Hansies Health Report

Goodbye Shoulder Pain!

Pretty excited.  Yesterday I was getting back into my exercise routine after an unintended hiatus.  Our present lifestyle (read: number of small children) doesn't always allow for early-morning workouts, but things were settling down after some late nights with the boys, so I took the opportunity to get back to my yoga.

About three quarters of the way through the Ashtanga yoga routine I do, there is a pose called Prasarita Padottanasana C [picture].  I can't get into the depth of position you'll see on that picture, but I've been making some really good progress toward loosening up my arms and shoulders, and even my hamstrings.

Well today was certainly no exception.  I got my arms locked into position and brought them over the back of my head and then heard an audible "POP!" sound.

Yoga Journal

Yesterday I was doing some yoga and had something unusual happen.  I'm pretty sure it was just another detox kind of thing, which has been common for me in the year that I have been doing yoga workouts.

I was in this pose (although I am not as limber as the person in the picture) when, I noticed a sensation in my upper-left nasal passage area.  It was like a dissipation of energy with a lot of tingling.  I had to stop and sit down because it was making me light-headed.  I think my body let go of something because I've been feeling great since and have noticed quite a bit more energy physically. 

I'm eager to see what tomorrow's work out is like.

To Yoga or Not To Yoga

This morning I woke up a little late.  Aidan wasn't awake yet (I'm on duty in the a.m. while Christine sleeps off the morning sickness) so I was hastily getting my morning water with lemon down to signal my digestive system that the day had begun.  Next stop was the yoga mat.

 

Before the water had even reached a boil, Aidan trumpeted his readiness for milk.  So much for that plan!

Treating Common Back Pain With Yoga

Since May 2005, I have been teaching myself yoga from home 2-3 times per week using a DVD, mostly.  My life of chronic back pain is coming to a close as a result and my body is getting definition and strength back that I never thought I'd have. 

Because yoga (particularly this style I'm learning, Ashtanga Yoga) heats the body from the inside out, it does a great job of cleansing and detoxing, too.  Sometimes this leads to a feeling just a little worse 12-24 hours after a practice session.  But this always clears and then I end up feeling tremendous physically, which of course helps a bit mentally as well, although I am learning yoga purely for the physical benfits. 

The fact that I can make so much progress physically with 40 mins of workout only 2-3 times per week makes yoga my ideal exercise.  As a father of 3 kids under 6 years of age, and one on the way, I don't have a lot of time to be out of the house at the gym right now.  So it's one of the most efficient uses of my workout minute, if you will.

I'll post more on this over time because I'd love for my friends to pick up on it as well and avail themselves of some of the same physical gains.

Link: Treating Common Back Pain With Yoga.

The Gall Of That Organ!

The liver gets its own category on this blog because it's so dang important.   I read somewhere once that if you were drowning, your liver would be the last organ to go.  Your brain would shut down first.  Not a pleasant thought, I know, but it underscores the liver's importance to that carbon-oxygen engine we so loosely call our body.