Yoga Teacher Training Forum

Have you ever had a student ask, "Can therapeutic yoga help stop my shoulder pain?" Firstly, you want to know the real cause of pain. Why? How can yoga teachers help anyone if they don't stop the cause of shoulder pain?

The amount of physical activity that one participates in on a daily basis can lead to back and shoulder injuries. The shoulders often get little attention during regular exercise and weight lifting. This means lack of proper warm ups and taking shoulder functions for granted with little holistic maintenance. This can lead to shoulders that are not as strong as other parts of the body. People who are hunched over a computer all day are in for potential shoulder problems.

Pain that people experience in the shoulders is typically a sign of stress being more than they can handle. Sitting for long hours in the office with no physical activity except typing and moving a mouse can cause nerve pinches, contracted muscles and muscle spasms. If constant shoulder pain is an issue, then a solution is needed to help make them for holistic maintenance purposes. This is when a variety of yoga exercises will be beneficial. Yoga asana sequences are a series of exercises providing gentle yoga therapy using poses that target specific parts of the body. A competent yoga instructor can help design a maintenance program for office workers or anyone who spends long hours without getting proper exercise for muscular balance, flexibility and complete health.

Yoga training is a way to ease some of the pain felt in the shoulders. Certain exercises will also help to increase a person's awareness of the work the work the shoulders do each day. A stress that is being applied to a person's shoulders occurs every time daily activities occur. This includes simple lifting and even typing on a keyboard.

Daily yoga asana exercises will allow people to become aware of the range of motion for the shoulders. Most will be on the road to healing their shoulder pain by practicing good alignment. This can be done using motions to engage and strengthen the muscles of the rotator cuff. A good exercise to practice alignment of the shoulders is standing in Tadasana. Drawing the shoulder blades down while moving the head in slow linear movements can open up the chest and relax the shoulders.

One of the best exercises for the shoulders is the Cat Pose or the Cat-Cow. This gentle exercise aids the shoulder by providing gentle stretching and massage. Performing this exercise various times of the day will help to strengthen abdominal and back muscles.

Another yoga pose to use as a remedy for shoulder pain is the Downward Dog. The best option is to do this pose right after the Cat Pose. These two poses will gently stretch the entire body. This will result in an elimination of stress on the shoulders and other parts of the body.

A good yoga pose for shoulder pain is the Cobra Pose. This exercise helps to strengthen the shoulders while alleviating paint. Performing this pose regularly will help people improve shoulder strength so they are better able to endure various loads and stresses.