When you’re dealing with an injury, you’ll stop at nothing to recover, so that you can get back to your busy schedule near Marlton, Whiting, and Somerset. But, have you ever considered the potential benefits of combining yoga and physical therapy?
As a matter of fact, twisting your body into those iconic yoga poses provides your body with the strength-building and pain-relieving technique you need to heal an injury or condition. Ready to learn how yoga can help patients near Howell, Hamilton, and Somerville?
Well, we’re here to do just that with our guide to the 3 Ways to Combine Yoga and Physical Therapy, created by Trinity Rehab. Let’s learn more about your path to using yoga to upgrade your rehabilitation.
Increased Flexibility
Let’s face it: staying limber is what makes moving about your home and staying in pace with a hectic day easy. Luckily, incorporating some yoga moves into your physical therapy treatment plan gradually loosens the muscles and connective tissues surrounding your bones and joints.
With continued practice, infusing yoga into your recovery regimen allows you to move around more effortlessly, whether you’re hiking on a local trail or just walking through a shopping mall.
Bound Ankle Pose
Find a quiet place in your house and sit on the ground with your legs straight out in front of you. Next, bend your knees and pull your heels in toward your pelvis.
From there, let your knees point out to either side of your body and press the soles of your feet together. Slowly pull your heels as close to your pelvis as you can without feeling any pain. Feel free to hold this position anywhere from 30 seconds to five minutes.
Pain Reduction
After years of using your body to complete all sorts of tasks, it’s common to feel tightness and pain in the extremities that you utilize most often, such as your knees and fingers. But, to avoid the symptoms of common conditions like Carpel Tunnel, arthritis, and more, yoga is your answer.
How can yoga help? Put simply, yoga stretches our bodies in certain ways that go beyond our standard, everyday methods of moving.
Those movements bring in fresh nutrients, oxygen, and blood to your joints, bones, and bits of cartilage, which provide them with the nourishment needed to keep them strong. Not only does this process fortify your bones, but it also prevents decay, which can eventually lead to excess pain.
Tadasana Wrist Therapy
Find a position that’s comfortable for you, whether you’re sitting our standing. Then, pull your fingers in toward your palms, forming a relaxed fist.
Gently rotate your wrists in a circular motion for about thirty seconds and repeatedly switch from clockwise to counterclockwise movements. After that, shake out your wrists for about 30 seconds. This quick yoga exercise can be incorporated into a more intensive practice or completed while you’re at work.
Building Muscle
The key to a stable body is increasing the capability of your muscles. So, if you’ve been finding it more difficult to lift heavy objects, try out yoga.
Instead of using dumbbells or other weighted objects to enhance your strength, yoga employs the weight of your own body in a series of holding positions that require different muscle groups to work together to keep you upright.
Over time, the extra effort you’re using to hold up your body does wonders for improving muscle tone, definition, and capability.
Dolphin Plank Pose
Start off by lying on your stomach, facing the ground. Then, lift your body off the floor from a plank position by placing your elbows under your shoulders and your toes on the ground. Next, spread your shoulder blades and press down through your arms and shoulders.
While you’re holding this pose, keep your lower abs and ribs engaged by contracting your abdominal muscles. Make your back as flat as you can by tucking your tailbone in against your pelvic floor.
Once you’ve perfected your plank pose, hold this position for five inhales and five exhales. Repeat this exercise about five times until you feel the burn in your muscles.
The Healing Powers of Yoga!
So, there you have it: Our guide to 3 Ways to Combine Yoga and Physical Therapy. Now, it’s time for patients near Marlton, Whiting, and Somerset to experiment with these exercises to see what helps you bolster your physical therapy treatment plan.
Looking to learn more about the benefits of yoga for physical therapy or to snag a few more poses to try out at home? If so, don’t hesitate to contact the board-certified physical therapists at Trinity Rehab.
