Incorporating Yoga into Your Physical Therapy Routine This Fall

By: Marie Serrado

As the weather begins to cool down, it’s a great way to incorporate new ways to enhance your physical therapy routine. A great option to add to your routine is Yoga. Yoga is a mind-body practice that focuses on your physical, emotional and mental health. This practice uses movement, mindfulness,meditation, relaxation and breathing exercises to help you relax, relieve stress, and manage underlying conditions or symptoms by a healthcare provider. In this blog post, we’ll explore how you can integrate yoga into your physical therapy regimen this fall for maximum benefits.  

Different types of Yoga: 
Whether you are a beginner or expert, there are a few different styles of yoga that can suit your needs. The most common yoga style is the Vinyasa Yoga. This style of yoga is considered the most “athletic” style in yoga. It is also considered “Flow yoga” which can be confused for “power yoga”.  

1. 1. Vinyasa Yoga: characterized by stringing postures together so that you move from one to another, seamlessly, using breath.  
   2. Hatha Yoga: is an umbrella term for all physical postures of yoga.  
   3. Kundalini Yoga: This style is all about releasing the kundalini energy in your body said to be trapped, or coiled, in the lower spine.  
   4. Iyengar Yoga: focuses primarily on posture, body alignment and opening of the body. The benefits to this yoga style includes:
      • a. Increase Flexibility
      • b. Pain Relief
      • c. Improved Posture and Alignment
      • d. And more!
   5. Power Yoga: a fast-paced cardiovascular workout focused on building strength and flexibility in the body through high-impact yoga postures.(add more)  

Benefits of incorporating Yoga and Physical Therapy: 
Incorporating yoga into physical therapy can offer a range of benefits, as it combines the therapeutic approaches of both disciplines to promote overall well-being and healing. Some benefits include:  

1. 1. Strengthening: It helps with various muscle groups  
   2. Flexibility: yoga strengths help improve flexibility, which helps with regaining your range of motion and helps with the rehabilitation process.  
   3. Pain Management: Yoga is known to help you with mindfulness and understanding better relaxation techniques for everyday living.  

It’s important to note that the integration of yoga and physical therapy should be tailored to an individual’s specific needs and conditions, and should be done under the guidance of trained professionals in both fields.  

How Physical Therapy is incorporated?:  
It is strongly recommended to have a physical therapist involved if you are thinking about incorporating yoga into your routine. Due to the level of discipline, this helps ensure the therapist can help understand the wide-range of movements they can teach their patients. But before the patient can be introduced to yoga therapy, they need to be evaluated.  

Conclusion: 
By combining the therapeutic benefits of yoga with the targeted rehabilitation techniques of physical therapy, individuals can experience improved flexibility, strength, pain management, balance, and coordination. However, it’s essential that this combination is guided by qualified professionals who can tailor the practices to individual needs and conditions. 

References:  

1. 1. “The Many Benefits of Yoga: A Physical Therapist’s Perspective: Doctors of Physical Therapy.” Doctors of Physical Therapy | Get Better Faster, 19 Sept. 2023, doctorsofphysicaltherapy.com/manybenefitsofyoga/.  
   2. Medicine, Yoga. “Types of Yoga: A Guide to the Different Styles.” Yoga Medicine – Education – Experience – Results, 31 Oct. 2022, yogamedicine.com/guide-types-yoga-styles/.  
   3. Ulisse, Jason. “Yoga and Physical Therapy.” Specialized Orthopedic Physical Therapy, 13 Dec. 2018, soptri.com/yoga-physical-therapy/#:~:text=The%20benefits%20of%20yoga%20in,in%20managing%20chronic%20health%20conditions.