The past year I slacked off and didn’t do really any yoga. Now I find myself making all kinds of old man groans, sighs and noises when I bend over to pick something up, get up out of a car, etc. Does anyone have experience with yoga curing this demoralizing phenomena? I’m 51 - is it just my fate?
Edit: Guess what. I just re-started. I have a lot of progress to make, but step one is done. Thanks everyone for giving me the boost I needed. ❤️
The issue is being sedentary.
Go back to doing regular exercise.
Oh for goodness sakes, my dude. I didn’t start yoga until I was 48. I’m 62 and in the best shape of my life.
Don’t forget to add some high intensity cardio and resistance training too.
Not even close to too late. Start low, go slow, gradually add. Have rest days. Just start!
This gives me hope! I haven’t done yoga consistently in about 11 years, and in my forties now. I think I miss it tbh.
It’s not a yoga problem. If you don’t use your body, it starts to fall apart. Get out there and move.
Sheesh, I thought you were going to say you’re 81.
I’m 51. If you don’t move it, you hear it. 😂 I actually work out because of this and I’d say of the workouts I do, yoga is best for this.
That said, I was just telling my family that I can deceive my muscles — if I work them, they still behave like they did when I was 20 — but I can’t deceive my 51yo joints.
I know any yoga isn’t going to be a magic fix for anything, but have you by chance tried yin at all? It can help strengthen connective tissues including joint spaces
I'm having this same problem. Used to do yoga twice a day and was pretty advanced, then went through some major life changes (including a few injuries) that threw me off track. Trying to get back into a yoga practice has been hard because I struggle to shift my mindset and accept that I'm currently no longer as flexible as I once was.
But yoga is about meeting yourself where you're at, and I've seen people bounce back from extraordinary physical challenges to develop a yoga practice and achieve flexibility in spite of age, injuries, etc. So, if they can do it, I know I can, too.
This video (and others on the same channel) has helped me set a small, manageable, realistic daily yoga/stretching goal for myself: https://youtu.be/uKYZIC-67gY?si=nPZggZ1uR92GQ8pg
Love this link. Thanks for sharing!
I’m 54 and got my flexibility back in no time at all. I can stretch and bend better than most twenty year olds because I practiced dance during my earlier years. When I stop moving my body starts to get aches and pains back, so I just keep moving. Yoga once or twice a week and two cardio fitness workouts such as Step or Fight classes and I feel in my twenties again.
The Buddhist philosophy regarding this phenomenon is to simply begin again. Enjoy the journey!
Self love is important. For me, it is a spiritual duty to maintain one's body. Every single day. For the rest of your life.
Raising your spirit is no different than raising a child. You can't take a day off. It has to be fed and maintained on a daily basis. The consequences of not doing so will be quick to find you...
I started yoga at 58 to help me recover from a herniated disk. I have seen remarkable improvement in all aspects of my life.
Now, I have to be frank about those noises. I'm 61. I do long hikes in the mountains and compete in long trail races. I haven't finished lower than second place in my age group all year, and I'm faster than most people a lot younger than me. Yoga has improved my posture and flexibility beyond what I ever imagined. But ... I still make noises when I bend over to pick something up or get out of my car after a long drive. I have arthritis in my spine that's consistent with what's expected of someone my age, and the rest of my body isn't so young. I embrace those noises.
Thank you for your honesty! I restarted my yoga practice this AM anyway. Embracing the noises will be my plan B.
start slow and find the poses that help not hurt is a good place to start after talking with physician first (if you can) would be my 2 cents.
I have had severe back and hand injury thus speaking from that. Good luck OP.
Go listen to the song "1000 Doves" by Lady Gaga. Then imagine it's your body singing to you. Your body wants so badly to live and do things for you and it just needs to be cared for and it will work so hard for you!
There are so many people older than you who have done amazing things! Idk if this is relevant yet in your early 50s but as you age, your ligaments take longer to heal and strengthen. So your muscles can actually get stronger at a pace that is faster than your ligaments which can put you at risk of injury, so just be sure you're giving yourself recovery time and listening to your body and joints (but ofc that is advice for anyone at any age!)
I'm 31 but I fractured my back as a kid. If I don't do yoga my back will get like stuck... Anyway do yoga. It does cure things.
Go back! The muscle memory is there. Wake up what's been asleep, and you'll feel it.
I’m 68 and feel amazing because of the yoga. Gotta keep at it or you’ll just be an old man for a long time!
I’d say do more yoga. I’m 53 and practice regularly. I haven’t needed chiropractic or massage in a couple of years now, and I needed them a lot before I had a regular practice.
That has also been my experience. Yoga keeps me from seeing my massage therapist.
I'm 32 and have been practicing for 9ish years. My body makes the most sound in the room more often than not. I'm fairly advanced, but I have joint and inflammation issues so it'll likely always be a part of my practice.
Add movement throughout your day, lubricate and floss your joints, try red light therapy, make time for a warm up before practice or better yet, at the start of each day whether you intend to practice or not. This will also help you maintain any fluidity you gain from resuming practice.
The progress is showing up for yourself, so you're doing great. And contrary to what it may seem like, it is totally okay to not practice and meditate every day for your whole yoga journey. Taking a break from yoga (whether days, months or years) just means your body/soul needed some rest and you can start again at any time. Your practice is ready to invite you back whenever you're ready so don't let self-imposed embarrassment or restrictions stop you from flourishing.
Hey! I totally get what you're feeling. I've had similar issues when I fell off the yoga wagon for a while. The good news is, yoga can really help with those aches and stiffness. Just starting again is a great first step, so kudos for that! The hardest part is coming back and the initial reuniting time, but stick with it, and you'll likely start feeling more flexible and less creaky in no time. Keep it up, and best of luck!
Started regular yoga at 67; now 70 and vastly more flexible. Yoga (and associated flexibility) is literally the only domain where things are improving, lol.
I’m 70. Regularly ride my bike 40 miles at 15mph, Just helped my 40ish plumber lift a clawfoot iron tub into place. My job at 68 required me to carry 40 lb boxes up a 10 ft ladder and transfer them to shelves. I kayak, downhill ski, pretty much do anything I want as well as people 1/2 my age. I owe my enjoyment of these years to 30 years of yoga. It’s never too late to start, or restart. Keep it up, it works! Now, all that said, do I make old man sounds? Yes, yes I do.
I’m 66. I’ve been systematically active, including yoga, for six months. This is the best I’ve felt in 20 years. Get up, get moving, the future is wonderful.
Not your fate. Go back to yoga.