Lower Back Pain Relief

Source: https://myyogateacher.com/articles/yoga-poses-for-lower-back-pain

Lower Back Pain: Causes and How Yoga Helps

You might think your lower back pain is popping up out of nowhere, but in reality, it’s often the result of everyday habits that add up over time. Some of the most common causes include:

• Poor posture from long hours hunched over a desk
• Weak core muscles that fail to stabilize the spine
• Tight hip flexors from prolonged sitting
• Sudden movements or lifting heavy objects without proper alignment
• Chronic stress and anxiety, which can cause physical tension in the back
• Age-related changes like spinal degeneration, disc issues, or arthritis

While many solutions offer temporary relief, yoga addresses these causes with a comprehensive, body-and-mind approach. Here’s how it helps:

1. Strengthens Core Muscles: A strong core is crucial to support the spine and prevent back pain. Poses like Bridge and Locust engage the abdominal and spinal stabilizers, helping you brace the lower back.
2. Improves Flexibility: Tight hamstrings and hip flexors can tilt the pelvis out of alignment, increasing pressure on the lower back. Forward bends in yoga focus on flexibility, helping release these areas and reducing strain on the spine.
3. Enhances Posture: Practicing yoga improves your awareness of how you hold and move your body, making it easier to catch and correct poor posture habits before they cause harm.
4. Reduces Stress: Chronic stress can lead to persistent muscle tension and increase the perception of pain. Breathwork and mindfulness practices in yoga activate the parasympathetic nervous system, promoting deep relaxation for the mind and body.