Yoga Twists, fascia, DNA, the diaphragm

Twists in yoga set up a rotation in the body by using a combination of opposing forces. They are hugely beneficial for cleansing the body of toxins and for flushing blood through the organs. The spine can roughly be divided into three parts, the neck, thorax (rib cage) and the lumbar (lower back).
The vertebrae in the rib cage are designed to rotate. The vertebrae in the lumbar are designed to flex and extend. The vertebrae in the neck are designed to do both.

The junction between the ribs and the lumbar is the most mobile part of the mid back. That is where most twists gain their maximum leverage. That junction (T12 / L1) lies right behind the diaphragm and between the kidneys. The diaphragm covers the stomach, important nerves to the abdomen, the gall bladder, liver, the kidneys, the spleen and a collection vessel for lymph glands. The major organs like the liver, kidneys and spleen act as a huge reservoir for blood.

Imagine when you are doing a twist that you are doing a liver squeeze, or that you are bringing your kidneys round or lifting them. It is like squeezing a sponge over the bath and filling it again with fresh water. Healthy kidneys for instance, can pump 1.2 litres of blood in a minute. You might notice after a good yoga session that your urine is darker or more in volume. That is the flushing action of the twists.

There is however a much wider benefit to twisting. Have you ever carefully examined the fibres of a rope?
Not only the main strands are twisting but also the fibres within the strands. A twisted rope is stronger than the individual fibres. The design of the human body uses the same principles to increase strength. Let me give some examples. Your pectoral muscles run from the where the first six ribs anchor to the sternum into the front of the top of the arm bone (the humerus). The insertion lies right next to the insertion of latissimus dorsi and teres major. Both pectoralis major and latissimus dorsi insert into a very small area by twisting the fibres at the last minute. That hugely increases the strength of the muscles as a whole. Another example is the achilles tendon. The achilles connects the calf muscles, gastrocnemius and soleus into the heel bone (the calcaneus). If you examine the fibres closely you find that they are twisted like a rope. Another example is the uterus. When contractions start how does the uterus force the baby down into the small pelvis through the cervix? First of all it sets up a battering ram known as "the waters". They open the cervix and cushion the head. If a well intentioned obstetrician breaks the waters too soon the head becomes the battering ram. The muscles of the uterus itself are twisted so that when the contract the head is forced downwards taking the body with it.

Finally let's think on a microscopic scale. Looking at the structure of DNA under an electron microscope you will see a double coiled helix structure. The human body itself is built on a foundation of a twisted rope. Even water going down a plughole forms a vortex or twisting action. I have always wanted to test which way the water goes down the plughole in the Southern hemisphere compared to the Northern hemisphere. As a boy I used to stir the bath the opposite way to see if I could persuade the whirlpool to twist the other way. I used to canoe with a friend down the Serpents Tail at Llangollen in North Wales. Once when I was following him he disappeared down a hole. He said later that he saw his kayak twisting down the whirlpool ahead of him. It is a wonder that we reached adulthood.

By setting up twists in yoga using opposing forces you increase the strength of individual muscles.
I use this principle when I am treating someone with an injury, the shoulder for instance. Sometimes the fascia constricts around the muscles and squeezes them into a tight space. They cannot fully stretch. By raising the arm and twisting you can unwind the fascia. You could use that principle in a class. Don't ask the class to simply raise an arm in Utthita Parsvakonasana for example. Ask them to swing the arm in front of the body then upwards. It is much easier because it unwinds the fascia in the shoulder.

Muscle Spasm

Why do muscles sometimes go into spasm? There are lots of reasons:

Muscles are tiny spindles linked together by proteins that slide over each other. They are enclosed in a bag or sheath called fascia. It is the whitish elastic stuff that you see if you carve a leg or shoulder of lamb.
Muscles spindles need a nerve supply and nutrition. The nerve endings form a kind of flower spray arrangement into the muscles. Nutrition is supplied by good blow flow bringing glucose, sodium, potassium, magnesium, oxygen and water. There are tiny power stations called mitochondria inside the cells of the muscles. The power stations need energy. Enzymes convert nutrition into energy. Co enzyme Q 10 is one of the key enzymes that enable energy production. The unit or currency of energy transfer is ATP or adenosine -5- triphospate.

Muscle fatigue is caused by:
Poor circulation or blood flow
Overusing muscles that you are not used to using
Medications that affect the production of Co enzyme Q 10
Dehydration and low electrolyte levels
Poor breathing or anything that prevents oxygen from reaching the muscles (hypoxia)
Old damage to muscle fibres from past injuries
Diabetes or any other condition that affects the circulation
Damage to the nervous system that stops the muscles from relaxing. A stroke for instance will 'switch on' the flexor muscles that bend the joints.

Once when I was walking in the Bavarian Alps I suffered from heat stroke. After 8 hours of steep walking in hot sunshine I started to sweat profusely through my head. Being totally alone on a mountain pass I stopped to try and drink. I felt waves of nausea every time that I tried to drink water. In my first aid kit was a pot of soda bicarbonate mixed with salt. I made myself lick the dry mixture. Within a few minutes I could eat a bowl of muesli with rich Alpine milk. That and some water kept me going for another four hours of steep walking with a 20 kg rucksack. Next time I will leave more kit behind.

Muscles also go into spasm as a protective measure. If we suddenly slip when doing something we make tiny changes to the bones that anchor the muscles. The muscles are put under a sudden strain. The brain perceives that the ligaments that bind the joints together will be strain and splints the joints. The only splint available is the muscles. Ligament pain is acute and disabling. The body needs careful re-alignment to enable the muscles to relax. That is why I am never out of work!

How does acupuncture work?

People often ask me, How does acupuncture work? The answer is that we do not really know. We do know however that it has an effect on 50-60% of people. I use acupuncture to relax a muscle group, improve blood flow and relieve pain in fascia. Fascia is the internal membrane that covers and links everything together in your body.
To help us understand we use models that place events into our our own framework of understanding.
With my linear Western mind that links cause and effect, I cannot understand the complex Chinese philosophy of medicine. There are no points of reference for me. I try to explain to patients in terms that they understand. For instance, imagine a group of computers on a network. One of the computer screens tells you that it cannot establish a connection to the network or to the internet. In most cases there is a physical reason. You go through all of the physical connections, take them out, push them in and it works again. You might have loaded new software so you uninstall and re-install it. But what if there is no physical reason? You want to know whether the computer can 'speak' to the router. So you try to 'ping the router' by sending a packet of information. Once the router recognises that computer's IP address it can start sending information back again until it has 'learned' what that computer needs. Once you have made a connection with the router (or hub), it is an easier matter to find the server on the internet or the other computers, or a printer.
Let's take the model into the body. The computers are the muscles or local fascia. The router is a part of the brainstem called the thalamus. The Server is the cortex or higher thinking brain. Muscles work in patterns of behaviour called engrams. They never work individually. However if a muscle or the nerve endings are damaged it does not behave in the same way as other muscles. An acupuncture needle acts as an irritant or stimulus to 'ping' the router. The thalamus passes on this information via the same pathways that pain stimuli run up the spinal chord. The brain responds by re-establishing connection with the local area. Chemicals called endorphins flood there and blood flow increases. The muscles start to switch on and off and the fascia relaxes. This could be called unlocking energy, increase of qi or any other term to show a change. MRi studies on acupuncture have shown that needles stimulate a part of the brain called the limbic system.
I never tell people what to expect during acupuncture. Some people say that they feel a dull ache like toothache in the muscle, a heaviness. Some people say that they feel a bubbly sensation as if air were being pumped in. Some say that it floods through the area to another more distant part of the body. Some people feel a deep sharp, electrical sensation. The needle might be too close to a nerve so I withdraw it a little. A person might feel sweaty and a little faint. That is a sympathetic nervous response.
Sometimes acupuncture acts as a trigger to stimulate the immune system or has a systemic effects. Systems in the body start to work again. Even the symptoms of hay fever can respond well.
Personally I find that combining acupuncture with subtle adjustments to the alignment of the body, massage, stretching and nutrition or selected supplements works far better than acupuncture alone.
You could use other models like a member of an orchestra playing a different tune to everyone else. You are only limited by your own imagination.

Statins, Cholesterol

Statins are are drugs that inhibit a group of enzymes in the liver. The enzymes stimulate the production of cholesterol in response to demands perceived by the brain. Cholesterol is a much needed fatty acid that helps the body respond to physiological stress. Measuring cholesterol levels in the bloodstream gives us an indication of how much stress we are under. When we are under a lot of stress we make more cholesterol. If the level of cholesterol were a direct result of the amount that we consumed in our diets, vegans would have no cholesterol. Why? Because cholesterol is only found in meat and dairy based products. Sustained stress prompts the adrenal glands to make cortisol. The glands, which are pea sized organs next to the kidneys, also make androgens or sex hormones. Cortisol elevates fats in the bloodstream. The response is for the body to make macrophages (lit. 'big eaters'). The macrophages try to drive the fats out through the arterial walls leaving deposits of plaque containing cholesterol. This is very simplified but the implication is that because cholesterol was found in plaque therefore it must be responsible for clogging the arteries, therefore it must lead to heart disease. In come the role of statins. By preventing the liver from making cholesterol it must clear the arteries therefore lessen heart disease. Hmm, that sound too good to be true. So what else do statins do? As an holistic therapist I see a lot of people with pain including muscle spasm and weakness. Statins also inhibit the production of an enzyme called co enzyme Q 10. Co enzyme Q 10 helps the mitochondria or powerhouses in the cells to make ATP a currency of energy. Some people on statins find that their energy levels are wiped out leaving them with severe muscle weakness. That is good for my business, because I see more of them, but a tragedy for them. The heart muscles also need energy. For a number of years I suffered a heart arrhythmia. Treatment included six cardio version (electric shock treatment), and a left ventricle laser ablation. It was a 5 hour operation that threaded leads up from both groins to the heart and isolated the mis-firing cells by burning them off with a laser. When in hospital at the John Radcliffe in Oxford I interviewed the other heart patients (informally of course). Without exception they all had breathing problems as well. That makes sense because the heart is in the same cavity as the lungs. They would do well to learn prana or controlled breathing. The patients whom I listened to also said, without exception, that when the doctors put them on statins their energy levels were wiped out so they stopped taking them. Cholesterol is also used by the brain to make the synapses or junctions between neurones in the brain. Short term memory loss was another overlooked side effect.

If you are going to take any medication you need to agree with your doctor what are the hoped for benefits and what are the side effects you are prepared to put up with. Your doctor has a difficult decision to balance the potential benefits against the possible side effects. Too many people tell me that they take a whole number of drugs but they can't remember what they are for. They might not know that some heart medication results in swelling of the ankles or a dry cough. In the end it is your body and it often tells you what it needs. You cannot go far wrong with avoiding altered, hydrogenated fats and processed sugars but eating the rest of your food slowly with confidence and enjoyment.

Repetitive Strain Injury, Carpal Tunnel Syndrome

People who work at computers or use hand or power tools, often suffer tingling in their hands, or pain in the wrists. Some canoeists suffer inflamed tendons in the wrist if they paddle for many hours in cold weather. A friend and I used to paddle for up to six hours in a day. He showed my how to paddle with a looser grip and open up my fingers between strokes.

Tennis players and writers suffer cramp and inflammation of the tendons in the forearm.

Pain on the outside of the elbow is called tennis elbow. Pain on the inside is called golfers elbow. A golfer might cock their wrist back too far if they cannot rotate their body far enough in the back swing.

Causes of Inflammation

First of all rule out underlying systemic causes. Pain from posture or repetitive strain often affects one side more than the other. For instance osteoarthritis might lead to swelling of the weight bearing joints for instance the last joints in your fingers, or your knees or hips. Pain from inflammatory conditions usually affects both sides of your body.

Ask your GP if they would do a blood test that included thyroxine levels and also check for

ESR (erythrocyte sedimention rate) or rheumatoid factor. ESR is a general test of inflammation in the bloodstream.

Rheumatoid factor is more specific. Inflammatory conditions usually affect joints on both sides of the body.

Posture at your desk

Make sure that your chair has short arms, if at all, so that you can sit close to your desk.

Your neck and shoulders are most comfortable if your elbows can rest close to the sides of your body with your forearms level.

Use a footrest if you cannot reach the floor.

Roughly speaking the top of your computer monitor needs to be level with the top of your head.

That makes your eyes look slightly downwards recruiting more eye muscles than looking slightly up.

If you look down for too long you will end up tilting your head forwards and strain your neck muscles.

Hold your arm out in front of you and make a fist. Your knuckles should just touch your screen.

Important blood vessel run up the inside of the vertebrae in your neck. They loop around at the top just before

entering a network of blood vessels around the base of the brain. If your head is always forwards the tense muscles

might rotate the bone at the top of the neck restricting the blood flow to the brain. This is a very common finding when I

help people who suffer one sided, migraine type headaches.

The nerves that supply your hands originate from the vertebrae in the lower part of your neck. They run between the muscles down

the side of your neck, under your collarbones and down your owns. Three nerves supply the hands and forearms.

If your first finger and thumb are weak and painful the median nerve is involved. It is often called carpal tunnel syndrome.

A syndrome is a collection of symptoms. The carpal tunnel is one of the grooves between your carpal or wrist bones.

More commonly the cause of the strain is in the pectoral muscles in the front of your shoulder and in the neck muscles.

If the pain or tingling is in your little finger (pinkie), and side of your 4th finger the ulnar nerve is involved. It runs through

a tunnel under your elbow. Resting on your elbows too long or overstraining your elbow are possible causes of pain.

Feel the bones at the base of your neck. If there is a 'step' and one protrudes that is another cause of ulnar nerve compression.

The third one is the radial nerve. It winds around the back of your arm bone in the shoulder joint, down the outside of your upper arm

and through your forearm. Pain in the outer, upper arm, around the elbow, in the forearm and weakness in straightening your fingers can all be

signs of radial nerve involvement. Also pain in the area between your shoulder blade and spine might come from a branch of the radial nerve.

What do you do about it?

Open your fingers wide regularly.

Rub one ice cube gently over swelling under the cube melts.

Change your posture and sitting position at work, take regular changes of activity, for instance stand beside a filing cabinet to sign or mark lots of papers.

Walk in your lunchtime, swinging your arms to exercise your shoulders.

Work on your breathing to open up your chest and diaphragm. (Yoga teachers are very good at helping you).

Carpal tunnel syndrome can be related to poor fluid movement in the body through shallow breathing patterns.

Strengthen your hands and shoulders. Swimming, rowing machine, Down facing dog (Adhomukha Svanasana) are all great exercises.

Learn to do press ups with your elbows brushing the sides of your body as you go down. Don't go down too low.

Do press ups against a door with your fingers spread wide apart is another great strengthening exercise.

Side stretching your neck muscles helps to relieve a stiff neck.

Try acupuncture.

If you are still suffering come and see me. We will gently manipulate these areas and go through the exercises very carefully. T: 01980 502015 E: jfperrott@googlemail.com

Low Glycemic Index Diet

The glycemic index is a measure of how quickly the carbohydrates in food are converted by digestion into blood sugar. The standard is glucose which has a glycemic index of 100. Other foods that contain carbohydrate are compared to glucose. the guide is not infallible. for instance fruits contain glucose, fructose and a little sucrose. Fructose is a low glycemic index sugar. However lots of processed foods and especially fizzy drinks contain refined fructose corn syrup. It might seem to be fructose but it acts like a very high glycemic index food spiking your blood sugar levels. Different types of rice vary in glycemic index. White basmatti rice is lower than Thai rice, fragrant rice, or sushi rice. Brown rice is lower than white rice. An Asian person trying to stabilise blood sugar levels would be better eating brown basmatti rice. It is more filling anyway so you are likely to eat less of it.
Other helpful changes could be to eat rye bread or part rye bread instead of white bread, eat dried fruit instead of soft melons, eat grapefruit, oranges and squeeze fresh lemon juice onto meat instead of drinking fruits juices. Avoid processed foods as much as possible. Their glycemic index is higher than foods in their natural state. Most foods that are low GI are also high in fibre.

Christians and Yoga

Christians have strange views about yoga. Some of them have said to me, "I don't want to empty my mind; something might jump in." Or, "I don't want to get into that New Age stuff." Or, "I would not let them do yoga in our church hall." Or, "It might draw you into Eastern religions." Yet when I recommend yoga to others they cannot thank me enough once they get into the practice. It has thoroughly stretched them, sorted out their aches and pains and improved their posture and breathing.

So is there a basis in the Bible for the ideas and practice of yoga? Genesis Ch. 2:7 reads, "And the LORD God formed a man's body from the dust of the ground and breathed into it the breath of life. And the man became a living person (or soul)." The strength behind all yoga practice is the prana or breath. By breathing slowly and deeply while you practice yoga you will not only provide plenty of oxygen to your muscles but make your physical practice all the more rewarding. The majority of people who come to see me with irritable bowel, mid-back pain, poor circulation, lymphoedema, tiredness and low energy have one thing in common. They do not breathe deeply enough. I teach them exactly the principles of breathing or prana that I have learned in yoga. Guess what? Their energy improves, their eyes clear as toxins are removed. Movement of lymph and venous blood improves, digestion starts working again, the gall bladder starts to work and they have more energy.

"Yoga is a path to find God"

Some people do find that yoga deepens their spiritual walk and we should respect them for that. Others simply use yoga stretches to improve their physical condition. Teachers vary in their approach. One of my teachers (Andreas of course) said recently, "If you think that you can find God through stretching your head down to your big toe you will be disappointed. All you will find is athletes foot."

The apostle Paul wrote, "I discipline my body like an athlete, training it to do what it should. Otherwise I fear that after preaching to others I myself might be disqualified." 1 Cor. 9:27. Paul was clear that his spiritual goals came first but he also brought his body into subjection. Yoga does exactly that if you practise regularly. It teaches you that you are in charge of your body. Too many Christians are inactive, unfit, complaining about their poor health and making every excuse to do nothing about. You should go some yoga sessions and bring your body into subjection to your mind. It will not do you any harm and might do you a lot of good.

What if when you go there is a little statue of a Buddha sitting in the corner? Yoga in practice originated in Hindu philosophy so there might be a Krishna instead. As it spread through northern India and on into China via the Silk roads yoga picked up Buddhist adherents.

In a previous chapter (1 Cor. 8) Paul discusses whether Christians should eat meat offered to idols or become vegetarians. He laid down a principle, that those Christian who have more faith can eat meat offered to idols. Those with a weaker faith might choose to abstain. In effect, he is saying that you are free to choose but don't make other Christians with a more sensitive conscience make themselves feel guilty. I have never met a yoga teacher who tries to force you into their philosophy although some come across quite strongly with their own thoughts.

Personally if a yoga teacher asks us to meditate I sit quietly do just that. Except that my meditation invites the presence of Jesus Christ and the Creator God. I don't object to saying the Om which is a Hindu name for God. It is a great sound that resonates through the chest cavity but means nothing to me as a name for God.

Having been to Iyenga, Hatha and Anusara yoga sessions I settled for Ashtanga. I call it 'Man yoga' because it mainly involves hard physical practice with few breaks. It fits none of the stereotypes where you think of people lying around relaxing. There are some great yoga teachers in Milton Keynes of all persuasions.

Here are some names whom I know and recommend,

Andreas Wren at Shenley Leisure Centre http://www.mkyoga.co.uk,

Toby at Axis yoga Newton Longville http://www.axisyoga.com,

Bridget Rooney Anusara yoga http://www.brigitteyoga.co.uk,

Debbie Twigger M: 07764 391687

Katie James: katiesarahjames@hotmail.co.uk,

Jenny Wong: jennywellbeing@gmail.com,

Helen Stephenson http://www.helenstephensononline.co.uk.

If you are a Christian and nervous about going to yoga I suggest that you try Axis yoga in the methodist church in Newton Longville. They meet on a Monday and Wednesday from 7.30 pm to 8.45 pm. The church has a pleasant setting with familiar posters around. Toby is not allowed to say the Om. His music is neutral, he welcomes beginners and draws them into the class. You will feel quite at home there then you can try other classes.