Yoga originated in ancient India as a series of physical, mental, and spiritual practices leading to inner peace. Today, yoga is widely practiced as a means of physical exercise and stress management.
Is Yoga Good For Gout?
Yoga is one of the best forms of exercise you can do for gout treatment, at all phases of the condition:
- Before gout attacks — yoga can help you maintain a healthy weight, manage stress naturally, and develop proper breathing habits for gout prevention.
- During gout attacks — yoga can help detoxify the kidneys for better uric acid excretion, and can enhance lymph flow at the joints to reduce painful gouty inflammation as a natural gout treatment.
- After gout attacks — yoga can help rebuild damaged tissues by stretching and strengthening the injured ligaments and tendons, and by improving blood flow for nutrient delivery to the joints.
Best Yoga Poses for Gout
For overall health, it is best to adopt a well-rounded yoga practice. However, each yoga pose brings unique benefits, and the following asanas are specifically helpful for gout:
- Twisting Poses — to compress the internal organs for detoxification and to increase blood flow.
- Seated Twisting Pose (Sanskrit: Marichyasana and Ardha Matsyendrasana)
- Reclined Twisting Pose (Sanskrit: Supta Matsyendrasana)
- Locust Pose (Sanskrit: salabhasana)
- Bow Pose (Sanskrit: Dhanurasana) is a more advanced version of the Locust.
- Seated Forward Bend (Sanskrit: Paschimottanasana)
- Happy Baby Pose (Sanskrit: Ananda Balasana)
- Legs-Up-The-Wall Pose (Sanskrit: Viparita Karani)
- Shoulder Stand Pose (Sanskrit: Sarvangasana)
- Back Toning Poses — to stimulate the kidneys for detoxification and improved blood flow.
- Back Stretching Poses — to increase blood flow to the lower back and kidney area.
- Inversion Poses —to let gravity help move blood and lymph out of the feet, and to bring relaxation.
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I’m happy to have you as my gout coach. I really needed the support. There are not too many of us out there and the ones that are prefer to just rely on drugs. That is why I felt so alone in my struggle. After reviewing your Session on movement I had an epiphany when you said how acidic a body can get after over exertion. Then I though to myself the last two times I felt gouty was after working out waaay too hard. But, I never actually made the correlation. I just thought lactic acid and uric acid were two different things and were not related in terms of gout. I have learned to moderate my workouts to about an hour and I just did yoga last night. I felt good and was able to sleep good last night. Usually I worked out hard for like 3-4 hours, totally red-lined it, then would feel super hungry after 4 hours. I would eat a small meal, then would try to ignore my hunger cravings for another few hours, then I would just pig out and stay up all night cuz my body can’t relax from all the adrenaline still in my body. In retrospect it seemed extremely counterintuitive when my goal was to be healthier and prevent gout. I am so happy to have you as my personal gout coach. Life is hard enough as is, and when you add gout on top of that it can get too damn overwhelming. It is hard enough to do it alone, but knowing I have you on my side gives me a great sigh of relief and more confidence that I can finally succeed. ~ Roland
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Avoiding Yoga Injuries
Like all forms of exercise, if not done properly, yoga can cause serious injury. I recommend studying yoga at home with a DVD, or with a local yoga instructor to minimize the risk of injury.
☆ Bottom Line: Practicing yoga 2-3 times per week is an excellent form of gentle exercise that helps manage gout!
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