Seeing a yoga mat strapped to someone’s back has become as common as seeing a cup of coffee in someone’s hand. But as more Americans twist themselves into yoga poses, some are winding up with unexpected injuries.
About 16 million Americans reported practicing yoga in 2008 compared to 13 million in 2006, according to a survey by Yoga Journal. The Consumer Product Safety Commission reported this month that about 3,300 people were treated in emergency rooms with yoga-related injuries in 2011.
“I’ve been injured so many times,” University yoga instructor Michele Bulgatz@@http://uoregon.edu/findpeople/person/Michele*Bulgatz@@ said. “But I’ve also injured myself bending over, wrestling with my son and playing in the park.”
Bulgatz, who is a highly certified yoga instructor, said it’s normal to see more yoga-related injuries because of yoga’s increased popularity. With any physical activity, she explained, there’s always a chance for injury.
“Is yoga good for everybody? Absolutely. Is every yoga move good for everybody? Absolutely not,” she said.
But realizing that yoga, which is commonly practiced to relieve stress and increase flexibility, can cause injury may come as a surprise. The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons listed strain in the neck and over-stretching the back, shoulders, legs and knees as the most common yoga injuries.@@not a whole lot else you can do, yeah?@@
And on campus, most yoga injuries are a result of students overexerting themselves.
“A lot of people compete,” said Greg Smith,@@http://uoregon.edu/findpeople/person/Greg*Smith@@ coordinator of mind and body classes at the University. “If you’re in a class with 40 people and you see someone doing a deep pose, you may try that pose,” he said.
Smith said he evaluates instructors once every term to make sure instructors work to teach students proper alignment and not be too ambitious.
University yoga instructor Marianne Farrington@@http://uoregon.edu/findpeople/person/Marianne*Farrington@@ emphasizes safety and body alignment in her classes. But in traditional yoga, she explained, modifications @@modifications?@@are not offered, and proper form is not the focus — it’s all about mind and body connection.
“I’ve taken some pure yoga classes where there is not a lot of attention to form,” she said. “It’s more about the spiritual connection.”
Farrington said sometimes instructors do not walk around to help students or offer modifications.
“People could be trashing their knees, and the instructor would not know it,” she said.
Although injuries typically occur as a result of advanced poses such as shoulder stands and headstands, both Farrington and Bulgatz agree that a qualified instructor is key to preventing injury. Bulgatz explained that Yoga Alliance, a national yoga organization, set a 200-hour minimum teaching experience for certification — but not all teachers become certified through the Alliance’s standards.
“Anyone can teach, and it’s not regulated,” she said.