Yoga Beyond Belief: Insights to Awaken and Deepen Your Practice

the connecting muscles or organs. A central focus of yoga practice is to maintain or restore suppleness to the spine.
    Many yogis measure aging or youthfulness by the flexibility of the spine. I have often seen yogis walking through their classes and pushing on a student’s back to test flexibility. When they find an older person with a pliant, limber backbone, they might comment, “Very young man.” Conversely, when they see a young but stiff person, they might say, “And here is an old man!” In youth we tend to be flexible and softer, and as we age we tighten and harden—in more ways than just physically. In addition to the effects of gravity, the spine stiffens with age through lack of proper care and use, through injury, and through normal loss of circulation. Our vertebral disks have a venous blood supply until our early twenties. That explains why young people’s spines are so resilient and forgiving. By the early twenties the veins that supply the disks have slowly atrophied. Now essential circulation is only obtained through movements of the spine that squeeze and massage nutrients and waste products into and out of the disks. A sedentary person, or even an active person who does not move the entire spine, will slowly lose mobility. Here the saying “use it or lose it” applies clearly.
    Hatha yoga focuses a good deal of attention on keeping the spine healthy. The asanas twist or bend the back into every possible position—andeven a few of the impossible. These movements keep the disks healthy and pliable. They increase circulation and tone the spine. Many postures work to lengthen the spine and increase spaces between the vertebrae to release nerve impingements. Yoga students also work consciously to hold better posture and to sit erect, which keeps them more alert with more energy flowing to the brain. This generally healthy habit can be overemphasized too. I’ve seen students become obsessive about keeping the back straight to the point where they seem rigid, mentally and physically. The key is always balance. There is nothing wrong with lounging in a chair or relaxing your posture. When you practice yoga be aware of the effects on the spine. Keep the spine flexible, lengthened, toned, strong, and soft.

Symmetry and Alignment
    The muscular system supports and mobilizes the skeletal structure. Ideally, the muscle sets on both sides of the body would be developed equally to support the body uniformly. Balanced development is especially important along the spinal column where uneven muscle balance can result in misalignment and back problems. Our habits and patterns of movement, however, usually work against maintaining an ideal equilibrium. Most people are right-or left-handed, and most sports are one-sided or unbalanced. For example, golfers and baseball players use either right-or left-handed equipment. Runners often overly tighten the legs, and overwork the lumbar and knees. We usually favor one side of the body when we carry, lift, and exercise. We may also habitually and unconsciously lie, read, or support ourselves more predominantly on one side. In time this tendency overly develops certain muscle sets and creates imbalances in the carriage of the body.
    You can try a simple experiment to notice these patterns in your own body. Fold your arms on your chest; then reverse the way you crossed your arms and notice the awkward feeling you get from doingthis in an unfamiliar way. Clasp your hands; then change the way you interlocked your fingers and note the feeling. We have become
one-sided
.
    The body is also very forgiving and not limited to narrow parameters of alignment. If this were not so we would injure ourselves constantly by poor posture and uncontrolled movement. Asanas are very potent forms. With relatively short holds, of seconds or minutes, asanas can counteract hours of bad posture and misaligned carriage. During asana practice it is important to keep our poses within the range of
structural integrity
—movements that serve and enhance well-being. Learning proper alignment and asana kinesiology while maintaining a softer context that allows some latitude in the way the pose is held is an intelligent approach. Being too rigid about alignment sacrifices flow and grace.
    Hatha yoga practice constantly and consciously aims to restore and maintain symmetry and alignment. Practices are designed to work both sides of the body equally, with many postures involving oppositional dynamics.