Sliding Doors, Slow Rewards

Whatever style you practice, Spiral Vinyasa stands out as especially effective for metabolic and mental health. And you can do it outside.

Read this post first for context. 

Through its unique combination of mindful movement, breath work, and stress reduction, yoga helps regulate blood sugar, improve insulin sensitivity, and boost overall metabolic function.

Regular practice can lead to better weight management, increased energy levels, and enhanced circulation throughout the body. Working with your body's natural rhythms to optimize bio processes improves fitness and metabolic flexibility... and the research on the magic of moving outdoors in nature is abundant.

Furthermore, in the context of the tendency to ram into Q1 like we're not still metabolically asleep... mindfulness and yoga have shown promise as complementary therapies for addressing dopamine dysregulation.

These practices can modulate cognitive, affective, and psychophysiological processes that are integral to self-regulation and reward processing, which are often disrupted in addiction... useful for understanding how we may find ourselves adrift in Jan-Feb, when motivation is low and we've got December's promises to keep.

Doors, windows

Using the Sliding Doors concept, I have been combining my forest walk/running and yoga (Spiral Vinyasa) practice to heal and boost my metabolic and mental health on a budget. It is well known that as we age, we have to fight harder for our metabolic health to keep up robust cardiovascular function, fat oxidation, glucose regulation, bone density, etc, etc., and as a working parent, time is already on loan.

The dynamic nature of walk-running also leads to increased oxygen consumption and improved heart rate variability, crucial for health. Higher intensity exercise combined with yoga-based movement and breathing outdoors is more than an epic habit stack, it is an excellent dopamine regulator (aka "detox").

But your yoga practice doesn't have to be high intensity to offer plenty of benefits. Classical yoga (CY) is shown to promote health for all the reasons we may be well familiar with.

First, it combines physical movement with mindful breathing, which helps reduce stress and anxiety. Second, regular practice improves flexibility, strength, and balance through gentle yet effective postures. Third, the meditative aspects of yoga enhance mental clarity and emotional well-being.

Finally, the ancient wisdom behind Classical Yoga encourages a holistic approach to health that addresses the constant dualistic battle of wants vs needs. 

But the question for many of us on the cusp of middle age and beyond: is yoga really effective for improving metabolic health?

The evidence seems to say, it depends. In their systematic review, researchers found that yoga can be "preliminarily considered as a safe and effective intervention for reducing waist circumference and systolic blood pressure in individuals with metabolic syndrome who are not adhering to conventional forms of exercise."

A Cochrane review found "yoga can be considered as an ancillary intervention for the general population and for patients with increased risk of cardiovascular disease." The spirit of these findings is that while CW is undoubtedly beneficial, it may not be as effective as higher intensity forms of practice where metabolic markers are concerned.

My view is that it really depends on what kind of yoga you're doing, what intensity you're keeping, and how you're mixing it up with other activities.

For a population that is only just waking up to the reality of its dopamine dysregulation, the power of simply getting outside and moving the body is undoubtedly as important as getting the heart rate up... and with a little ingenuity, you can craft a Sliding Doors practice that does it all.

Yes, my metabolic health is a priority because as the science shows, getting a minimum of regular moderate exercise is a matter of life or death.

A Sliding Doors practice (a mix of brisk walking/running plus yoga) needs to effectively tax my mitochondria because they are happiest when they're challenged. I need to be fighting fit not just for me, but for these small humans I brought into the world. I feel drawn to increase my exercise intensity, be more productive, manifest my creative energy, etc.

But – and this is crucial – it is this very same hyper rewards-motivated mentality that is silently stressing out my biology to the max. As an educators, movement teachers, course leaders, we need to be addressing this double-edged sword and walking the walk with regard to the link between dopamine dysregulation and metabolism.

One of the biggest challenges for movement-as-medicine practitioners is understanding how to harness the healthy limits of dopamine's draw, and recognizing when we're in the overdrawn zone. As a researcher, I've got a few tips for you.

My argument is that for the holistic health of busy people who are also acknowledging their dopamine overdraw:

1. Yoga is good.

2. Higher intensity yoga with complex movement can be better.

3. Variable intensity yoga with complex, spiral movement outdoors is likely the best.

Come with me into a deeper look into the body's responsiveness to friction in the joints and how adaptations, in turn, affect our daily movement patterns. When we exercise or perform routine activities, our joints experience various levels of mechanical stress.

This natural friction plays a crucial role in maintaining joint health, but too much in the wrong vectors can lead to undue wear and tear over time.

Understanding how our bodies respond to this friction is essential for preventing injury and maintaining optimal joint function throughout our lives. This builds a framework for seeing that not all movement is metabolically healthy for our joints.

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Mindfulness and yoga offer promising complementary approaches for managing our hyper stimulated systems. They work by enhancing self-regulation, reducing cravings, and improving psychological well-being. Interested in the neuro - metabolic link to Sliding Doors practice? Check out this post: Mind Your Movement.

References

Garland, E., & Howard, M. (2018). Mindfulness-based treatment of addiction: current state of the field and envisioning the next wave of research. Addiction Science & Clinical Practice, 13. https://doi.org/10.1186/s13722-018-0115-3

Khanna, S., & Greeson, J. (2013). A narrative review of yoga and mindfulness as complementary therapies for addiction.. Complementary therapies in medicine, 21 3, 244-52. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2013.01.008

Kwok, J., Kwan, J., Auyeung, M., Mok, V., Lau, C., Choi, K., & Chan, H. (2019). Effects of Mindfulness Yoga vs Stretching and Resistance Training Exercises on Anxiety and Depression for People With Parkinson Disease: A Randomized Clinical Trial.. JAMA neurology. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaneurol.2019.0534

Petker, T., Yanke, C., Rahman, L., Whalen, L., Demaline, K., Whitelaw, K., Bang, D., Holshausen, K., Amlung, M., & Mackillop, J. (2021). Naturalistic Evaluation of an Adjunctive Yoga Program for Women with Substance Use Disorders in Inpatient Treatment: Within-Treatment Effects on Cravings, Self-efficacy, Psychiatric Symptoms, Impulsivity, and Mindfulness. Substance Abuse: Research and Treatment, 15. https://doi.org/10.1177/11782218211026651

Taylor, J., Mclean, L., Korner, A., Stratton, E., & Glozier, N. (2020). Mindfulness and yoga for psychological trauma: systematic review and meta-analysis. Journal of Trauma & Dissociation, 21, 536 - 573. https://doi.org/10.1080/15299732.2020.1760167

Kwok, J., Choi, E., Lee, J., Lok, K., Kwan, J., Mok, V., & Auyeung, M. (2022). Effects of Mindfulness Yoga Versus Conventional Physical Exercises on Symptom Experiences and Health-related Quality of Life in People with Parkinson's Disease: The Potential Mediating Roles of Anxiety and Depression.. Annals of behavioral medicine : a publication of the Society of Behavioral Medicine. https://doi.org/10.1093/abm/kaac005

The Science: Evidence for Mindfulness and Yoga in Addiction Treatment

• Mindfulness-Based Interventions (MBIs): MBIs have been studied for their effectiveness in reducing substance misuse and cravings by influencing self-regulation and reward processing mechanisms. They have shown potential in treating various addictive behaviors, including those related to dopamine dysregulation (Garland & Howard, 2018; Khanna & Greeson, 2013).

• Yoga as a Complementary Therapy: Yoga, particularly when combined with mindfulness practices, targets multiple psychological and physiological processes implicated in addiction. It has been shown to improve self-awareness and reduce impulsivity, which are beneficial in managing addiction (Khanna & Greeson, 2013; Petker et al., 2021).

• Clinical Trials and Studies: A growing number of clinical trials support the effectiveness of mindfulness and yoga in treating addiction. These interventions have been associated with improvements in cravings, self-efficacy, and psychiatric symptoms in individuals with substance use disorders (Petker et al., 2021; Taylor et al., 2020).

• Mechanisms of Action: The therapeutic effects of yoga and mindfulness may be mediated through reductions in anxiety and depression, which are common in individuals with addiction. These practices can enhance psychological well-being and quality of life, potentially reducing the reliance on addictive behaviors for coping (Kwok et al., 2019; Kwok et al., 2022).

I sourced and synthesized these papers using Consensus, an AI-powered search engine for research. Try it at https://consensus.app