Functional yoga exercises for middle age pain

While yoga often conjures up images of lithe 20-somethings bouncing around in pretzel shapes or wearing head braces for days on end, it can be much simpler and more accessible — but still quite effective.

In her new book, Yoga Fix: Functional Movement for a Pain-Pain Body (DK Red, Jan. 21), Erin Motz offers possible moves to combat midlife aches and pains and help readers perform activities regular – and beloved hobby – with greater ease.

“You don’t need to be flexible enough to move your limbs,” writes Motz, who has more than 150,000 YouTube subscribers on her Bad Yogi channel. “You need to have a healthy range of motion that allows you to sit, bend, hang, reach, roll, push and pull.”

Here, she shares some exercises.

Help sciatica

Child’s pose

Let your torso fall between your knees, extending your arms gently forward while keeping your back down. Let your upper body go heavy. Hold for 1 minute

Z-sit down

Start with both knees resting on the floor, making 90 degree angles on the same side of the body. Hold for 30-45 seconds. Then, in a controlled movement with the heels resting on the floor, bring both knees to the floor on the other side; hold again Repeat 4 times.

Remove the shoulder joints

T-spine table rotations

Start on your hands and knees with your back straight and your head in line with your neck. Lead with the sternum, not the elbow, turn as far as you can comfortably go. Repeat 10 times on each side.

Back twist

Lie down and place your knees over your hips, then let them drop to the sides. Keep your head and chest facing up and open your opposite arm. Hold for 30 seconds and switch sides.

Raising the wing of the shrimp

From a lying position, extend your arms up in a “Y” shape, keeping your lower body on the ground. Exhale and lift your torso, reaching your toes up, while your feet and legs remain on the ground. Inhale and turn to start. Repeat 10 times.

Strengthen your core to increase stability and efficiency of movement

Diaphragmatic breathing

Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Allow your belly to rise as you inhale and visualize filling your lungs and sending the breath out in all directions. You want to feel the breath filling you from the bottom of your belly to your ribs and even around your back. As you exhale, your belly drops and your ribs return to a neutral position. Repeat several times

Dead bugs

Begin in a tabletop position on your back with your knees resting on your pelvis and your hands at your sides. Inhale and extend your right arm and left leg away from you. Exhale and return them to your starting position. Repeat on the other side. Do 10 times on each side.

Sphinx on summary board

Begin in a sphinx position with your elbows under your shoulders, your chest and crown of your head gently rising, and your eyes looking straight ahead. As you exhale, pull your abs and hips off the floor so you’re on your knees, like in a modified plank. Then slowly pull your knees up until you’re in a forearm plank. Repeat the steps dropping first the knees, then the hips, then the stomach and return to the sphinx. Repeat 8 times.

plank

Hold a plank for 30 to 60 seconds, keeping your spine neutral and your hips in line with your shoulders.

Excerpted and adapted from The Yoga Fix: Functional Movement for a Pain-Free Body by Erin Motz. Image copyright © 2024 by David Cummings. Reproduced by permission of DK Books.