Episode 56
Osteoporosis and Yoga
Can 12 minutes of yoga a day reverse osteoporotic bone loss? The title of this study "Twelve-Minute Daily Yoga Regimen Reverses Osteoporotic Bone Loss" might lead you to believe so, but the results and data are incomplete and inconclusive. Jules Mitchell and I talk about this complicated, underwhelming study published in the Geriatric Rehabilitation Journal in 2015.
Highlights
New York Times article about the study
Weight training to prevent osteoporosis video
Wolff's Law: bones need to be loaded in order to get stronger.
Progressive Overload principle: in order for tissues to continue to adapt, load needs to be progressively increased in volume and intensity.
Is 12 minutes of yoga progressive enough to continue to adapt the bone? We question whether or not yoga is progressive enough. If you’re not active, then bodyweight exercises would be a great step in the early phases of progressive overload but at some point the bones would have to be stressed more.
Here’s the catch. It can be argued that if bones are fragile they shouldn't be loaded because they’re at risk but at the same time the only way to get them stronger is to load them. It’s a conundrum and it’s being figured out in the literature.
Exercise recommendations from the International Osteoporosis Foundation
Read our review of this study over at Yoga Research and Beyond