NFL Super Bowl – Yogic Solution for Concussions

The concussion epidemic

The movie “Concussion” 2015, highlighted the National Football League (NFL) attempt to suppress research on chronic traumatic encephalopathy (CTE) brain degeneration suffered by professional football players. Statistics show CTE, was discovered in 110 of the 111 former NFL players whose families donated their brains to the Boston University School of Medicine. CTE was also found in the brains of 3 of 14 high school players (21%), and 48 of 53 college players (91%).

However this issue doesn’t affect the professional arena alone. Much closer to home, over 3.1 Million men and women are playing football, basketball or soccer in high school and college who also run the risk of head injuries or sports-related traumatic brain injuries (TBIs).

According to The Centers for Disease Control (CDC) there are between an estimated 1.6 and 3.8 million sports-related concussions in the United States every year which has led them to conclude that sports concussions in the United States have reached an epidemic level, with high school athletes sustaining an estimated 300,000 concussions per year.

However at times the impact of these injuries may materialize later in their lives. These injuries often result in memory loss, dementia, depression, personality & mood changes, and other progressive symptoms.

Yoga and Concussions

How can we reverse the impact of these injuries? What is the best preventive? Sadhguru, yogi, mystic and the foremost authority on yoga provides insight into how we can build resilience and strengthen the very fabric of the body.

Sadhguru: “Boxers and American football players often end up with neurological ailments in the later part of their lives – like Muhammad Ali and many others. Having a strong will to win, such people will succeed for a period of time, but their system will take a beating. This is not to be judgmental about them – they are great in their own way. It is just that they have been thrashed on the head too much. Not just that – even punching something constantly can have a jarring effect on one’s own system. Even if the muscles are strong, strengthening the fundamental fabric of the body is a different game.”

Strengthening the Fundamental Fabric

“If you build muscle beyond a certain point, you will need a lot of sleep. The body has to do too much unnecessary work. If you become very muscular, you cannot sit with your eyes closed. If strength and resilience is what you are looking for, you need to strengthen the fundamental fabric of the body. This is what Angamardana does. If you suddenly overstretch and get a tear, it will not heal easily. A broken bone can heal in six weeks. A torn ligament is much more difficult to heal because this is what holds the skeletal structure together. This strengthening takes time. After at least thirty months of daily practice, some people’s bodies will be ready for advanced Angamardana. The advanced practices involve stretching to extremes, which is not necessary for normal living. This would only be required for somebody who wants to climb rocks without ropes, for example.”

“Traditional martial arts such as kalaripayattu also require this kind of strengthening to be able to fight without damaging the system. In the Himalayan regions of India and Nepal, you will see women who are barely four-and-a-half to five feet tall, looking frail and malnourished. These women may not weigh more than forty-five kilograms, but they carry a load of wood or other things that is sixty-five to seventy kilograms. Their system has become so strong because from an early age, living in the mountains, they have been walking up and down the mountain slopes, carrying loads. These are not only aerobic capabilities – their basic fabric of life is strong.”

A Different Level of Strength

“Similarly with Angamardana, it builds a different level of strength. This is not about building muscles but about strengthening the ligaments. Once you strengthen them, they will keep you in good stead for a lifetime. The regular Angamardana that we teach serves this purpose perfectly well. If you want to intensify the practice, you can do it twice over.”

“Angamardana” means gaining complete mastery over the limbs, organs, and other parts of the body. Angamardana, a fitness system rooted in yoga, offers everyone the opportunity to invigorate the body and reach peak physical strength, flexibility, and resilience. To learn more click here.

To address the other repercussions, Inner Engineering can provide solutions to manage the mind, body, emotions and energy.  

The Inner Engineering course empowers you with tools to attain what you are aspiring for within yourself so you experience life at its peak. It helps you put your life on self-start so you become in charge of your happiness, joy, and peace. It gives you the opportunity to intellectually explore the ABC’s of life using methods from the distilled essence of yogic sciences. The course imparts practical wisdom to manage your body, mind, emotions, and the fundamental life energy within.

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Learn more at innerengineering.sadhguru.org