Yoga for Osteoporosis: What You Should Know

Yoga is a spiritual practice that combines physical, mental, and spiritual levels through different poses, meditation practices, and breathing exercises. Our previous blogs showed you how Yoga can bring mental health and harmony between mind and body.

Some may not be familiar with the condition called Osteoporosis, but I’ll help you in making it clear. Osteoporosis is a bone disease which is a condition of reduction in the amount of bone mineral density and mass, which results in the condition of fragile bones.

One of the most essential methods for improving bone health and posture is through Yoga. Regular practice of Yoga can lower the symptoms and reduce the chances of developing Osteoporosis. Now let’s look at  Yoga for Osteoporosis in detail.

Understanding Osteoporosis

We briefly saw Osteoporosis, and now we are going into detail about it for better understanding.

What is Osteoporosis?

Osteoporosis is a bone disease which weakens your bones. It makes your bones thinner and less dense than their original form. People with Osteoporosis are much more likely to have broken bones (bone fractures).

Human bones are designed in a way that is dense and strong enough to support the individual’s weight and can absorb most kinds of impacts. When humans age, their bones naturally lose some of their density and the ability to regrow or remodel. A person with Osteoporosis has much more fragile bones than they should be and are much weaker.

This bone disease is known as a silent disease because it has no visible symptoms until you break one bone. Osteoporosis usually happens in postmenopausal women and older men. Fractures can happen to any bone, but they majorly occur in bones of the hip, vertebrae in the spine, and wrist.

Osteoporosis is a condition that can result in the risk of bone loss and fractures. Some common risk factors include:

• Age: When people age, their bones lose mass more quickly, and new bone growth decreases.
• Sex: There is a high chance that women are more likely to develop Osteoporosis than men.
• Diet: Diet plays an important role; if you follow a diet low in calcium and vitamin D over a lifetime, it will eventually result in a risk of bone loss.
• Medications: Consistent use of medications, such as glucocorticoids, anticonvulsants, and thyroid hormones, can be the reason for bone density loss and fractures.
• Lifestyle: If you follow a lifestyle that contains smoking, excessive alcohol intake, and low levels of physical activity, it can hugely impact bone health.
• Body type: A thin body build or a person with a Body Mass Index (BMI) of less than 19 kg/m2 can increase the risk.
• Other medical conditions: Other medical conditions such as Kidney failure, inflammatory bowel disease, rheumatoid arthritis, liver disease, eating disorders, diabetes, and insulin use can also increase the risk.

We understood that Osteoporosis is a bone disease that crucially impacts our health. A person with Osteoporosis can increase the risk of fractures, which will result in real complications. Having fractures will cause pain, limited mobility and loss of independence. It will also develop other complications such as loss of height, chronic pain, decreased mobility, and even death.

The major areas that affect fractures include the hip, spine, or wrist, but there are chances that they will affect other bodies. Fractures on the hip can happen due to falls, and it can increase the possibility of death within the first year of the injury. In the matter of spine fractures,  weakened vertebrae can collapse, leading to back pain, loss of height, and a hunched-forward posture.

The prevention of Osteoporosis is essential to lead a risk-free life. By preventing Osteoporosis, one can slow down the loss of bone strength over time to decrease the risk of fractures. Certain practices can help you eliminate this bone disease, such as exercises, changing lifestyles, practising Yoga and, in some cases, bone medications. Improving muscle strength and balance helps to prevent falls that can result in fractures and disability.

Benefits of Yoga for Osteoporosis

Let’s look at the significant benefits of Yoga for Osteoporosis.

Gentle Strength Building

Some of you may think a person with Osteoporosis can practice Yoga, and the answer is Yes. Yoga is a remedy for Osteoporosis; it is the best way to strengthen your bones. For people with Osteoporosis, practising Yoga could improve bone density, ensure balance and build muscle strength. The weight-bearing poses of yoga help ease the pain and build strength.

The low-impact nature of Yoga can help individuals with Osteoporosis. It can assist in lowering the risk of fractures. The gentle movements of Yoga can help to reduce stress on the bones and joints.  Practising balance may enhance function and lower the likelihood of falls. If you have Osteoporosis, practising Yoga consistently can help strengthen and stabilize your body and support your bones.

If you add weight-bearing yoga poses to your routine, your Yoga practice may also benefit from cumulative increases in bone density, among other reasons, stress reduction, and a better quality of life for those experiencing Osteoporosis.

Improved Balance and Posture

Another major advantage of Yoga for Osteoporosis is improved balance and posture of the individual. Regular practising of Yoga for individuals with Osteoporosis can help to strengthen the core.

The core of an individual consists of various muscles in the abdomen, back, pelvis, and hips. It supports the spine and keeps a person upright. A strong core helps an individual maintain good posture by stabilizing the torso and preventing slouching or rounding of the back.

A strong core is the primary reason for maintaining a good posture. Many yoga poses engage the core muscles, including boat pose, plank pose, and low lunge twist.

Stress Reduction and Mental Well-being

Yoga has the power to reduce stress and ensure mental well-being. This is because Yoga combines physical postures, meditation and breathing exercises. Regular practice of Yoga promotes relaxation and reduces stress.

Practising Yoga helps you to activate the parasympathetic nervous system. It is responsible for the rest and digestion function of the human body, which restrains the stress-induced fight-or-flight response.

Yoga poses can liberate physical blockages like muscle knots, helping release emotions and tension. Yoga enables you to release mood-boosting endorphins, known as the feel-good hormones that can equip you to handle stress.

We already saw that Osteoporosis makes a person physically ill, but at the same time, it can affect the mental well-being of an individual. A person with Osteoporosis may experience increased levels of anxiety or depression mainly due to the fear of movement and falls, or it may be because of the limited level of physical activity. All these feelings result in a sense of isolation and loneliness.

Yoga Poses and Modifications for Osteoporosis

Yoga for Osteoporosis is a brilliant way to tackle this bone disease. Now, let’s explore the best yoga exercises for Osteoporosis and the poses you must avoid while having Osteoporosis.

Safe Yoga Poses

1. Bridge pose (Setu Bandhasana): One of the benefits of this is that it helps strengthen the knee joint muscles and fight Osteoporosis. Furthermore, it reduces anxiety and stress.
2. Corpse pose (Savasana): This is one of those postures that helps to calm the body and mind, offering relief from stiffness around hip joints and the back area. To practice Corpse Pose, lie back down with extended arms together with legs and keep it for not less than half a minute.
3. Dolphin plank pose (Makara adho mukha svanasana): It also leads to core muscle growth in the legs, arms, abdomen, chest, and lower back. It helps prevent Osteoporosis and reduces pain risk in cold weather.
4. Warrior II pose (Virabhadrasana 2): Posing, such as a tree pose, can help increase your core strength and enhance your leg muscles, besides helping with stability. If you’re having problems balancing yourself out, consider having a nearby wall/chair that will hold on to you tightly during the process.
5. Standing forward bend (Uttanasana): Practising Uttanasana can help a person with Osteoporosis, reduce stress and calm the brain. It is also helpful for other diseases, such as asthma and sinusitis.

Poses to Avoid

1. Spinal flexion: Make sure you change certain yoga poses, such as complete forward bends, because they may lead to severe pains in your back or even fracturing your vertebrae. Similarly, when you sit in Polarthenosana or stand in Half Moon Pose – fingertips on the floor (Ardha Chandrasana), the strain felt on these body parts could worsen if not dealt with appropriately, leading to severe medical conditions. Therefore, please do not engage in these kinds of asanas without being careful.
2. Twists: Deeply twisted poses such as revolved triangles and lord of the Fish must be practised cautiously. There’s a risk when your back is twisted using gravity or leverage mechanisms. Taking care of your back involves mild and gentle twists.
3. Hip stretches: Deep hip stretches that are as deep as the pigeon pose can put significant force on the neck of the femur, which is a common fracture area.
4. Hand balances: Must avoid poses that place all the pressure on their hands, for example, handstands. It can increase the likelihood of breaking a wrist.
5. Repetitive or rapid movements: Stop practising similar movements or making swift movements. Also, avoid jumping your feet forward towards your hands in a downward-facing dog position.

Tips for Starting Yoga with Osteoporosis

Here are some important tips for starting Yoga with Osteoporosis. Explore this now to get major insights.

Consult Your Healthcare Provider

Before starting Yoga for Osteoporosis, it is important to consult your healthcare provider for safety and effectiveness. The rate of fracture risk is higher for people with Osteoporosis. Some yoga asanas can make it even worse.

Now let’s look at the poses that must be avoided. It includes poses that round the back to prevent compression fractures. Practising Sit-ups and crunches stress the spine and are not recommended for people with osteoporosis. Full backbends, extreme twists, and inversions are the other practices that must be avoided having osteoporosis.

Choose a Qualified Instructor

It’s essential to find experienced yoga instructors who specialize in Osteoporosis. Only those experts can understand the specific needs and limitations associated with the condition. They gave the patient safe and effective poses and modifications to prevent injuries and maximize the benefits. By choosing a qualified instructor one can experience improved bone density, balance, and well-being in a supportive, personalized yoga practice.

It’s crucial to communicate your osteoporosis condition to your yoga instructor. A knowledgeable instructor can make adjustments to poses to improve safety and prevent fractures. This ensures your practice supports your well-being and addresses your special health condition.

Start Slowly and Listen to Your Body

When diagnosed with Osteoporosis, you have to start slowly with yoga practice. Vigorous practice can lead to more harm than good. Using this strategy, one will experience less damage from both movement-related injuries and quickly become familiar with new motions. 

It is important to carefully observe how your body takes it while doing Yoga if you are having Osteoporosis. Once you can tell where it is hurting or feeling uncomfortable, you know which positions are causing the pain; hence, it can be modified or avoided so as not to worsen the condition.

Conclusion 

I hope this detailed blog gives immense insights about Yoga for Osteoporosis. If you are a person with Osteoporosis or your loved one has experienced this disease, this blog will be a great guide to starting yoga to relieve the condition. The important fact is that you only start the practice of Yoga with the advice of the instructor. For more such blogs and exciting content, visit our page, Hidden Mantra. Begin a journey to healing.