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| A year ago, I hurt my back and ended up in bed for 4-5 days, on Percocet, etc. There was no "incident" that hurt my back. The Orthopedic surgeon I saw said there's nothing wrong from a spine/joint perspective; it's all muscular. He also said it's very common that people who sit at a desk/travel for work have a weak core and that this was the primary cause of the problem. After a lot of pain and 2 months in physical therapy, I was good to go.
After physical therapy, I started Bikram and loved it because it fit well with my "Type A" motivations. I was going 4-5 times per week and loving it, getting even more flexible, maintaining my weight easier, etc. At one point, I also added a Vinyasa Flow class a couple times per week. All during this time, my lower back would feel kind of "squishy" after a Bikram class and I chalked it up to being more flexible. I worked thru the pain and think I just got used to it being there. In August, the back problem flared up again the day after a Bikram class and I again ended up in bed, on Percocet and muscle relaxers, etc. The doc said it's common for a reoccurence and that yoga is definitely the right thing to do. I literally couldn't bend at all for a couple of weeks and stayed away from yoga. Then I started back with the Vinyasa Flow classes and the teacher made lots of adjustments for my back. The Bikram owner kept telling me that I just needed to get right back into it as Bikram is the 'best thing" for a back problem. That kind of left a bad taste in my mouth because even I know there are lots of different kinds of back problems, and I am pretty sure she's not trained in that way but whatever.
So I'm trying to get back into my old routine. I've been back to the Vinayasa class and it's going great. I've been back to 2 Bikram classes and I feel awful afterwards and the next day (and this is after only doing 1 set of each asana rather than 2). My lower back just plain hurts. I'm activating my core muscles, going slow, being careful, etc. My question is, is it possible that Bikram is just not "good" for me and I'd be better off doing another method of yoga? Or should I just "work thru" the pain and suck it up? What has been your experience with back pain and Bikram?
Thanks!
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| i had a similar experience with bikram yoga...leaving classes in a fair amount of pain and wondering if it was part of the process or causing more damage.
it is quite possible that you are going to deep into poses and are not aware of the compression you are putting on the nerves. the heat can make it difficult to feel sometimes.
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i had a lot of injuries going into yoga and while i did get a lot of benefit from both bikram and vinyasa styles it wasn't until i started attending iyengar yoga classes that things really turned a corner.
the focus is medically precise, the teachers are absurdly well trained and it is highly unlikely you will be thrown into any deep backbends in a beginning level class.
seriously they teach in a level of detail unheard of in most other styles.
good luck.
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| DCarter23103 - 2010-10-20 6:41 AM
My question is, is it possible that Bikram is just not "good" for me and I'd be better off doing another method of yoga? Or should I just "work thru" the pain and suck it up? What has been your experience with back pain and Bikram?
Thanks!
Hi Denise,
If you have back pain, you should NOT work through the pain. You need to stretch and strengthen your muscles, but you do not want to tear them or further injure them. Several of the Bikram poses are not so good for lower back problems for some people and those poses, especially with the disorienting factor of the heat, can exacerbate lower back injuries instead of helping them. If you feel pain, you are hurting yourself. If you feel soreness (except in or near your joints) you are probably building muscle. Do another style of yoga for a while until your injury recovers. Then try Bikram and see what happens. Bikram may be the wrong thing for you at this time, or it may just be the wrong thing for your unique mind/body.
You do not get extra points for pain, you only become a crippled old person. Even though some discomfort is necessary for growth of any kind, pleasure is your body telling you to continue doing something and pain is your body telling you to stop. Listen.
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New User
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| Dhanurasana and JimG,
Thank you for your responses. I was feeling very much in "self pity mode" due to my inability to feel good while doing something I very much enjoy. My head is a little clearer since I wrote this post and I've given the situation more thought. The pain in my lower back is definitely not the pain one feels when building muscle. I have that pain in other parts of my body and actually look forward to that kind of discomfort (it makes me feel like I've accomplished something!). I probably am going too deeply in the poses without knowing it. My general make-up is one where I push myself to try an excel in everything and, unfortunately, going deeper does not always equal excellence!  I tend to judge my "progress" in how far I can go in a pose.
I'm really leaning towards stopping Bikram for the foreseeable future and focusing on the Vinyasa class (the teacher is much more focused on alignment and the individual needs of the students) and then adding other forms of cardio to my exercise routine. I like the idea of Iyengar, although I am not sure where I would find a teacher in my city. I'm also really disturbed by the "just come to class this yoga is the best thing for the back" that many of the Bikram teachers seem to espouse (not just here but anywhere I see a discussion on Bikram). Don't get me wrong---I LOVE Bikram yoga---but I am really wondering if it is right for me. |
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Extreme Veteran
Posts: 399
 
Location: Oregon | Carter, I like and agree with much of the Bikram philosophy. But, I've also come to disagree on a few points. One, is that I don't think all the poses are great for beginners. And the terminology, in a few places I disagree with such as "lock the knee," rather than engage the muscle, or "hurt like hell".
As someone who has lower back issues, I don't think the postures are good at all, such as Standing Head to Knee and Balancing Stick. I have had to be verrrry careful over the years to tune out the push, push, push and just accept less. I love Half Moon, but simply don't push back very hard any more.
Now? I can go and get a good workout in. But after I figured out it wasn't necessaryily the best thing for my body to keep pushing myself that hard, it took me another 2 years to get to the place where I didn't respond to the Bikram mentality. |
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| Andre,
I really appreciate your comments. As someone who has always "pushed," it's been hard for me to back off (particularly in Half Moon, which I also love). I do think the dialog can be misleading (as you illustrated--"lock the knee" rather than engaging the muscle). I'm sure that part of my problem is my own and I just need to be more aware of what my body needs rather than blindly following the dialog. Standing Head to Knee and Balancing Stick are 2 postures that I feel in my lower back. I've also been skipping out on the full expression of the beginner level Camel the last couple of times I've attended class.
I know this is a process and I'll work my way through it. It's just so frustrating!
Denise |
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| The Bikram poses that are problematic for those with lower back issues are:
Back bend part of Half Moon (Ardha-Chandrasana)
Standing head to knee (Dandayamana-Janushirasana)
Fixed Firm (Supta-Vajrasana)
Camel (Utrasana)
Also potentially problematic for some people:
Head to Knee (Janushirasana)
Stretching Pose (Paschimotthanasana)
Sit up
My personal opinion is that they should be omitted until the student's injury has healed and then be approached very carefully with great attention to good alignment and body mechanics, which are not always taught very well in Bikram classes.
The use of force in yoga as with most things in life usually leads to unwanted outcomes. A combination of focus (awareness) and relaxation usually works much better. If you want to go deeper into a pose, get there with relaxation. On your inhale, extend. On your exhale, relax deeper into the pose.
All backbends should be done without hinging, and therefore compressing the lower back. You need to extend the lower back and lift the ribs. Forward bends should be done bending from the hips, not the lower back. If you do Standing head to knee bending from the back instead of the hips and then grab your foot and pull, you are first compressing your lower back and then putting a huge amount of force on that compressed lower back. If you are twisting your hips to straighten your leg, you are further intensifying the stress on that side of your lower back.
The above mentioned poses put a lot of stress on the lower back even if performed correctly. If you already have a weak muscle due to injury, you will only keep injuring that muscle. Gentle movement helps an injury heal. Stress will only re-injure it until you end up with a chronic problem.
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 5098
Location: Somewhere in the Mountains of Western NC | Hi Denise,
I agree with everything said here and don't want to regurgitate anything already said. One thing I will add, one of the best things I ever did for my yoga practice was to do other asana's that build up and restore the lower back muscles. You can pretty much go to any Anusara or Iyengar class and get a basic foundation for a sequence. After you learn this - well, tailor it to your practice by eliminating Bikram altogether - at first, then slowly, with a lot of alignment skills, add Bikram back to your routine and see what happens. One thing I dare say is that I will NEVER go to a Bikram studio, I do my practice at home, so that I can pay attention to MY body without someone pushing me into postures that I KNOW are going to injure me. I love the Bikram sequence, it has great benefits, however, you get to a point where you can only do this over and over for so long. I call this muscle fatique, because it is repetition and not healthy for muscles to do the same movement over and over again - and I'm sorry, but the alignment that is discussed in Bikram is not enough. But at the same time, Bikram is good, but body's do change over time and other issues come up that Bikram doesn't address very well. Some good examples of postures (not limited to) that I feel are very important to the lower back are several Downward Dogs in a yoga session, along with Sun Salutations - modified, a modified Pigeon pose, more Cobra style poses, all Warriors, Seated forward bends, cat/cows, so many to list here, but you get the jist of it I hope.
I speak from my personal experience here and FYI, I learned Bikram from an instructor who is certified but also ventured out herself and is a wonderful teacher, who really focuses on alignment which is the most important aspect of yoga.
The other day I opted out of Bikram just because my body was telling me NO NO NO, don't do this, my head started hurting, I felt terrible...instead I did a 2 hour regular yoga session, and felt GREAT!! This is called listening to your body. It doesn't mean I'll never do Bikram, it just means that this is what I needed now and trust me, the body has a memory, |
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New User
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| Jim and Cindy,
Thanks so much for your replies. All of the poses you mentioned, Jim, I had problems with the other day, with the exception of fixed firm. That's only because I didn't even attempt to go back. Also the sit up, which I did by going ot the side instead of straight up. And even when I activate my core muscles, my back still hurt after class. Cindy, I like what you said about listening to your body. In the Vinyasa class I go to, we do a lot of down dogs, Sun Salutations, cat/cows, Warriors, etc and those don't give me any problems with my back. I am also thinking of (when I'm ready to go back into more of the Bikram sequences) doing a home practice as well. I've got marerials that will help me do that but am definitely not ready yet.
Thank you both, again, for your responses!
Denise |
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Expert Yogi
Posts: 5098
Location: Somewhere in the Mountains of Western NC | Hey Denise,
Another thing you can do is mix up the practice too. Like you can add in the DownDogs and the other warriors to the Bikram sequence. Pick postures to throw in that compliment each other, rather than doing it randomly. That is my favorite practice day and it feels so much healthier. |
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| Hey all,
Here I am, late to the party, but let me throw in my 2 cents.
I believe that the Bikram series is great for back pain (that's why I'm a full time teacher - otherwise, why would I bother?) but you've gotta be careful with how you USE the series. Especially dealing with injury, you cannot do the Type A "push, push, push" thing through every posture. Yes, there are times when the general instruction is to "push, push, push," but there are also times when we tell you to "take it easy," and you have to learn the difference. You also have to learn that sometimes the "push, push, push" just does NOT apply to you!
I've been taught that it's not good to be aggressive in your practice. Because Bikram yoga really does appeal to the Type A personality, as you mentioned, we sometimes get students who use the yoga as a weapon and push themselves to the point of injury. This is really NOT what the series was designed to do!
I've linked to this article before, but there is a great article here...
http://www.bikramyoga.com/BikramYoga/Herniated_Discs.php
... that goes through the Do's and Don'ts of practicing with back pain, posture by posture. It focuses on herniated discs, but the principles are pretty general.
There are definitely things you need to be careful of if you're dealing with back pain. For example, NO sit-ups if your pain is acute. (I almost always mention this during my class.) Take it easy on standing head to knee, too, and do not grab your knee, whatever you do! The belly-down spine strengthening postures are generally GREAT for back problems.
Of course, you can always just go to some other yoga class, or practice at home, or just do whatever WORKS! Seriously - if it works, it's right!! But if you wanna try Bikram again, these are the things that I'd suggest you think about. |
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Back issues/need advice. Sorry this is long.
