As an Ashtanga yoga practitioner it’s almost inevitable that at some point during our dedication to practice we will endure some kind of injury. The most common complaints from an Ashtangi are wrist pain or knee discomfort. We spend a lot of our yoga practice pushing our bodies to the very edge of our comfort zone and, unfortunately, this can often result in twinges that delay our progression.
Before I started practicing yoga many years ago I used to suffer terrible knee problems. My knees would swell and become painful after 12 hours shifts and long distance runs. Eventually I had to seek medical help and was referred to a physiotherapist. I was given a recovery programme and vast amounts of anti-inflammatory medication. The moral of the story being, prevention is better than cure.
It wasn’t until I started to understand my body better through my yoga practice that I learned the importance of taking care of my joints. It’s not something we often think of when we are young, more interested in getting abs or a bigger bum, both of which become impossible tasks if you suffer joint problems.
In order to have a near perfect practice every time I roll out my mat I’ve started taking care of my joints from the inside out. I always ensure to warm up my knees and ankles at the start of every practice, I eat well, stay hydrated and I have started to incorporate Feel Joints daily vitamins into my wellness routine.
Feel are a subscription-based service that makes it super convenient to get your daily intake of goodness and stops you from running out as soon as you’ve got your body to a good places. When taken consecutively for a minimum of 90 days Feel Joints are clinically proven to alleviate knee osteoarthritis and sooth pain right at the source. The not so secret, secret is their highest quality, anti-inflammatory ingredients.
Think about what happens to your joints during your yoga practice, especially if you are new to the practice;
- Downward Facing Dog – your ankles and wrists are closest to the Earth and are therefore taking the majority of your weight. A well seasoned practitioner may have built up strength in these areas overtime but would always benefit from extra nutrients to these areas.
- Jump through: the hands and wrists take all the body weight on a jump through and there is also the added risk of injury from the movement (as soon as a joint becomes mobile, it risks injury)
- Marichyasana B & D: the knee joints in these variations become temperamental if performed incorrectly. The knee joint should be kept locked to keep it protected, however if you have any issues with your patella these postures can often be problematic. Natural anti-inflammatory nutrients will help to alleviate this.
To ensure that your practice can stay consistent and you enjoy many, many years of a healthy yoga practice it’s important we take care of these often forgotten about areas of the body. If you’ve ever suffered an injury during your Ashtanga practice, either on or off the mat, you’ll know if can throw you off course for weeks, months or years, holding us back from progressing in our practice and feeling the full benefits of yoga.
I’ll be taking a holistic approach to my practice moving forward, taking care of my body from the inside and out.
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