Stop Back Pain With Yoga

Our expert, Loren Fishman, MD, assistant clinical professor at Columbia University, has been studying yoga for 20 years. He's merged yoga with his clinical work at Manhattan Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation to ease his patients' back pain.

What causes back pain?

Back pain is a symptom, not a diagnosis. You have to know the cause before you can treat it because what helps one type of back pain can be bad for another. The most common type is musculoskeletal back pain. Yoga is the best cure for this.

How can yoga help?

Here's an example. The fascia in your lower back is connected to four muscles on each side. When the fascia pulls to one side or the other, it hurts; this is called flat-back syndrome. Yoga twists are very good for this because they stretch the muscles that are too tight.

What else can make your back hurt?

The second most common source of back pain is a herniated disk, which presses against nerve fibers as they exit the spine. Your foot may be numb, or pain may move down your leg. Gradually and gently extending your back by arching it creates a partial vacuum in the front of the vertebrae, realigning the disks. It will make it more comfortable, and actually may cure it up to 75% of the time.

Which backbends are best?

Start with locust pose, a mild back stretch. Then you can try a pose that creates a little more arch, like bridge, using your hands to support your lower back. Camel and wheel can also help, once your back is strong and supple enough.

What else can ease a herniated disk?

One thing you don't want to do is twist. If you twist with a herniated disk, you're inviting it to get bigger. Likewise for forward bends. If you do them at all, hinge at the hips and keep your back straight.

Are there other types of back pain yoga can help?

Yes. Spinal stenosis occurs when the nerve canal narrows, either because a disk bulges into it, or because your bones have thickened with age. Yoga is pretty good for both conditions.

Here forward bends can help. But avoid backbends. Studies have shown that if you arch your back, it can narrow the nerve canal by as much as 50%.

Other Ways Yoga Can Heal:

Got Arthritis? Try Yoga

Yoga To Build Your Bones