Photo disclaimer!
Written September 29th, 2020
I saw an advertisement this past week encouraging people to practice yoga as they age. Of course, I agree wholeheartedly, and the photos that were used in the advertisement got me a little fired up. The yoga teacher had her hands completely flat on the floor in a standing forward fold. Now, here I am using a photo of a seated forward fold with my hands wrapped around my feet. Enter my photo disclaimer. . .
Touching your toes is not a requirement or the goal when practicing yoga! A lot of folks decide to try yoga because they've heard it can help with back pain. That was me! My back pain took me off my feet in my late twenties and I began practicing a few yoga postures regularly with the goal of preventing more back pain. Lower back pain can be caused by a number of different things. It is likely that if you have tight hamstrings and you take a forward fold without bending your knees (and attempting to broaden your sit bones) it will likely put pressure on the discs in your lower vertebrae.
Does this mean you shouldn't do a forward fold? Not necessarily. You might consider approaching a forward fold with an intention other than touching your toes. Study the natural curves of your spine. Get curious about how to create strength in your core that supports the movements of your spine. Where does your body get tight from your activity (or inactivity)?
As a yoga teacher that has been practicing for many years, my body can take shapes in my forties that weren't even remotely accessible in my twenties. I do my best to approach the shapes from a perspective of longevity and it is also fun to learn from the shapes. I like to think that I practice more intelligently now by using one of the gifts of the practice, self-awareness. A lot of days that means backing off in a posture. I preach strength over flexibility, yet, we're practicing both. In promoting a yoga practice, I ask myself, "how can I use photos that inspire and educate without perpetuating this image of the flexible yogi?" I've found it to be a little tricky and I think it is important so I'm going to keep working on it.
"We must learn in our performance of asanas to express the outer form and beauty of the pose without losing our inner attention. The skin is an organ of perception. It does not act. It receives. All actions are received by the skin, but if your flesh overstretches when you are performing an asana, the skin loses its sensitivity and sends no message to the brain. In the West, you tend to overdo the stretch. You want to get something. You want to do it quickly. You want to succeed in doing the pose, but you don't feel the reaction. The flesh extends so much that it makes the organ of perception insensitive, and because it has become insensitive, the reflection from the action to the mind is not felt." B.K.S. Iyengar