Author:
Publication: The Hindu
Date: January 25, 2004
URL: http://www.hindu.com/mag/2004/01/25/stories/2004012500150700.htm
Introduction: Here is a comprehensive
treatise - presented in the form of questions and answers - highlighting
the role of yoga in promoting positive health. It demystifies the practice
of yoga and explains in lucid terms what happens inside the body when a
particular asana is performed. Exclusive extracts from Yoga and Medical
Science,: FAQ, which is to be published shortly.
Being a medical professional, have
you found that medical and Hatha yogic science are similar, complementary
or do they completely differ? Does it cause conflicts in you?
There are similarities and dissimilarities.
I treat the patient based on the clinical condition. I never feel that
either Western Medicine or Hatha Yoga can solve all medical disorders and
hence there is no conflict. I try to be mentally receptive so that I can
adapt and solve medical problems.
Does medical science approve the
practice of Hatha Yoga? Can we train the body to attain such postures or
should we adhere to the customary kinds of exercise and diet control?
Biologically and according to evolution,
the body is built to attain such postures. There is a precise method with
specific benefits that accrue thereof. Yoga is an organic exercise that
utilizes the special principle of internal massage. This benefit cannot
be obtained with other exercises. Practise Yoga to achieve this internal
massage. Our intelligence is like a gyroscope that helps us execute Asanas
properly. The body is a house of movement and rhythm. If we follow the
biomechanics, there will be no hazard for the practitioner.
What is the minimum (and maximum)
time for retaining a pose?
In general, we can retain the poses
as long as we feel a sensation of exhilaration and lightness. This means
that the muscular grip on the Asana is healthy and strong though this does
not mean that we push ourselves to a point of fatigue. When we tire, we
should stop. Medically, practise standing poses for a minute except for
Dog pose, which may be held for at least four to five minutes. Inversions
can be held safely for 5 minutes (there are restrictions for some) and
forward bends can be held for 5 minutes at a time if possible.
Twists can be held for a minute
on each side and seated forward bends should be done for a minimum of three
to four minutes each. Balancing poses can be held for less than a minute.
The above guidelines will vary according to the practitioner's capacity.
Back bends can be practiced for at least one to two minutes. Practice Urdhva
Mukha Svanasana and Viparita Dandasana for three to four minutes either
continuously or with breaks. Kapotasana can be retained for a similar period
and the more advanced variations held for a minimum period of a minute
and can be repeated a couple of times ...
Is it correct to assume that the
dictum "no pain, no gain" applies to Yoga also? Is pain during practice
of Yoga postures a good sign? Should we stop Yoga if we feel pain?
Pain during any exercise has a cause.
Beginners could suffer pain due to stiff muscles especially if they have
been sedentary and this will disappear. This is known as delayed onset
muscle soreness (DOMS). This is natural. An incorrect technique causes
pain. While practicing advanced postures, knowledge and experience are
required to identify mistakes. The "optimum pain" or "healthy pain" principle
applies here. Advanced postures will produce a "pain" even for habitual
practitioners who attempt the difficult poses for the first time. This
will subside in due course ... ... We can correct the situation by applying
the correct technique to the problematic side. If we practice the stretches
properly, pain will not occur ...
How does Yoga score over Aerobics,
dance, work-outs, Swimming, Jogging, walking and other forms of accepted
exercise? Can Yoga co- exist with other forms of exercise?
... to reiterate, Yoga is cellular
silence while other exercises are cellular noise. Yoga helps one recuperate
from fatigue while other systems cannot achieve this. Yoga increases the
battery charge in our body while other systems drain it. We can combine
other exercises with Yoga. However, practice Yoga first, or muscle fatigue
and cramps can occur. If time permits, practice Yoga and the other exercises
separately.
Can Yoga prevent aging or is it
a tall claim?
God is the only entity who can remain
young mentally and physically. Aging is mental, physical and physiological.
If we mentally stagnate, aging has begun. If the body movements are shaky
with trepidation, physical aging has affected the person. Negative thoughts
are also part of the aging process. It is not adequate to motivate ourselves
positively, when we are positive, no psyching is necessary.
Aging can be healthier with an exercise
regimen like Yoga, which prevents accumulation of stress metabolites and
always keeps the physiology supple. Inversions are particularly valuable
in this aspect but if overdone, the opposite effect will occur.
Medically, Yoga maintains the body
parameters to a ripe old age (as the nature of yogic exercise is unlike
other systems), which is anti- aging. The energy levels of the practitioner
never decline even at the age of 80 years and above. Sri BKS Iyengar is
a case in point and the dynamism in his body is obvious. We can age gracefully
even though aging cannot be prevented ...
Are there any side effects from
"too much of Yoga" or exercise?
Any exercise indulged in excess
has a side effect, which is the "overtraining syndrome". Yoga is no exception
to this situation. Some of the symptoms of excessive exercise or too much
Yoga practice are fatigue, loss of sleep, irritability, and increase in
blood pressure, cellular dehydration and premature aging ...
Teaching Yoga appears to have become
a lucrative business. What should an individual consider in trying to find
the right teacher?
With the popularity of Yoga spreading
throughout the world, there is also the innate danger of people attempting
to teach Yoga without actually being fully trained to use it as a therapeutic
tool. Verify the credentials of the teacher before signing up for classes.
However, if you are a patient and therapeutic Yoga is your need, you will
benefit in learning it from a medical practitioner who is trained to understand
the physiology of the human body and can thus be watchful of the effects
of Yoga if performed incorrectly.
Hatha Yoga is not a money spinning
business in the East as much as it is in the West. Consult professionals
in the field to get correct guidance for health problems. Many teachers
spread incorrect concepts. Sadly, ego has engulfed many teachers who fail
to rectify their teachings ...
Can we rely on Yoga to treat (non-psychosomatic)
health disorders without recourse to medication or surgery?
Yoga can work independently but
must be commenced as early as possible (this situation unfortunately is
utopian). Yoga can arrest the progression of the disease if it cannot reverse
it. The advice depends on the disease and the individual patient ...
Is it possible to avoid injuries
in Yoga practice?
Yoga is not risky business! Injuries
occur if we do not follow the rules of the game ...
At what age can a child begin practice
of Hatha Yoga?
Children can attempt learning Yoga
at the age of five. However, they should never retain the pose for a prolonged
period (as adults do), for the cartilaginous junctions at the ends of growing
bones can be damaged. Around or after puberty, they can work harder to
master the postures. Children should practice most Yoga postures in a dynamic
manner (except inversions). Pranayama should be started only around or
after puberty, else the facial tissues will age prematurely ...
We hear so much about the benefits
of antioxidants these days. Can Yoga offer anything in this area?
Yoga is the finest "antioxidant"
but oral supplementation may be necessary for all of us due to the pollution
of the environment. Yoga being a system of auto massage, removes cellular
toxins efficiently without side effects. All Asanas are important for this
purpose.
* * *
Ultrasound studies in Yoga reveal
a new world of physiological phenomena. Yoga is not what we think it is,
neither is it what we think is not. Yoga is Yoga, period. What the eye
cannot see, ultrasound reveals. Doing the Asana is not important, what
happens inside the body while in the pose is of greater significance. Medically,
it can be shown that the BKS Iyengar school is the most optimum in its
effects on the body. The body is seen to behave as precisely as a machine
if used properly.
Ultrasound studies on yoga
With several technical points to
be followed for correct practice of Yoga, how do I know that I may not
be committing a mistake? What happens inside the body with correct (or
incorrect) Yoga practice?
This is indeed an important question.
Every Asana done properly has a specific effect on the inner organs. For
example, the blood flow velocity in the legs increases if the standing
poses are done precisely. Similarly, back bends or forward bends practised
have their own benefits. Most schools of Yoga believe in certain physiological
changes in Yoga poses. For e.g. many feel that standing poses enhance the
blood flow in the legs. However, facts are different. Not all of them do
so and a few poses effect no change in flow patterns. Certain schools of
Yoga teach standing poses with the legs bent and this is pitiable as the
benefits of flow enhancement are lost!
Before we proceed, we must understand
a little about exercise and its effects on the body. Dynamic exercise (running,
Swimming, etc.) and static exercises (for e.g. isometrics) have different
effects. To summarise:
The table (see column two) shows
salient differences between two different types of exercises. Yoga exercises
though static in appearance are unlike conventional exercises. There is
no rise in arterial pressure or any pressure load on the ventricle as above.
Both systolic and diastolic pressure reduce (or remain stable) during or
after Yoga practice as the mind and body are relaxed. In some postures,
the systolic pressure may increase though not as much as conventional exercises.
Endurance exercises cause redistribution
of fluids from the vascular to the tissue to some extent. There is vasodilatation
in the blood vessels in the respective muscles and the resistance decreases.
Certain areas of the body undergo vasoconstriction to promote blood flow
to areas actively exercised. During Yoga practice, the systemic pressure
is maintained, yet fluid redistribution and better tissue perfusion are
achieved. Local changes of blood flow, mechanical muscles tension, and
possible oxygen saturation occur according to the geometry of the posture
and yet does not cause a change in other body parameters.
With endurance exercises, the capacity
of the body to extract oxygen improves. With Yoga practice, the massaging
action on the tissues maintains its resiliency so that all parameters will
function to an optimal level. There is no volume load (up to a point) on
the heart unlike dynamic exercises nor is there a pressure load in the
conventional sense. The "load" effected on the cardiac muscle is unique
in Yoga. It is without strain and there is a freedom of spatial nature
given to the heart in different poses.
This property of providing elasticity
to the muscles of the heart is not available in other systems.
Endurance exercise is known to remodel
arterial structure in the lower limbs of healthy men. Such changes do not
happen with Yoga practice as the nature of stimulus is different. Remodelling
is not the effect of Yoga. Maintaining a healthy anatomical structure is
the main benefit. Doppler studies have shown no permanent structural alteration
in habitual Yoga practitioners in the long term.
Exercising muscles undergo vasodilatation
and there are several reasons for this. The occurrence of hemodynamic events
in Yoga is different as the demand during exercise is of a different nature.
The blood vessels in yogic postures though made taut are unlike other systems.
This produces a different response to blood flow patterns producing unique
effects on the body.
Aging alters effective redistribution
of blood flow during aerobic exercise. However, Yoga practice can be maintained
at the same intensity as, the nature of exercise is without strain and
hence the hemodynamic patterns remain the same even in habitual practitioners.
The hemodynamic patterns in the author have been the same over 15 years.
Standing poses have a different
effect on the legs unlike conventional endurance or aerobic exercise. The
muscles are contracted in geometric shapes and the contracted muscle is
stretched. The muscles that are stretched are used in such a manner as
to draw the flesh closer to the bone ... .
