The Health Of Your Spine Will Improve Your Game
Your spine is at its best when it isn't aggravated by the effects of gravity pulling you down as you work and play. A spine that isn't compressed can rotate more efficiently without disturbing the nerve roots that merge on either side of each vertebra, allowing you to move freely and without pain.
The spine is cushioned by "space-savers," called discs, which are comprised of a hard outer shell and a juicy inner part. After a good night's rest the discs expand and absorb from the nearby tissue's moisture, and nutrients become plumper to give the spine more spring.
In weight-bearing activities the juiciness of the discs gets reabsorbed by nearby tissues, lessening the space-saving and springiness of the spine. Poor posture and misalignment can further compromise the integrity of the discs and their space-saving capacities. Discs that are compromised can impinge on nerves, causing pain and putting a big crimp in your golf game.
Yoga provides a laboratory to develop awareness of one's position in space: deep breathing allows us to track sensations in the body and to fine-tune our body mechanics. When you are aware of the space between your head and tailbone, and know how to expand the space using your breath and "core" muscles, you can move more powerfully and with less effort.
Chiara Guerrieri began practicing yoga more than 20 years ago while searching for a way to heal her body from the pain and trauma of a car accident. Her practice of yoga deepened significantly in the 1990s, when a back injury led to study with Ana Forrest in order to strengthen her core to better support her spine.
