by Nina
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| Bouquet of Mixed Flowers by Henri Matisse |
When I first started practicing yoga at home way, way back in the previous century, I really was just practicing poses. That is, I didn’t think about doing sequences; I was just focused on improving my ability at doing certain poses, like Handstand, Headstand, and Upward Bow pose. So I tended to do the same poses every day—the ones I was working on—gradually adding in some warm up and cool down poses as my sequence seemed organically to grow in length. It wasn’t until I started working with Rodney Yee and really started learning about sequencing that I started doing different types of practices on different days so I could cycle through the main categories of poses: backbends, forward bends, twists, inversions, etc. So I understand the how natural it is to think that doing the same practice every day would be the easiest way to have a home practice. And certainly getting started with the habit of practicing —no matter what you’re practicing—is a wonderful idea.
But I’m here today to tell you that in the long run doing the same sequence every day is not the best idea. Here’s why:
- Doing the same poses in the same order every single day means you run the risk of repetitive stress injuries. That’s not yoga’s fault; it’s just the nature of the human body. Any joint is vulnerable if you over use it. For example, doing too many standing forward bends can cause back strain, just as too much gardening can.
- You’ll be missing out on yoga’s other benefits. It’s like eating the same thing every day—even if its healthy food you’ll still be missing out on some of your important nutrients. For example, if the only sequence you do is an active one, you’ll be missing out on the many benefits provided by restorative or quieting sequencing. Or, if the only balance pose you do throughout the week is Tree pose, you’ll miss out on challenging your balance in other important ways.
- Mixing it up keeps you from getting into a rut, which can lead to getting bored with your practice. Moving out of your comfort zone in your practice is the best way to keep your mind stimulated (good for brain health!), and to learn something about your habits and thought patterns while you’re at it.
So if you’re not already doing varying your home practice, now is a good time to start mixing it up! If you’re stuck for ideas, you can find lots of new sequences on our blog (search under “Featured Sequence”), as well as in various yoga books and yoga videos. And if you want to change up some of your current sequences, see Stuck in Rut for some simple ways to do this.
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As much as I agree with moving out of your comfort zone and enjoying a variety of enriching yoga forms, I strongly disagree with the notion of repetitive stress injury. I don't think you run the risk of RSI from the same yoga sequence anymore than walking every day, lifting one's arms to eat, or coming from standing from sitting. It's just the number of repetitions and amount of stress (weight bearing) that one needs to consider. Listen to the body!
I'm sorry but I'm afraid I can't agree with you that every yoga sequence is as safe as walking. Not all movements are equally safe to do on a daily basis. For example, it is well known that poses that combine external rotation with a forward bend (such as Janu Sirsasana and Trikonasana) cause sacroiliac joint injuries (I myself had this problem and know many others who also did). The SI joint injuries are very common in dancers and yoga practitioners but rare in the general population. Baxter, who is an MD, sees many other types of common injuries resulting from over practicing of certain poses.
Generally our bodies evolved to walk long distances for hunting and gathering. They did not necessarily evolve to do every other type of movement, particularly asymmetrical movements (Triangle Pose, Side Plank Pose, etc.) on an everyday basis.