Yoga with a bad lumbar disc

Yoga Discussion General Yoga
#1

Hi,

I have a degenerated lumbar disk (i think is L5). For most of my life I’ve been practicing contact sports and lifting lots of weights but about a couple of years ago I got into yoga due to low back issues. I began practicing yoga in my gym and then I bought a bunch of books and got a number of DVDs. My fexibility and core stregth has improved TONS but I’ve learnt to listen to my body the hard way. About a month ago I think i pushed it to far and my lower back has been flaring up. Ideally I would love to find a good yoga instructor but that’s so hard to find. It seems that every week I see a new yoga studio opening up and I really question if the people that are teaching in those places are qualified. Until I find somebody good, I would like some ideas of good yoga routines for a person in my situation.

Also I am looking for a little feedback on what I am doing:

  1. When doing forward bends, i respect my range of motion. I used to pull myself with my hands but again I learnt the hard way that this is not good. Oops

  2. I always bend from my hips.

  3. I try to do my practices really slow, focusing on breathing.

  4. When I am having low back episodes, I do my practices. I little bit of stiffness at the begining of the practice is not bad as long as is not pain

  5. I try to do my practices at night. (i find that my body is looser at that time)

  6. I usually do a yoga practice, then the following day a pilates practice then i rest.

  7. Most of the poses that i do are
    a. Warrior 1, 2, 3
    b. Crescent Pose
    c. Triangle Pose
    4. Right side angle pose
    5. Downward and upawrd dogs
    6. Chair pose (the normal and the twisted version)
    7. Crow Pose
    8. Camel Pose
    9. Wheel Pose
    10. etc

Thanks in advance for any feedback. I am trying to self teach myself by reading, watching videos and now hopefully using this forum and eventually finding a good instructor.

#2

Well, it looks like you have a pretty good handle on things! And yes, a good teacher will be instrumental in your healing. I do hope you find one. Most studios offer the first class free. Take advantage of that and perhaps you’ll find a teacher that is a good fit.

I also have disc issues, albeit not degenerative. PT and yoga helped me immensely. Unbeknownst to me (and I am a teacher) I was compensating due to my pain. And the result was a complete imbalance that took time and patience to correct.

One thing to consider are your hamstrings. They are pivotal in supporting the back. Work on lengthening them. Another is to watch out for twists. They can harm your back if not done correctly. Many use their hand to pull into the twist. This is a no-no. I teach to relax the hand and allow the pelvis and spine to move in unison. The head follows.In addition to what you’ve listed as far as asana, I would add Bhujangasana (baby, not the full pose) and Salabasana (locust). Locust will help strengthen your spine, again if done properly. I do several reps and hold the last one for several breaths. And while extensions are therapeutic for the most part, they must be done precisely. How do you come into Camel? How does your back feel after?

In addition, there is a book that combines yoga, pilates and PT. It’s called, Back RX by Vijay Vad, MD. It’s quite good. It gives you several routines, dependent on where you are in the healing process. I’ve used it myself and found it to really help. You can order it thru Amazon.

I hope some of this is of help to you and that your healing continues.

#3

Thanks for the feedback. Usually before camel pose i am into kneeling. I kind of cicle one arm around until my hand reaches my heel then i go with the other one. I keep my chest open during this pose and try not to do the flexing using my lumbar area, by tucking my pelvis and keeping my shoulders open. My back actually feels really good after. The funny thing is that i had a bad experience about 6 months ago when i did a routine that focused on back bends and i resented my back a little bit 'cause i pushed myself too hard.
I’ve come to realize that we never stop learning when it comes to yoga and more so, the fact that we are dealing with a disc issue. By the way I am not in pain. Every now and them when I don’t listen to my body, then I have to put up with a few days of disconfort. But that being said, my new thing is really get in touch with myself and really get control of this thing because i don’t want to get to a situation that I am dealing with a painful situation all the time.

You are so correct about the hamstrings. My issue isn’t this but flexibility on the groin area. For example when i do staff pose and I try to go down to a sitted double leg bend, I find that I can easly grab my heels. My problem is that i don’t see that my reach comes from hinging from the hips but a lot comes from bending my lumbar area. I am going to try modified versions from forward bends using bands to force myself to keep my back straight (sort of bring my ribs to my knees)

#4

My issue isn’t this but flexibility on the groin area. For example when i do staff pose and I try to go down to a sitted double leg bend

Are you referring to Paschimottansana? If so, when your hips stop moving, you stop moving forward. You’re using back muscles, not hamstrings. Try this. Sit on a pillow to give your hips a head start. Put hands on hips and squeeze tightly. Lengthen spine and begin hinging from hips as you come forward. When you feel your hips stop, you stop too. This is your starting point. You might also add Supta Padangusthasana with the leg out to the side, to help with inner thigh and hamstrings. When you lie down with your knees bent and extend one leg to ceiling, is your knee bent? Is you straight leg perpendicular to the ceiling? If not, add more hamstring stretches. Always keep knees straight (but not hyper-extended) when doing this and keep foot flexed. Try using a pilates ring when extending that leg out to the side instead of a strap. Relax (or try) and hold the stretch. I have found pilates rings invaluable in my teachings.

I would also not use a strap to “pull” yourself into paschimottansana, unless your hips are moving also.

#5

Welcome to the community.

Two pieces missing here for me. One is the background on the student; age, gender, et al. And the other is a more specific and detailed conveyance of the issues. General terms like “flare up” or “back issue” create murky waters and lead to often erroneous assumptions.

Howeverrrrrrr…

Degeneration, as you outline it, is fairly common in adults over 40. It’s not to be accepted, ignored, or tolerated but it is not a rare condition. Of course it is exacerbated (or eased) by our life choices - including any physical pounding, as you mention from your past.

“Back issues” can mean sooo many things that the phrase itself is as common as “hello”. A nice greeting but not particularly revealing.

Generally speaking, if there are “back issue” of any significance then forward bending postures need to be modified or avoided, twists need to be active rather than passive and not move past ~75% of capacity, and backbends need to incorporate proper action to prevent collapse in the weakest links of that particular spine. Again, these are generalizations and should not be interpreted as a “prescription” for your situation or “back pain” in general.

Again generally speaking, when there are “low back episodes” a modified practice respecting that communication from the body is often more profound that forging on with a “standard” or “regular” practice. However the student will likely learn this on their own (over time) and needn’t take my word for it.

Specifically to your sequence, were it me, I would avoid Vira III (warrior), Bakasana (crow) and Urdhva Mukha Svanasana (upward facing dog) when there are mysterious, unassessed low back “issues”. The rest of that sequence is “okay” however it’s not a sequence FOR low back issues. It is merely one that is less likely to aggravated them.

#6

Thanks for all your replies. Actually I’ve gotten my back checked and as per all the imaging stuff (x rays, mri) it seems that I was born witn a very narrow disc in my lower back (L5 to C1). The funny part is that slowly I’ve come to realize that poses that involve backward bending sometimes don’t agree with me. I found a few modifications by tucking my tail bone but for the most part if i do backward bends I don’t go to hard. When it comes to my age, I am 36, in good health and I am very active.

I think I found a good place in Toronto that specialices in yoga therapy so that would be something that I will do. Again the beauty of yoga is I guess learning more about your body and have fun doing it.

Thanks again
G.