Easy Exercise for Lower Back Pain

by Setareh Moafi, Ph.D., L.Ac.

I’m sure you've experienced lower back pain at some point in your life. You may even be experiencing it right now.

In a society where we spend most of our time sitting on chairs and couches, tightness and pain in the lower back is all too common, and one of the most popular complaints from patients in our clinic. And while more chronic cases may not resolve so quickly, my hope is this article will empower you to better understand your pain as well as to provide you with a simple exercise to alleviate some of the discomfort right away.

Why You May Have Lower Back Pain

There are many reasons why you can develop lower back pain.

One cause is too much compression from excessive sitting or standing that causes the area around the lumbar spine to tighten up.

As we get older, not only do the Yin or fluid components of the body naturally diminish, but your spine (byway of gravity) also starts to compress. This is why it’s so important to preserve and replenish your Yin constantly through proper diet and rest and to prevent this compression in your spine through elongation exercises and movement practices like Yoga and Qi Gong.

By elongating your spine through these various practices as well as by hanging upside down or front a pull-up bar regularly, you’ll maintain the integrity of the intervertebral spaces in your spine. This helps prevent abnormal narrowing of the spinal canal or neural foramen, which can lead to spinal stenosis resulting in pressure on the spinal cord or nerve roots causing pain, numbness or weakness in the limbs.

Another cause of lower back pain may be related to burnout from a lack of sleep, excessive work, exercise or sex, or a diet filled with processed foods — all of which contribute to adrenal fatigue.

If you’ve been pushing your body too hard for too long or you’re not sleeping enough, you may start to excessively tax your adrenal glands, which can lead to hormonal and metabolic dysfunction.

The adrenal glands are a pair of endocrine glands located above your kidneys that produce a variety of hormones, including adrenaline and the steroids aldosterone and cortisol, that help regulate your metabolism, immune system, blood pressure, response to stress and other essential biological functions.

Your adrenal glands are associated with your Kidneys in Chinese Medicine so excessive taxation on the adrenals burdens your Kidney Qi, which can lead to lower back and knee pain, fatigue and premature aging, among a variety of other symptoms.

Lower back pain may also result from injury, as well as from psychological and emotional upset that’s mostly associated with fear.

Fear is the emotion of the Kidneys according to Chinese Medicine and since the Kidneys are located in your lower back, fear can trigger tension in this area of your body.

According to Louise Hay, author of You Can Heal Your Life, lower back pain may reflect your fear of money or lack of financial support.

And since I always believe that moving your body is essential to shifting your mind and mood, I think one of the best ways to shift out of an emotional state like fear that may be keeping you stuck is to move your body, simply and gently.

Easy Exercise for Lower Back Pain

The simple exercise I'm sharing with you today takes 2 minutes and can be done sitting on the floor with your legs crossed or sitting up on the edge of a chair.

It'll not only free your lower back, but it also helps to send energy up your spine to bring Qi to your brain for greater alertness, focus and concentration.

So if your back is tight from sitting around (or even standing) too much during this pandemic, you'll want to make this simple exercise part of your daily routine.

Often called Opening the Heavenly Pillar, this is an excellent exercise to help alleviate lower back pain, tension and stiffness and is gentle enough to do sitting in a chair or on the floor.

Make sure to go slowly at first then work up to more rapid rotations.

This is one of the easiest exercises for lower back pain and to release tension in the spine in general.

Taking just two minutes to open your spine can also reset your mood and help you feel more embodied.

Once you’ve practiced, let me know how this exercise made you feel in the comments below!

Feel Grounded in 10 Minutes: Yin Yoga for the Kidney & Lung Meridians

Feeling grounded means that there’s a strong connection between your Lungs and Kidneys so you can be more present in your body and breathe more deeply.

In Chinese Medicine, the Kidneys are said to grasp the Qi of the Lungs, which allows you to take deeper breaths.

The Lungs also direct body fluids downward to Kidneys and Bladder. Dysfunction in the communication between the Lungs and Kidneys can result in wheezing and asthma or accumulation of fluids either from the failure of the Lungs to descend the Qi or weakness in the Kidneys that prevent the grasping of the Lung Qi.

Each of the organ systems according to Chinese Medicine house an aspect of your soul.

The Lungs house the Po, the physical or substantive aspect of your soul, while the Kidneys house your willpower, known as Zhi.

Zhi drives the intention and effort required to accomplish things in life. This includes both effort and perseverance.

The connection between these two aspects helps you feel embodied and grounded.

Embodiment is essential to authentically practice mindfulness as well as gratitude.

This 10 minute Yin Yoga practice nourishes the Kidney meridian and opens the Lung meridian to help you strengthen your Kidney-Lung connection.

Yin Yoga is a powerful practice for all levels that calms your nervous system to reduce stress and even help you digest a variety of foods during the holiday season and beyond.

Once you’ve had a chance to practice with this video, I’d love to hear from you in the comments below —was your experience with this practice?

3 Foods to Strengthen Your Lungs

by Setareh Moafi, Ph.D., L.Ac.

Your lungs play an important role in your immune system. As part of the respiratory system, and they provide a connection between your external and internal worlds through the breath. Inhalation draws in fresh oxygen and Qi, or energy, while exhalation helps you let go of toxins. 

The Lungs' natural movement is to disperse and descend Qi.

The Lungs disperse, or spread, the body fluids as well as the Wei Qi, the defensive Qi that runs on the surface of the skin to protect you during the day and travels into the body to help you sleep at night. This ensures that Wei Qi is equally distributed under the skin and to the muscles to warm and moisten the skin, allowing for a normal amount of sweating, and to protect the body from external pathogens that can cause colds, flus and skin problems (see more about this in a previous article).

As the uppermost organ, the Lungs also descend Qi to communicate with the Kidneys, which are said to 'grasp' the Qi of the Lungs. This allows for deep breathing. 

The Lungs also direct body fluids downward to Kidneys and Bladder. Dysfunction in the communication between the Lungs and Kidneys can result in wheezing and asthma or accumulation of fluids either from the failure of the Lungs to descend the Qi or weakness in the Kidneys that prevent the grasping of the Lung Qi.

The Lungs also have an important relationship with the Large Intestine. The descension of Lung Qi stimulates peristalsis to support detoxification through the colon.

While breathing exercises and regular movement practices like Yoga and Qi Gong certainly help to support your Lung Qi, there are also some key foods that can strengthen your Lungs and support your immune system overall.

Since the pathological factor that most commonly affects your Lungs is dryness (which is also the predominant factor during the Fall season) it’s important to stay hydrated and integrate three groups of foods that support the Lungs: fruits, nuts and root vegetables.

#1 Fruit

According to Chinese Medicine, all fruits support the Lungs.

Compact fruits such as pears, apples, Asian pears, and persimmons are most beneficial to nourish your Lungs. These fruits moisten Lung Yin to stop a dry cough and increase hydration during the dry season.

Eating apple-pear stew (cut one apple, one pear and simmer slowly on low heat - no water needed!) can help to moisten a dry cough. And drinking a little pear juice before going to bed can help you fall asleep since the Lungs must be nourished to anchor the Wei Qi, or defensive Qi, of the body, to help you fall asleep.

Though fruits are great hydrating foods, they should be consumed in moderation as their sweet nature can create phlegm and congest the Lungs. Citrus in particular, especially in the form of juice, is overly concentrated in sugar and can cause phlegm or mucus to develop, weakening your Lung Qi.

#2 Nuts

Like fruits, all nuts have an affinity with the Lungs. The nuts that help support Lung Qi in particular are pine nuts and sweet almonds. Walnuts help strengthen the Kidneys to grasp the Qi of the Lungs. Walnuts therefore are considered an important food for conditions like asthma with shortness of breath.

The only caution is to eat nuts in moderation and to avoid them if you have skin problems as nuts can generally hyper activate your Wei Qi, or defensive Qi, and lead to allergies, acne and skin irritation.

The damp or fungal nature of nuts also warrant caution. Roasting nuts reduces shelf life by causing the oils to more quickly turn rancid. It’s therefore best to purchase raw nuts and toast or soak them yourself to make them easier to digest. Walnuts and almonds are especially nice to eat when soaked overnight.

#3 Root Vegetables & Tubers

Root vegetables not only support your Lungs’ ability to descend Qi, but they also help fortify your digestive system by fortifying your Spleen and Stomach.

Root vegetables that are high in beta carotene, the precursor to Vitamin A (an important vitamin for immune health as well as the health of your hair, skin and nails) are especially beneficial to strengthen the Lungs. These include carrots, beets and sweet potatoes.

Tubers, including parsnips, rutabaga and daikon also help the Lungs descend Qi to support peristalsis. Rutabaga and daikon are also known for their ability to break up stagnation and clear fire toxins through the colon. In addition, turnips help to break up phlegm and are great to strengthen the Lungs and help clear a cough with mucous.

Conclusion

While these foods can generally support the health of your Lungs, this list is certainly not exhaustive and not all of the foods here may be beneficial to everyone. Nutrition is highly personalized, so if you want more specific recommendations, you can work with us or a trusted practitioner.

Remember that Nutrition = Food + Digestion so it’s important to remember that food is only beneficial when it’s properly digested so it’s always essential to support your digestive system to support healthy nutrition.

If you’re interested in learning about Classical Chinese nutrition in greater depth, you can learn more and join the waitlist for my upcoming program.

Setareh Moafi, Ph.D., L.Ac. is co-owner and Director of A Center for Natural Healing in Santa Clara, California. The Silicon Valley-based health and wellness clinic specializes in Classical Chinese Medicine and Traditional Japanese Acupuncture with a clinic and studio where Dr. Moafi offers clinical services and transformational workshops that blend the ancient practices of Classical Chinese Medicine and Yoga. More information at www.setarehmoafi.com and www.acenterfornaturalhealing.com.

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Trust the process: Yoga Integration to Strengthen Your Kidneys & Calm Your Heart

My father has a sense of faith unlike anyone I’ve ever met. Though he's not at all religious, he's really embodies what it means to be spiritual.

I’ve learned over time that my father's Water type personality makes it easier for him to trust the process as he navigates the ups and downs of life.

According to Chinese Medicine, Water energy is associated with the Kidneys, which hold your essential energy, or Jing, your life purpose and the important virtues of trust and faith.

Faith and trust provide you with the perspective to let go of control and allow the process to unfold, but also have the willpower to know when to take action.

When the Kidneys are compromised through stress and overwork, not only can adrenal exhaustion (aka feeling wired & tired) result, but your faith and willpower can also be compromised. Strengthening your Kidneys and the Water energy is also important to temper the Fire of the Heart to calm your anxiety and help you regain a sense of hope.

In this Yoga Integration practice, you’ll learn Yoga & Qi Gong exercises to help strengthen your Kidney energy so you can trust the process and stay motivated, even in the most uncertain times.

Yin Yoga Integration to Quell Fear & Cultivate Inner Peace

Fear can be paralyzing. 

 But if you're able to properly transform your fear, you can channel that energy to create positive change in the world, and cultivate inner peace. 

 According to Chinese Medicine Fear is the emotion associated with the imbalanced state of your Kidney system, which includes the adrenal glands.

 In this Yoga Integration practice, you'll learn tools that'll help you build your Kidney energy to quell your fear and cultivate inner peace.

Butterfly Pose

Dragonfly Pose

Seated Warmup to Release the Lower Back