- Yoga can be a high-intensity sport, but people with fibromyalgia should not participate at that level. Go for gentle stretching, and stop before you feel pain. Do not push yourself too hard. If a pose has an easy option, choose that one. Once you learn the poses and can do them without problems, you can move on to more difficult poses.
People with fibromyalgia are often stiff in the morning. Taking a warm bath before starting your yoga routine can loosen the muscles so you don't damage them. Or wait until late afternoon, before your evening meal, when your muscles have had a chance to warm and loosen.
Yoga should be practiced on an empty stomach or at least 2 hours after a meal. Wear loose clothing. Sweats are a good choice because they provide an additional layer of warmth, which is necessary for stiff muscles. - Yoga has hundreds of poses. Start with easy ones. It is best to take a beginning yoga class to learn the poses. Tell the instructor that you have fibromyalgia. He can help you modify the poses so that you don't hurt yourself.
Make sure your home routine includes standing, sitting and prone poses. Work all parts of the body. - People with fibromyalgia will often feel worse the next day if they overdo. This can trigger a flare, which will leave you unable to do much of anything. So start small. A routine that lasts for 5 or 10 minutes, once or twice a day, may work better than a 30-minute routine. If you are taking a class, don't be afraid to sit out any exercise that seems too strenuous. Your instructor will understand that you need to guard your energy carefully and may be willing to help you put together a short routine to do at home.
- It is not recommended that you learn yoga from a book. People with fibromyalgia can cause serious damage with extended pain from doing the poses improperly. Until you know how to do them correctly, you should only do poses you have been taught by a certified instructor.
There are many classes available at community centers, community colleges, fitness clubs and other venues. You can also ask your doctor to refer you to a private physical therapist who uses yoga and have her teach you a short routine. - Yoga consists of three major components that can benefit people with fibromyalgia. In addition to the poses, called asanas, there are breathing and meditation exercises that can be quite helpful. You can learn the breathing and meditation techniques from many sources without running the risk of hurting yourself. Make sure your yoga workout includes these components as well. You will most likely find that yoga breathing and meditation is helpful in many situations.
- Some poses that you can begin with are mountain pose, tree pose, downward dog, half spinal twist, cobra pose and corpse pose. Learn how to do these correctly before trying them at home. It is very easy for people with fibromyalgia to injure themselves if poses are done improperly.
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