My connection to yoga began with a simple regular class I took at a local gym.
It was unlike anything I had ever experienced and while not a strict form of yoga in its movements and progressions, it was something I looked forward to every Friday morning.
Getting an opportunity to move in a fluid way that challenged both my mental and physical being was a gift.
That opportunity made me think a little more about ways that yoga and acupuncture weave a web of physical, mental and emotional well being in all those that seek a regular practice and treatment.
Now it might seem like a natural fit for an acupuncturist to delve deeper into the mysteries of yoga considering the mystical nature of yoga practice in general.
While the unexplainable mental and emotional benefits of both these ancient therapies are undeniable there also concrete physical benefits.
These have to do primarily with the musculoskeletal system and the way to muscles interact with each other and surrounding structures in the body.
Yoga, through stretching exercises and ever deepening poses, works to remove tension from the body.
The tension is housed primarily in the muscles and the coating that surrounds them just below the surface of the body.
This coating is called fascia and it forms an intricate web around all structures in the body.
This web is connected in such a way that a constant area of tension in one region can pull on another.
If you've ever experienced a deep yoga pose, you might be familiar with how a simple stretch around the ankles can seemingly be felt all the way up into the back of the skull.
In addition to the area of tension, the pressure created by this knot of tissue can impede blood flow, nerve signal activation and lymph drainage making it tough for your body to balance itself properly and remove wastes effectively.
Another consideration is that muscles often act as paired units.
For example, the biceps opposes the triceps and each have opposing functions.
If one of these muscles is in a constant state of contraction or tension, then the other muscle is constantly flaccid or relaxed.
This sets up a problem when the oft relaxed and weakened muscle tries to contract and little strength is achieved.
Yoga does a great job of stretching these tense muscles, allowing them to relax and promoting full contraction of the opposing muscles.
This leads to pure physical balance and wellness.
Acupuncture works to remove the muscle tension through manipulation using needles or other Oriental medicine techniques like gua sha, tuina massage or cupping.
Needles are often inserted into painful areas on the body called "ashi points" that may not necessarily correspond to the traditional points along the channels.
Needling in this way is often called dry needling and when performed correctly the acupuncturist is able to loosen up the muscle fibers and fascia around this particular area to bring about a relaxation response.
This relaxation may then travel along the fascia or the channels in a domino effect.
The presence and power of fascia is one of the scientific explanations for the reason why needling at the extremities can affect areas further up the body.
Gua sha, a type of scraping treatment using a blunt object and ointment, can dramatically loosen muscles and increase blood flow to areas of tension as well.
The proper motion of muscles achieved through the use of acupuncture or other techniques can dramatically improve physical health.
So now that you've seen the way that yoga and acupuncture can affect the body separately, imagine the benefits offered by a commitment to both every week.
A number of patients I have either practice yoga during the week when they get treatment and some even take a yoga class before having an acupuncture treatment.
Talk about a great start or end to your day.
So as you can see, yoga and acupuncture make a great tandem and rely on many of the same principles to help you achieve peak physical and mental wellness.