This week’s #WooWooWednesdays is brought to you by Kegels. Yes! Kegels!
I started to develop lower back pain in December — specifically on December 21 when my husband and I were trying to fly back East for Christmas. Instead of a smooth ride and one easy connection, we were hit with 10 hours of disastrous flight delays.
At some point during the day, as we were standing at yet another customer service desk, my lower back spasmed. It had never done that before, but I was suddenly super uncomfortable and had to bend over to get it to stop. The tightness of that spasm feels like it has never fully disappeared. For the past two months, I’ve had on-and-off lower back pain that seems to be triggered by sitting, standing, driving, and exercising. Pretty much, any type of movement can trigger it 🙂
Yesterday, I was scrolling through Elephant Journal and saw this article: Why we should all do Kegels, according to Science. I’m not sure why I clicked on it. I know what Kegels are. I do them on very rare occasions. But once I started reading the post Dr. John Douillard, the blog author, made me see Kegels in an entirely new light.
To begin with, he explains that historically, humans ran long distances and carried heavy objects on their heads or backs. The only way this was sustainable was if humans had strong pelvic floor stability.
He goes on to explain:
While sitting at work, driving, watching TV, or eating at the kitchen table, pelvic muscles are required to do absolutely nothing. Over time, without use, they atrophy, resulting in pelvic and low back instability.
Pelvic floor strength is the foundation for the spine. If the foundation is weak, the spine above will not be stable and low back, mid-back, or neck pain may result. … Unless you regularly perform pelvic floor exercises or Kegels, you most likely have a weak and possibly unstable pelvic floor.
(bold emphasis is my own)
Basically, he’s saying my pelvic muscles have atrophied and could be a cause of my lower back pain.
But what I love about this article (beyond a potential solution for my back pain) is the connection he makes between Kegels and Ayurvedic pelvic floor exercises. He writes:
For both men and women, not only is the science behind pelvic floor exercises amazing, but Ayurveda actually described these techniques thousands of years ago. Two ancient techniques restore strength, health, and integrity to the pelvic floor: ashwini mudra and mula bandha.
(Bold emphasis is my own)
This is the description of ashwini mudra: rhythmic contraction of the anus in an effort to direct prana and kundalini energy up the spine into subtle energy channels called nadis. And this is the description of mula bandha: The practice is performed seated. After a full nasal inhalation, the breath is held while the anus is contracted for 1-2 seconds, performing 4-5 contractions before exhaling to complete one round.
This reminds me of a very intense breathing meditation I did, led by Dr. Joe Dispenza, that is designed to pull the mind out of the body and elicit brain strong positive emotions. During the meditation, Dr. Joe plays energetic music and instructs you to:
Contract your intrinsic muscles, your perineum, your lower abdomen, your upper abdomen, and as you contract those intrinsic muscles, I want you to inhale through your nose in one, slow, steady breath and pull your energy your perineum, your lower abdomen, your upper abdomen, through your chest, through your throat, through your head, all the way to the top and hold it at the top and let your energy move to your awareness and hold it there for a second. Hold it … and as you exhale now, relax.
And this is what I love about The Woo.
The deeper I go into The Woo, the more I find that it’s all connected. Different teachers use different words, but so many of these ideas are linked and interconnected. Today, we are using alternative methods that are thousands of years old to heal ourselves mentally and physically. Yes, modern medicine is amazing, but so is The Woo.
