be quieter. Then I would notice that it took more to rile me up over the next few days before the yoga bliss wore off. By yoga bliss I mean that I was less volatile, more flexible in my thinking and approach and just felt more calm and in control of myself and my emotions.

There was something about being intentional with my movement that was good for my nervous system and therefore my bones. What I learned a few years later during a teacher training was that the class was effectively bringing me into the present moment where I was not worrying about the future or ruminating on the past. My brain could breathe. This is why yoga is so helpful for our stress and helps us to manage our osteoporosis.

The concerns with vinyasa style classes is that when moving more quickly, it is harder to be aware of and sometimes to maintain a safe spinal alignment required when you have osteoporosis. Sometimes it is a greater balance challenge than we expected. Both quieting the mind and keeping our body safe are appropriate things to consider when choosing a yoga class.

In case you are curious Body in Tune would love to collaborate with you to find your perfect movement practice.

slowing down

More recently, I have been following a yoga sequence that has more pauses than movement or flow. There are benefits and struggles with this. My brain struggles with not moving or changing poses frequently as if I’m afraid to stand still for very long. My body wants to keep physically moving to avoid feeling or processing something.

At the same time my brain is asking me to stay in a pose a little longer to feel for and find a few other muscles to better stabilize the pose, improve my balance and posture, and also to allow my brain and thoughts to slow down. This would in effect help manage stress, improve my strength and balance, and would be good for osteoporosis and bone density.

Sometimes it takes a figurative hammer over the head to recognize the benefits of both. This is the effect of the messages from the universe referenced earlier.

When we rush in life we can easily avoid spending time thinking or feeling into our body or emotions. Conversely, when we slow down and pause to refine a pose we find new muscles, gain coordination, stop stressing muscles that should not be carrying the load, and yes, feel tension or emotions release from being stored in various places in the body.

A slower flowing yoga class is very appropriate for someone with osteoporosis because you have time to find as many muscles as possible, refine your balance, and strengthen or lengthen muscles. It can be more approachable for those brand new to yoga or for someone who like me may need to slow down the pace of my life. I firmly believe I practice yoga for my life off the mat. If I can practice being mindful of my movements, my thoughts, and my breath during a class, then perhaps I can learn to do the same when I am outside in the world. After all, as one of my teachers used to say, “It is yoga practice, not yoga perfect”.

Good news! Body in Tune would love to collaborate with you to teach you this precise yoga practice and to support your ongoing practice so you can enjoy your life off the mat with confidence.

Take time to breathe!

One of my favorite cues I have heard lately was, “take the biggest breath of your life”. Often when there is stress we forget to breath fully. We are breathing, but the breath gets shallow, our diaphragm tenses, and that effectively contracts around the area of the spine where we have a lot of nerve endings that stimulate the sympathetic nervous system. This is the part of the nervous system responsible for our flight, fight, freeze, and fawn mechanism.

Focusing on the breath, the depth of each breath, both inhale and exhale, allows us to send a message to the nervous system, that despite our struggles, stress, anxiety, etc, we can support ourselves. It effectively tells the nervous system, “I’ve got you.” Breathing can give us a direct line into the nervous system with a positive or negative effect. The former is what we are looking for with a yoga practice for osteoporosis.

I often say to my Physical Therapy clients, “the body will not let us move into a range of motion that it can not control”. By adding a focus on the breath in a slower mindful yoga practice, I am also allowing space for breath in each pose. I use the breath as part of my stability in the poses, to deepen into stretches, and to create more opening and support.

Care to join me? Check out how to practice with me.

Body in Tune, LLC was born from a belief that quality of life matters; both life and physical balance matters.

I would welcome the opportunity to be part of your support team with regards to women’s health, your muscles, joints, bones and osteoporosis. The goal is, after all, to help you feel confident in your body so you can play with your grand children, take that long-dreamed of vacation and get outside and enjoy a walk with friends.