Load The Bones
A quick story to set the stage...
(Forgive me if I'm over-the-top, I'm trying to make bone density fun)
I could sense my anxiety growing, I needed to decipher what was happening with this patient before treating them under the scrutiny of my supervisor. I stood staring blankly at the patient's notes. My dyslexic brain unable to scramble the code, FOOSH... "What does that mean?", I thought to myself.
Without my supervisor noticing, I did a quick google search (a crime punishable by death) and discovered that this was a common injury sustained by the elderly population, when FALLING ON OUTSTRETCHED HAND (FOOSH), thereby fracturing the bones of the wrist.
BROKEN RECORD ALERT!
As we get older we move less, this weakens our muscles, and our bone density decreases. The neural pathways wane and neural tissue in the brain recedes. As a result OUR ability to move and balance declines. This isn't BECAUSE OF AGE but rather BECAUSE OF THE COMMON HABITS THAT ACCOMPANY OLD AGE!
To help protect your bones and save yourself from falling you need to keep using your body. That old cliche rings true, "if you don't use it you lose it!"
How do we specifically increase bone density?
Bones have two specialised cells that help increase density. One is called osteoclasts, and it's their job to clear away old bone. The other is osteoblasts, these guys build new bone!
These cells are stimulated through LOAD! If you're lifting something heavy then these cells come out of hibernation and start doing line dancing along with the bones that are being stressed, creating shiny new bone!
This is why yoga can be so good for your wrists (if practiced correctly). They get stimulated through weight-bearing on the upper limb. It's also why handstands are good for you.
For more tips & tricks on introducing novelty and load to your yoga practice, check out my BOOK!
Lots of upside love to you,
Celly x