Amanda Newman (00:00):
Can yoga relieve back pain? How can it improve your mood? Is yoga helpful for aging well? All that and more on this episode of The Healthiest You.
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If you want to switch up your exercise routine or are looking for something to calm your nerves, yoga may be for you. The ancient practice has been around for more than 5,000 years. The best part, almost anyone can do yoga and it has several benefits for your body and brain.
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We are focusing on women’s health and wellness on The Healthiest You podcast. Whether you’re on your way to work or enjoying a cup of coffee, take this time to focus on your health. Here to talk about how practicing yoga can improve your health is Dr. Lauren Freid, rheumatologist with Lehigh Valley Health Network and certified yoga teacher. Dr. Freid, welcome to the show.
Lauren Freid, MD (00:54):
Hi. Thank you so much for having me. I’m happy to be here.
Amanda Newman (00:57):
So what sparked your interest in yoga and how long have you been practicing?
Lauren Freid, MD (01:01):
So like most people, using yoga as a form of physical activity is simply what sparked my interest. I was in my residency [in] 2014 and [a] new studio opened up. So I started practicing. Quickly noticed the benefits of the practice, and it really started to influence how I wanted to practice medicine, and I became a certified yoga teacher shortly after in 2017.
Amanda Newman (01:27):
Well, that is amazing. When I hear the word yoga, I often think of downward dog or child’s pose, but there’s so much more to it. So what is yoga and how does someone get started?
Lauren Freid, MD (01:39):
So what you are saying is what everybody thinks of, I think, when they think about yoga and what it is. And what you’re specifically referring to when you talk about downward dog and some of the other postures is what we call the asana practice. It’s very hard to define yoga and say what it is, but in general, one could say that it’s actually a lifestyle with eight different parts. We won’t get into all of them today. But the two parts that are most emphasized in the West and what we practice here and what you and I’ll be discussing today are the asana practice and pranayama. So that’s the posture practice and breathwork. Yoga in its strict definition actually means to yoke or union, and so yoga is really all about connection, and here in the West a lot of that is the focus on the connection between the body and the mind and the breath and the body and the mind. So yes, very simply, yoga is a lifestyle and that lifestyle is about connection.
Amanda Newman (02:39):
Beautiful. So it’s about that mental focus and movement together.
Lauren Freid, MD (02:44):
Yes, absolutely. And then taking that to more elevated forms, it’s about really using those two mechanisms to sort of find peace within yourself and unify that with more of a universal peace.
Amanda Newman (02:59):
Love that. We all need more of that.
Lauren Freid, MD (03:01):
Absolutely.
Amanda Newman (03:02):
Especially in our busy day-to-day.
Lauren Freid, MD (03:04):
Yes.
Amanda Newman (03:04):
So there are some mixed opinions on yoga props. What are the most common yoga props and their purpose?
Lauren Freid, MD (03:12):
So there are very many yoga props, probably more than I can name, but some of the more common ones that you’ll find if you walk into a yoga class are blocks, yoga straps, blankets and bolsters, like a yoga pillow. There’s also some less-common ones that you’d see things like yoga wedges and yoga chairs, and even the wall can actually be a prop that you might not think of for your yoga practice. The purpose of props is to support you in your practice so that you can achieve the true intention of a posture, so that you can really receive the benefits of a posture. So a lot of people might think that props are for people that are less-advanced practitioners or more-advanced practitioners, but they’re really just for everyone to practice yoga.
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So in some ways, props can make up for maybe somewhere where we don’t have the same capacity anatomically that someone else has. For example, if you’re trying to reach the floor, but you simply can’t because your arms aren’t long enough, you can use a block as an extension of your arm. Another purpose of props is for you to feel the intention of a pose that perhaps might be more restorative. For example, one of my favorite yoga poses always uses a prop. It’s called viparita karani. It’s legs up the wall. It’s a restorative inversion, so you can’t do that pose without the prop of a wall.
Amanda Newman (04:36):
Yeah. And that probably helps alleviate some lower back pain too.
Lauren Freid, MD (04:40):
For some people it may. It’s also a really nice, passive way to return blood flow up to your heart without exerting yourself in an aerobic way. Yeah.
Amanda Newman (04:50):
I love that you had mentioned that blocks help someone like myself achieve a pose, for example, half-moon pose. Is that what it’s called? Half-moon?
Lauren Freid, MD (05:01):
Yes. Half-moon pose or ardha chandrasana. Yes.
Amanda Newman (05:04):
OK. So for someone like myself who has shorter arms, I’d be able to achieve that by using that to my advantage?
Lauren Freid, MD (05:11):
Absolutely, yes.
Amanda Newman (05:12):
Wow. OK. Now what makes yoga suitable for almost anyone to do?
Lauren Freid, MD (05:17):
So I think what makes yoga suitable for almost anyone is really one of the things we just touched on, the props, which makes the practice so accessible for people. We’re specifically talking about the asana practice, and there’s so many different ways to practice asana. Utilizing props, you can start at a more basic level with poses utilizing a chair, if you need more support for your lower body. You can take the practice really anywhere with you once you learn it. So it becomes very versatile. All you really need is a mat. If you’re traveling and you want to hold on to your physical activity, you can bring your mat with you and you can practice yoga when you’re on the road. So yoga is really a very versatile practice that can be adapted to any age and stage of life.
Amanda Newman (06:12):
That’s great. Now as yoga has become more mainstream, a lot of us may have received advice from our doctors that yoga is a beneficial form of exercise. Why is it that my doctor may have made a general recommendation to try yoga?
Lauren Freid, MD (06:28):
So I really love this and I love recommending yoga to my patients. And the reason your doctor may have recommended it or just made a general recommendation is because your doctor’s familiar with what the physical activity recommendations are for adults to be doing in general. Everybody is really recommended by all of our major recommending bodies – whether it be the WHO [World Health Organization], the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], other more specific recommending bodies – to regularly engage in four different types of physical activity. Those are aerobic, flexibility, resistance and balance or neuromotor activity. If you look at these guidelines specifically, many of them give yoga as an example for more than one type of physical activity. So if you incorporate yoga into your life as part of your routine, it’s a very efficient way for all of us. We’re so busy now.
Amanda Newman (07:25):
Indeed.
Lauren Freid, MD (07:25):
It can be a very efficient way for you to achieve the recommended forms of physical activity, and really more than one practice or more than one if you’re thinking of it as a workout.
Amanda Newman (07:36):
So there’s a lot of power in yoga because you can tackle all those domains of physical activity with one exercise.
Lauren Freid, MD (07:42):
Absolutely.
Amanda Newman (07:43):
Wow. Research shows that women are at higher risk for having autoimmune diseases such as rheumatoid arthritis. As a rheumatologist, do you recommend yoga as a holistic treatment to manage rheumatoid arthritis and other conditions?
Lauren Freid, MD (07:59):
So as a rheumatologist, I absolutely recommend yoga. We actually have guidelines now that recommend yoga as a form of physical activity in both osteoarthritis and recommend mind-body exercises for rheumatoid arthritis. One of the things that our research shows is that in rheumatologic disease, fatigue is very difficult to treat. You can have somebody on really great pharmacotherapy that’s managing a lot of their joint symptoms, but the fatigue associated with autoimmune disease persists. So one of the interventions that we know helps with fatigue, based on our research, is regular physical activity.
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The problem becomes that many people become less physically active and it’s difficult to pick up physical activity once you’ve been diagnosed with an autoimmune disease or really any other chronic condition. Sometimes physical activity goes by the wayside and you get out of the routine of doing it. What some of our research also shows for yoga and rheumatologic disease is that for people that were previously sedentary or not moving much, it is a way to get them moving that it’s not only beneficial for improvement of joint pain and improvement of function, but that it really is a safe and effective way to get people that were not moving, moving again.
Amanda Newman (09:25):
So yoga really is a fatigue fighter, if you will.
Lauren Freid, MD (09:28):
As a form of physical activity, absolutely.
Amanda Newman (09:30):
Sounds like I need to start doing it. More than 30 percent of women report some form of back pain like myself. With low-back pain being the most common, how can yoga help and what are some of the poses that can provide some relief?
Lauren Freid, MD (09:48):
So I love this question because it’s one I get a lot from not only my patients, but also friends and family, knowing that I teach yoga in addition to being a doctor. The short answer is that yes, yoga can help with back pain and it’s in many guidelines for the management of chronic back pain. However, there is not a one-size-fits-all prescription of yoga poses that you can use to address your back pain because all back pain is different. So I’m going to tell you the same thing that I tell my patients, which is the first thing you need is a diagnosis for what is the etiology, what is the cause of your back pain? So you should visit your clinician, obtain a diagnosis, and then from there the first step from the clinician is, in most cases, for the patient to be referred to physical therapy.
(10:36):
My advice to patients is often that you should start doing research on where and how you would like to practice yoga while you’re in physical therapy and talk to your physical therapist about starting yoga while you are enrolled in physical therapy. When you start your yoga practice, you’re then able to identify those postures, those asanas in your yoga practice that are similar to those exercises that you’re doing in physical therapy, carry those with you as you continue your yoga practice. And then you’re essentially continuing your physical therapy with your yoga practice to manage your back pain.
Amanda Newman (11:12):
That was so helpful. Because I’m someone who really struggles with low-back pain because I have scoliosis. I had spinal fusion, which helped address some issues, but sitting for long periods of time is really difficult for me. So I love that you just outlined some ways that you really can address side by side with your clinician and with your physical therapist if yoga is potentially a good way to treat the back pain.
Lauren Freid, MD (11:39):
Yes, absolutely.
Amanda Newman (11:41):
Moving on to the heart, let’s talk about how yoga can improve cardiovascular health in women.
Lauren Freid, MD (11:48):
So I think that it goes back to some of the guidelines that we already talked about. Some things we know about heart health that really apply to yoga are simply that physical activity in general reduces many of our cardiovascular risk factors. The contrary is also true: Sedentary behavior or sitting too much, not being physically active, increases the risk of cardiovascular disease. So the recommendations from the American Heart Association are to sit less and be more active, to do at least 75 minutes of cardiovascular activity every week and to do some form of resistance exercise.
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I think the question becomes for women today, many of us are working full time, maybe we have children, we’re running a household, many other responsibilities. How do you have the time to do all of the recommended physical activity that can reduce your cardiovascular risk? Yoga, I believe is an answer. As we talked about, you can do or achieve many of those recommended forms of physical activity with a single yoga practice. If you’re moving very quickly, you can even achieve some cardiovascular or aerobic activity with your yoga practice. So it really becomes, I think, for women an efficient way that they can exercise and achieve cardiovascular risk reduction.
Amanda Newman (13:10):
Wow. My motto is sit less, stand more.
Lauren Freid, MD (13:14):
Absolutely. And that’s what the recommendation is. So you’re doing it.
Amanda Newman (13:18):
I actually just got a walking pad or under-the-desk treadmill for my birthday.
Lauren Freid, MD (13:24):
Me too. I got one.
Amanda Newman (13:24):
For your birthday as well?
Lauren Freid, MD (13:25):
Not for my birthday, just for myself. A gift to myself, but yes.
Amanda Newman (13:28):
Love it. OK. So I’m so excited to set it up and start using it so I can be typing away, being on my meetings and getting some cardio in too.
Lauren Freid, MD (13:36):
Yeah, good for you. That’s wonderful.
Amanda Newman (13:39):
A common myth about yoga is that it’s just stretching and not a workout. Could you debunk that myth and tell us why yoga is a form of strength or resistance training and how can it help build muscle mass?
Lauren Freid, MD (13:53):
Absolutely. I’m just going to put on my yoga teacher hat for this a little bit more than my doctor hat because I think for anybody who’s really practicing a lot of yoga, they would listen to you say that and be like, “Oh, my goodness, that’s not true. I’ve gotten so strong from my yoga practice.” So if we just run through some of the more common yoga postures, yoga positions, chair pose, very similar to a squat you might see somebody doing in a gym. Warrior 1 pose very similar to a lunge. Some of our other postures, chaturanga, it’s essentially a tricep push-up. So if you just think of it in that context, many of these movements that we’re doing in our yoga practice are things that you would see people doing in a strength-building workout routine. There also is research that shows that yoga can build a muscle mass, especially in women, especially in the lower extremities. But yeah, just thinking of yoga in terms of the postures that we do, if you really break it down, you can see that it is a strength-building practice, not just flexibility.
Amanda Newman (14:58):
I think what’s so interesting that I’ve learned in researching for this podcast is how much overlap there is with yoga and strength training and dance. I grew up dancing and I did not know half the time I was doing so many different things that were actually yoga poses, like child’s pose and tabletop and one-legged pigeon. That’s something that I do regularly.
Lauren Freid, MD (15:21):
Yes, absolutely. Absolutely, yes.
Amanda Newman (15:23):
It’s just really neat to see it all come together.
Lauren Freid, MD (15:23):
See, yeah, how it translates from one practice to another. And that’s something that I think makes yoga such a great thing to start with. When you’re first becoming physically active, and if it’s something that’s new for you, so you haven’t been physically active for a while and you want to try yoga as something to start with. There really is this focus on alignment and focus on doing the postures correctly, and that really can translate to different types of physical activity that you might want to start doing after you become more physically active through a yoga practice.
Amanda Newman (15:58):
Now we’ve seen some people recommend yoga for other problems women commonly run into, things like migraines and incontinence. If someone wants to try yoga to help with these or other medical conditions, what would you tell them?
Lauren Freid, MD (16:12):
It’s a great question and it’s very much connected to the one we discussed for back pain. I’m sure if you did a scroll of our medical research database, PubMed, you’d find lots of research that says yoga can help with migraines, yoga can help with bladder dysfunction. I’m sure that it can. But every medical problem we have is very unique, and so I’ll say the same thing that I said. First thing is to visit your clinician, get a diagnosis, find out what the underlying issue is, and then ask your clinician. If you look things up and you’re curious and you research, bring that to your clinician. They can guide you as to whether or not yoga might be something that’s right for you to help with that.
Amanda Newman (16:54):
What about pregnancy? Can women continue practicing yoga when they are pregnant?
Lauren Freid, MD (16:59):
So I think the short answer to your question is yes, probably. But there are three general rules or recommendations that I give to people or women who are pregnant and want to continue their yoga practice. The first – you probably won’t be surprised – is to check with your obstetrician, your clinician, and make sure that it is something that’s safe for you. Every pregnancy is different. There may or may not be reasons why yoga is a safe practice for you to continue during your pregnancy, and only your clinician will know that. So the first thing to do is check with your clinician. The second tip that I give to people who are pregnant and want to continue practicing is to simply review the guidelines that are available to all of us online from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists about engaging in physical activity and exercise during pregnancy and the postpartum period.
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These are general physical activity recommendations. However, there is a lot that you’ll find in there for things maybe such as temperature regulation and certain poses even, and exercises that may or may not be safe during different stages of pregnancy in those guidelines. So I think whether it’s yoga or something else that you’re going to continue, it might be a good idea to review those guidelines. The third is to take your practice with a prenatal teacher. Many people don’t know that there are yoga teachers that are specifically certified in prenatal yoga. They are made aware of things that are safe to do, things that are more beneficial to do in a yoga practice. So rather than maybe taking a traditional yoga class, give yourself that gift of making time for specifically a prenatal yoga class.
Amanda Newman (18:35):
Treating yourself…
Lauren Freid, MD (18:37):
Absolutely.
Amanda Newman (18:37):
Cause you are carrying a little life. And that is a lot. So take the prenatal class.
Lauren Freid, MD (18:43):
Absolutely.
Amanda Newman (18:44):
So we all want to know the secret to aging gracefully. Why is yoga a great anti-aging tool?
Lauren Freid, MD (18:53):
So this is a great question and it’s one I get from patients in my office and also just from my friends and family and my day-to-day life. So one of the subjects that we talk about when we talk about aging is this concept of frailty. And frailty is diminished reserve across multiple physiologic systems, which makes us susceptible to stressors, which increases the risk of morbidity and mortality. Yoga has recently had some research demonstrating that it’s beneficial for these factors that are used to measure our levels of frailty. These are things like gait speed and endurance, and it’s been shown as a form of exercise that is beneficial for these factors that influence frailty. It’s not shown that it’s any more beneficial than other forms of resistance exercise. So the really important thing is for you to be physically active. However, it’s been shown that yoga is one of these forms of activity that can help to combat frailty.
Amanda Newman (19:52):
Most important thing is to get moving and keep moving.
Lauren Freid, MD (19:55):
Yes, you got it.
Amanda Newman (19:57):
How about at the office? How can yoga counteract the physical stressors of a sedentary desk job?
Lauren Freid, MD (20:04):
When I think about applying yoga practice to what we’re doing in the office day-to-day, it actually goes back to something that we talked about earlier, which is the use of props. So what I told you earlier was that we use props in our yoga practice to support us so that we can feel supported and achieve the true essence of the practice of the posture that we’re in. I think the same thing goes for when you are at work and when you’re in the office in terms of ergonomic modifications. It’s thinking about, this is applying the use of yoga props when you’re in the office, right? So rather than sitting in a chair that’s maybe too low for you so that your hips are really flexed and you’re slumping forward, your chair needs to be a little bit higher. Maybe you even bring a yoga block to work and use that as a prop so that you’re sitting with your hips above your knees.
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Maybe you need to adjust your monitor so it’s at the right height so that you’re not slumping forward. Maybe you need a standing desk so that you’re not sitting all day. Maybe you just need to elevate your desk so that it’s at the correct height for you. So a lot of people ask me about yoga at the office. What are some things that I can do when I’m at the office to decrease stress or to stretch out? What are some yoga poses I can do? When I get that question, I really think about yoga props more than anything else. Prop yourself up at the office so that you can support yourself so that you feel OK while you’re in the position you’re working in.
Amanda Newman (21:25):
I have a standing desk and it has been a total game changer. And it sounds like both of us are going to be busy and getting our walking pads out as well.
Lauren Freid, MD (21:33):
Absolutely.
(21:34):
Do you have one of those memory foam pads as well that you can stand on? Because that’s another thing I tell people to do.
Amanda Newman (21:39):
OK. I think I’ll have to add to cart after this.
Lauren Freid, MD (21:42):
I just use that personally. I think it feels really nice on my feet.
Amanda Newman (21:45):
Nice. I’ll have to... You know what, I have one of those in the kitchen, but I don’t have one in my office. OK. All right.
Lauren Freid, MD (21:50):
Little standing pad as well.
Amanda Newman (21:51):
I got to level up my office a little bit at home. How about emotional stressors? Whether it is work related or from stress because of other factors, how can yoga improve your mood and lead to a less cluttered mind?
Lauren Freid, MD (22:06):
So I’ll put on my yoga teacher hat to answer the first part of that question. One of our yoga sutras that you might’ve heard before is, “yogas citta vritti nirodha,” which means yoga is the quieting of the fluctuations of the mind. So when we’re talking about that connection that we talked about at the beginning of our discussion, we’re talking about connecting the movements of the mind with the movements of the body first, when we’re first starting our practice. And the purpose of the yoga practice itself is to prepare the mind for quiet time.
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Prepare the time for that time at the end of your yoga practice if you’ve been to one before, which is called savasana, when you’re laying on the floor and your mind is clear. So one of the major components of yoga is simply that. It is a physical practice – or the asana practice of yoga … we talked about. It’s a very big thing. It’s a whole lifestyle. But simply the asana practice that we talked about is meant to prepare the mind to be quiet for that quiet meditation when you’re done moving your body. Because of that, there’s been a lot more investigation, particularly in settings like the one I work in, as yoga for an intervention in professions where there might be higher levels of stress or more …
Amanda Newman (23:27):
Burnout?
Lauren Freid, MD (23:28):
Burnout, yes. So we use yoga a lot or we’re looking at the use of yoga to combat burnout, particularly in those settings where there’s a lot of emotional connection for people where there’s a lot of interpersonal connection, clinician, patient or a setting like that. Lots for medical residencies actually using yoga as an intervention to combat burnout.
Amanda Newman (23:52):
We’ve really been focusing on so much of the physical health benefits of yoga, but also the mental health benefits as well and how it can quiet your mind and it’s something that can help you combat things like burnout.
Lauren Freid, MD (24:05):
Yeah, it’s something that can really just help you to calm and modulate your nervous system.
Amanda Newman (24:09):
Which we all need more of that.
Lauren Freid, MD (24:11):
Definitely.
Amanda Newman (24:13):
So how often should you do yoga to reap the most health benefits?
Lauren Freid, MD (24:17):
So I will respond first with my yoga teacher hat, quoting one of our yoga sutras, which is, “sthiram sukham asanam,” which means the practice should be one that is steady without tension and one with ease without laziness. So however many times you’re practicing yoga a week, you want it to be something that is strong and steady, but not something that’s stressing you out. And not something that is just – kind of what you got to earlier – you’re like, is yoga just flexibility? No, it’s not that. It’s something more. So …however many times you’re practicing in a week, you want it to be a number of times that you feel like it’s something that’s supporting you in a positive way. So that’s my yoga teacher answer.
(25:04):
More of a clinician answer is that some movement is better than any movement, and that’s what we tell everyone and that’s what’s in line with our guidelines. So we want people to just get moving and, like we talked about earlier, yoga is a great way to move from being previously sedentary to more physically active. Once you’ve started to become more physically active, if you’re utilizing yoga as one of your main forms of physical activity to achieve your resistance exercise, your flexibility exercise, your balance exercises, then most of our guidelines say you should be doing those things two to three times a week. So once you’re practicing yoga, if it’s one of your main forms of physical activity, then two to three times a week, I would say.
Amanda Newman (25:45):
I know for me, when I’m trying to get into an exercise routine, sometimes instead of being consistent, I end up stressed out because I’m trying to do too much at once.
Lauren Freid, MD (25:55):
Yes, that’s the last thing we want, is your yoga practice to be stressful.
Amanda Newman (25:58):
No, we already have enough stress.
Lauren Freid, MD (26:00):
Of course.
Amanda Newman (26:00):
We don’t need any more. Start small and then keep building upon the practice.
Lauren Freid, MD (26:05):
And that’s exactly what the guidelines recommend. Start small and then slowly increase.
Amanda Newman (26:10):
Do you have any tips for finding a yoga class to stay consistent?
Lauren Freid, MD (26:14):
Got lots of tips. So the first one is to do your research. So many of my patients, when we discuss medications, they want to do research on it before they decide if it’s the right thing for them. And I say the same thing about utilizing any form of physical activity, but especially yoga. If you want to use it as something that is part of your routine to make you feel better, do your research. You can start by looking online and seeing just what’s accessible to you in your area. There’s lots of resources. Maybe it’s a new gym, maybe it’s a YMCA, maybe a community center, maybe there’s a yoga studio that’s close to you where you can easily access the classes. Like I said, I don’t want it to be something that stresses you out where you have to drive 30 minutes in traffic and then you miss the class, right?
(26:57):
The second is to look at who’s really offering the class. You will be surprised how much information these places put on their websites about who’s offering the class and the different types of training that these people have. Many yoga teachers might actually also be physical therapists. There’s also people who are certified yoga therapists who have done special training. There’s trauma-informed yoga. There’s yoga for athletes. There’s yoga for people over the age of 65. There’s yoga for chronic illnesses. There’s such a wide variety of yoga that is offered and it’s tailored to specific needs.
(27:34):
So rather than just saying, “Hey, I want to start yoga, I think I’m going to walk into this yoga class,” really do your research to try to select a practice, a type of practice that you at least think at the outset is going to serve you. And the final part is just go with your gut. If you walk in somewhere and it doesn’t feel right, it doesn’t mean yoga’s not right for you. It just might not be the right fit. You can always go back and try again. You should feel comfortable where you are, so don’t let one bad experience, if you have one, deter you.
Amanda Newman (28:13):
So as we were talking about earlier, there really is something for everyone when it comes to yoga.
Lauren Freid, MD (28:18):
Yes, it’s an extremely versatile practice that can be adapted to any age, stage of your life or anything you’re really dealing with.
Amanda Newman (28:26):
So to wrap up today’s episode, where can listeners learn more?
Lauren Freid, MD (28:29):
So as a rheumatologist, there’s two resources I generally give to my patients about yoga. The first is ... I refer them to check out the Arthritis Foundation website. They have a lot of great resources on physical activity and those pertaining specifically to starting a yoga practice with arthritis as well. The second is a program called Yoga for Arthritis. If you Google Yoga for Arthritis, you can find it. It’s a program of yoga specifically tailored to people living with arthritis. And they have a database on there of teachers who have been trained in this style of yoga.
(29:00):
So you can look up if somebody – like we were talking about earlier, doing research – you can look up if one of these teachers is teaching somewhere near you. Other general resources I give to people are a website called Yoga International. They’ve got a lot of great resources. Also, yoga for injury prevention. And then just checking out your local community centers, your local YMCAs. They generally have good teachers there who are good at teaching introductory-level yoga. Specifically in the Lehigh Valley, I’ve told a few of my patients about the Iyengar Yoga Center of the Lehigh Valley. It’s a great place to practice with a very experienced, very informed teacher. And, off the top of my head, those are just some of the resources that I would offer.
Amanda Newman (29:47):
That’s wonderful. Thank you so much, Dr. Freid, for joining us today and sharing so much great information for our listeners.
Lauren Freid, MD (29:54):
Thanks for having me.
Amanda Newman (29:55):
To learn more health tips, visit LVHN.org/healthyyou. Remember to subscribe or follow The Healthiest You wherever you get your podcasts, so you never miss an episode. And remember, be safe, be smart and be the healthiest you.
