• Exercises harmful to the spine: what you need to know. Five of the most useful exercises for strengthening the spine Rolls on the back

    08.09.2023

    Yoga for the spine can be very beneficial if done regularly and correctly. Back problems can happen to anyone, so knowing some exercises will be important not only for fans of everything oriental, but also for those who want to monitor the health of their joints. In addition to the beneficial effect in the cervical and lumbar region, a person will find balance and harmony with his body, which is sometimes more important than just quick healing from sores.

    Yoga therapy of the spine, like any training, requires a responsible and constant approach, so you must devote 2-3 days to it every week. It is through regular exercise that you can achieve visible results. What else you should know about training:

    • it is necessary not only to attend the group and perform all the exercises in it, but also to independently study ancient texts in order to quickly understand the meaning of this movement;
    • exercises during the training sessions themselves must be performed collected and concentrated, because cervical spine problems will not be cured by being distracted;
    • You cannot set yourself the task of learning as many different poses as possible, because it is more important to concentrate on correctly performing the few that are known.

    Healing activities

    There are a number of ways to relax and strengthen the muscles of the back and lumbar region. Some may seem extremely difficult for an unprepared body, so you should not try to do them right away, since yoga for the spine is about harmony with the body, but not mockery of it.

    News line ✆

    The exercises require you to follow the same training ritual before starting. For this it is necessary.

    1. The skin of the back touches the floor.
    2. You need to stand on your elbows and stretch out all the vertebrae.
    3. Each of the joints should touch the yoga mat.
    4. Next, you need to grab your shoulder blades and move slightly on them on the mat.
    5. After this, the hands are placed behind the head, and the body is stretched so that the muscles of the cervical and back feel it.

    After this procedure, you can begin a full-fledged lesson.

    Stretching muscles using rolls

    If you have recently had a back injury, then exercises of this type are the most suitable. They cannot aggravate it, but they are quite capable of relieving joint pain, of course, with the right approach. Of course, sometimes the sensations are so unpleasant that it is impossible to roll on the floor, but in this case, rocking from side to side can help. This is done as follows.

    1. Lying down, you need to bend your knees and grab them with your arms.
    2. The stomach is tucked and slightly tense.
    3. A roll is made first forward, then back, but so as not to tumble over your head.
    4. To avoid injury to your back, you need to keep it rounded, and there should be no impact when it comes into contact with the floor.
    5. It is worth performing 5 approaches of 30 seconds each.

    Lying down stretch with knees apart

    This activity perfectly stretches all the muscles of the back and cervical spine without injuring the joints. Execution occurs in the following way.

    1. The body lies on its back, and the knees are covered with the palms and bent.
    2. The coccygeal region stretches down, dragging the entire spine along with it.
    3. The position is held in this position for a couple of minutes.
    4. Stretching the muscular frame in a position against the wall.
    5. The body lies sideways against the wall, and the legs are raised along it.
    6. The upper limbs are extended behind the head.
    7. After this, you need to stretch well, pressing your back muscles to the mat.
    8. Fixation occurs for 120 seconds.

    Marjariasana

    These exercises are also called the stretching cat pose. It implies.

    1. Get on your knees and hands, forming a standard cat gait.
    2. The chin should touch the chest, while the back muscles form a small hump.
    3. Inhaling, you need to move your head and eyes up, looking at the ceiling, arching your back in the opposite direction.
    4. The approaches are performed without haste for 3 minutes.

    Stretching the vertebrae using pillows

    These exercises are an excellent alternative to rolling, which cannot be performed by those people who suffer from diseases of the joints of the cervical and lumbar spine. Required.

    1. Find two medium-hard pads.
    2. Place them under the pelvis and stomach, and then sit on them.
    3. In this position, stretch your toes forward, stretching your body.
    4. Hold for 2 minutes.

    Strengthening activities

    These exercises are aimed at strengthening the joints of the back and cervical spine, which distinguishes them from previous ones aimed at stretching.

    First strengthening

    This part of the training involves the following:

    • stretch while in a supine position;
    • arms at your sides and palms down;
    • You should perform 3 sets of 3-5 chest lifts from the yoga mat.

    Shalabhasana

    These exercises are great for relieving discomfort in the cervical back area. Important:

    • the lying position is maintained, and the body is relaxed and extended;
    • the arms stretch forward and upward, as if towards the sun;
    • the legs come off the surface;
    • it is necessary to count the number of inhalations and exhalations before fatigue begins to affect the body;
    • You cannot do an excessively large load, as this only harms the back.

    Tilts

    In addition to strengthening the muscular frame and joints of the spine, it is important not to forget about the front part of the body, since only the combined work of the whole body can relieve any ailments. In this element, training practice follows.

    1. Take a lying position on the carpet.
    2. Legs are bent at the knees and spaced slightly wider than shoulder width.
    3. The spine gently rounds, and the stomach retracts.
    4. the torso rises from the surface due to the press.
    5. Along a similar route and again slowly the person returns to the starting point.

    Strengthening the side press

    This activity should increase the power of the spine and abs of the practitioner, but you should be very careful when performing it, as the likelihood of injury is high.

    1. You will need to lie face up with your knees bent.
    2. Hands behind the head, and palms in the lock.
    3. When you exhale, the body lifts off the floor.
    4. You can inhale while slowly returning to the starting position.
    5. Performed in 3 series of 4-5 repetitions.

    Yoga is a great way not only to heal ailments of the joints of the cervical and lumbar spine, but also to get to know your body. All exercises will develop a person in every sense, leading to harmony with the world around him and himself. The most important thing is that yoga does not tolerate haste, so all training will require patience and endurance, since only with the help of these two virtues can you achieve maximum results, but you should not count on immediate results. However, consistency and perseverance will definitely lead to success.

    How are rolls beneficial for your back?

    We talked not long ago about how important stretching is for us. After all, because we don’t know how to relax and stretch properly, back problems often arise. It gets sick here and there, at any age it’s bad. But if other problems are added to a sore back, then it becomes completely bad. The easiest way to stretch the spine and get rid of tension is to roll. This exercise is used in both athletics and wrestling. This exercise is also available to us at home. To perform it, no additional projectiles or special skills are required. Everyone can group correctly, we were taught this back in school. Remember?

    Starting position: sitting on the floor, preferably on a mat, clasp your knees with your hands and smoothly roll onto your back, pressing your chin to your knees. Avoid jerking; do not perform the exercise on a hard surface, so as not to experience unpleasant sensations when the vertebrae touch the floor. A gymnastic mat or blanket is best for performing the exercise. To completely relax the spine and release tension, you will need to do this exercise 5-6 times.

    You can perform rolls with your legs crossed.

    This exercise is slightly different from the previous one, the starting position is the same, sitting on the floor. Perform a roll while simultaneously crossing your legs, pulling your chin to your chest, pulling your legs towards you by the feet, and not by the knees, as in the previous exercise. After completing the roll, return to the starting position.

    If you have problems with your back, then you need to perform rolls carefully, pull your legs towards you only slightly, it is important to “roll” on your spine, you will immediately feel better. This exercise should not be performed by those who have acute back pain if the doctor has recommended complete rest and bed rest. Be careful in your endeavors, approach responsibly any exercise that may harm your health.

    A healthy back and beautiful posture are a luxury that many cannot afford. This is due to a sedentary lifestyle, incorrect position of the spine while sitting, the habit of slouching, uncomfortable shoes, stress on the back and many others. Sometimes we don’t even notice how much harm we cause to our body by not caring about our back health. Many diseases of internal organs, headaches, decreased tone, and a sagging belly are just a consequence of a tired back.

    It is important to perform daily, preferably in the morning and evening, back exercises. Everyone knows a few magical exercises, but for some reason they don’t do them. I suggest you do just one thing exercise for the spine and strengthening the back muscles - back rolls. During this exercise, the deep muscles (stabilizing muscles) are stretched, the mobility of the vertebrae is normalized, the muscles of the back and abdomen are tightened, and the entire back is massaged under the weight of its own weight (this activates many biologically active points). The result is a surge of strength and vigor, excellent health, good posture, and a toned stomach.

    Exercise to strengthen your back muscles

    Back extension (back rolls)

    The exercise is performed on the floor; for convenience, lay a mat.

    1. Starting position - sit on the floor, bend your knees and clasp them with your hands, pulling them towards you, round your back, tilt your head towards your knees. Imagine that your body is a ball.

    2. Tighten your abs, lift your feet off the floor and do a soft roll on your back with maximum amplitude. While rolling back, inhale.

    3. Moving by inertia, return to the starting position. Exhalation.

    The exercise is performed daily in 3 sets of 6-12 times.

    During the exercise, you must maintain the original body position. The body should roll without visible help from the arms and legs, but with their tension. When rolling back, try to pull in your stomach.

    If at first it is difficult or painful to perform rolls on your back, then you can do rocking with a small amplitude for several days.

    Categories

    Exercises to strengthen the spine. A person’s appearance, his gait, and the way he moves can say a lot about his health. When the spine is healthy, a person walks easily, freely, and does not feel his body. If alignment is disturbed, then this affects other functions of the body: the respiratory, cardiovascular, digestive, and excretory systems suffer.

    Many people suffer from headaches, they take medications to no avail, and the reason often lies in osteochondrosis of the cervical spine, when the arteries of the cervical vertebrae are additionally pinched and the brain is less well supplied with blood. By the way, vision also suffers from poor circulation.

    Your Zest I have already written about how you can do lightening exercises in the workplace to relieve tension in the cervical spine for those who, due to the nature of their work, have to sit for a long time at a desk and computer: Lightening exercises in the workplace.

    Sedentary work affects not only the cervical spine, but also the lumbar spine; as a result, even radiculitis can worsen. You can see gymnastics against radiculitis, which helps strengthen the lumbar spine. An effective complex for radiculitis.

    Only physical exercise will help strengthen and improve the overall health of the spine. When the vertebrae are normally stretched, the nerve endings are not compressed, the passage of nerve impulses to various organs and tissue nutrition improves. By performing these exercises, the spine lengthens and the muscles that support it in an already stretched state are strengthened. It’s not for nothing that they say: if you lengthen your spine, you lengthen your youth. In this article Your Zest wants to present 5 of the most useful exercises for the spine, by regularly performing which you can work out and train all parts of the spine in a variety of ways - cervical, thoracic, and lumbar, strengthen the ligaments and muscles that support it. As a result, your posture will improve, your internal organs will become stronger, and you will begin to breathe correctly. In order for the process of healing the spine and all its parts to take place, these 5 exercises must be done regularly - daily or at least every other day. The floor surface should be flat and hard; for exercise you will need a mat, thin mattress or terry towel.

    1 Exercise. Rifles

    I.p. - sitting on the floor, pull your legs towards your body, your feet should be pressed against each other. Wrap your hands around your legs at the ankles, pressing your chin to your knees. In this position, the back of the head, neck and back form one arc. Roll back onto your back and return to the starting position. Roll on your back 10 to 20 times, breathing randomly. Important: rolls should only be performed on a flat floor, so as not to displace the vertebrae.

    Effect: this is a very beneficial exercise for the spine - it strengthens the spine and develops flexibility, and thereby helps in the treatment of diseases such as rheumatism, brain diseases, and in addition, the exercise strengthens memory.

    After the exercise, relax a little and move on to the next one.

    2 Exercise. Cobra

    I.p. - lying on your stomach, face down, heels and toes connected, chin resting on the mat.

    Place your hands on the floor and lift your upper torso as high as possible without lifting the lower half of your abdomen up to your navel. Throw your head back as far as you can, your eyes looking up. You need to breathe through your nose, randomly, then slowly return to the starting position. Repeat the exercise 5-10 times.

    For those who can already easily do this exercise, here is a more complex version:

    Perform all the movements as described above - bend up and back, and then turn your head over your right shoulder so that you can see the heel of your left foot. It is important that the arms and legs remain in place and the lower abdomen does not come off. Slowly turn your head forward and do the same, but turning your head over your left shoulder to see the heel of your right foot. Then bend up again, slowly throw your head back and return to the starting position, lower yourself down. Repeat the exercise, but following a different sequence of movements - up, left, right, up, down.

    When performing this exercise, it is important to make smooth movements, stay in each position for half a minute, for this you can slowly count to yourself to 30.

    Effect: the spine becomes more flexible, stoop and other curvatures of the spine are eliminated, beautiful posture appears, the functioning of the entire digestive tract improves, in particular, intestinal motility increases, and it is also good gymnastics for the eyes. With this exercise you can cure radiculitis.

    3. Exercise. Triangle

    I.p. – standing on the floor, spread your legs wide enough, the distance between your legs is about a meter. Stretch your arms to the sides, palms down. Slowly lean to the left until you feel tension in your right side. Strive to reach your left foot with your left hand, your right arm is extended horizontally above your head, do not bend your legs! Stay in this pose for 5-8 seconds and then return to the starting position. Do the same in the other direction - to the right. Perform 3-5 bends in each direction.

    For the more advanced, a more complicated option, but very useful for the spine, since it strengthens the lumbar region and thereby treats radiculitis:

    Take the same starting position as described above. Slowly bend down while rotating at the waist, with your right hand moving towards your right leg until it touches it, your left hand raised up. The gaze is directed to the fingertips of the hand raised vertically upward. It is important to keep your legs and back straight during the exercise! Hold this pose for 5 seconds and return to the starting position.

    Repeat the bends in both directions at least 3 times.

    As you can see, in this exercise in the lumbar region there is not only stretching, but also twisting, the vertebrae move more and this helps to relax the intervertebral discs. The lumbar region is better developed and at the same time strengthened.

    Effect: The exercise strengthens the muscles that support the spine, its flexibility develops, in the first option the lateral surfaces of the body are stretched, which is good for the waist, and in the second option the lumbar spine is well worked out and strengthened.

    4 Exercise. Onion

    I.p. – lying on your stomach, legs bent at the knees, extend your arms, place them behind your back and grab your ankles – inhale. Then, at the same time, slowly raise your head, legs, and torso as high as possible from the floor, throw your head back while holding your breath. Return to the starting position - exhale.

    This exercise also has a second option, for advanced ones, it is more difficult, but over time, you will be able to do it too:

    Perform all the movements as described in the exercise above and then, while holding your breath, do 4-5 rocking back and forth, return to the starting position, relax.

    Effect: the exercise strengthens the gastrointestinal tract, forms a beautiful bust in women and strengthens the chest, and most importantly, it eliminates all deficiencies in the development of the spine.

    5. Exercise. Fish

    The exercise consists of two parts - the first is aimed at stretching the spine, and the second part consists of vibration exercises for the spine, as a result of which the intervertebral discs are worked out, the cells are cleansed of toxins, and blood circulation is normalized.

    I.p. -lying on your back, arms outstretched raised and lying behind your head, legs straightened forward, toes pulled towards you. Begin to stretch your legs one at a time, moving your heels forward a little - first the left, then the right, slowly counting to yourself to 5. Do a few of these nice, stretching movements. Then put your hands behind your head, under your neck, elbows on the floor, bring your legs together, pull your socks towards you. In this position, begin to oscillate left and right, like a fish in water. It is useful to do this exercise for 2-3 minutes in the morning and evening.

    Effect: the exercise promotes the formation of individual vertebrae in their places, eliminates scoliosis and other curvatures of the spine, enhances intestinal motility, and normalizes blood circulation.

    You can include these exercises in your morning exercise routine. Performing data regularly exercises to strengthen the spine, in just a couple of weeks you will feel that his condition will improve significantly, the pain will go away, and it will become easier for you to bend and straighten when bending. In addition, you will acquire correct posture and breathing, and become more resilient.

    Do not try to immediately perform the recommended number of repetitions; start small - with 2-3 repetitions of each exercise. Remember that all movements must be performed at a slow pace, fixing and holding in each position (start with 5 seconds and work up to 30 seconds) in order to make the muscles stronger and stronger, better able to support the spine. If your muscles hurt and feel tired the next day, reduce the number of repetitions, but do not stop doing the exercises. After a few sessions, muscle pain will go away as you become more trained.

    Only daily work aimed at working out the main parts of the spine will help you cope with radiculitis, cervical osteochondrosis, and other spinal problems. Remember to spend at least half an hour a day to keep your spine in good condition. After all, beautiful posture, a flying gait, and the condition of all internal organs and systems in the human body depend on his health.

    More articles on this topic:

    A simple and effective set of Pilates exercises for losing weight and improving your body health

    A set of exercises for back flexibility

    If your neck is tired - relieving gymnastics in the workplace

    An effective set of exercises for radiculitis

    Therapeutic exercises for joints

    How to quickly get in shape. A set of effective exercises.

    Office gymnastics to relieve pain and fatigue of the back and neck in the workplace

    Preparing the body for spring - gymnastics for an ideal figure

    Backache? A set of exercises will help

    Excessive range of motion is unacceptable for a diseased spine

    The well-known saying “Physical education heals, but sport cripples” can be rephrased as “Proper physical education heals, but incorrect physical education cripples.” Indeed, physical therapy (physical therapy) can cause serious harm to health, and its classical movements will turn into exercises that are dangerous for the spine, joints, and other body systems.

    Common Common Mistakes

    Therapeutic physical movements turn into dangerous exercises if the rules of exercise therapy are violated during classes:

    1. Most special exercises are performed only when there is a stable absence of pain. At the acute stage of the disease or during its exacerbation, as well as in the early postoperative period, breathing exercises and a small amount of exercises affecting healthy joints are performed.
    2. The exercise can be carried out in the absence of high intracranial and blood pressure. Elevated body temperature, an acute period of an infectious disease, a sharp exacerbation of any other chronic pathology, poor health are direct contraindications to therapeutic training.
    3. The type, number of repetitions and approaches, sequence of execution, amplitude and tempo of movement, the amount of physical activity received from a specific exercise and from the session as a whole are among the indicators that must be approved by the treating specialist.

    An example by analogy. The doctor wrote out a prescription to take the medicine: 3 times a day, 2 tablets, after meals, with 250 ml of water. The patient bought a drug with a similar name, drank it 5 times a day, 4 tablets, before meals, and swallowed the tablets without washing down. The conclusions are obvious.

    1. Each exercise therapy session should begin with a warm-up of the joints and muscles, and end with a final relaxation exercise. Even healthy, but “unwarmed” joints are easily injured, and therapeutic movements performed without preliminary warm-up will turn into exercises harmful to the spine. Excessive haste at the end of the lesson will reduce all efforts to nothing.
    2. You can exercise only 60-90 minutes after the main meal. Violating this rule additionally burdens the body, distracting it from the digestion process. In addition, if you have problems with the lumbar region, exercising on a full stomach can lead to an exacerbation of the pathology, since the biomechanics of movements will be different from the usual.
    3. It is necessary to strictly follow the “Golden Rule” of exercise therapy – if pain occurs, the session ends immediately. If the problem occurs the next time, you should consult a doctor.

    A hygienic shower can be dangerous for joint health

    On a note. If you take a shower, then refrain from hardening procedures, and before swimming in the pool, do not steam! When taking water procedures after physical therapy, the initial water temperature should not be lower than 29 ° C.

    Exercises that are dangerous for your back joints

    So what exercises are harmful to the spine, and when does “medicine turn into poison”? The video will not be presented in this article, but exercises dangerous to the spine will be accompanied by photos and explanations.

    Cervical region

    For diseases of the cervical spine (see Therapeutic exercises for osteochondrosis of the cervical spine - a complex indicated for almost everyone), some exercises should be performed with extreme caution. The cost of ignoring the warning is too high - fainting, memory impairment, ischemic stroke, paralysis of the arms.

    Image and title Common mistakes and recommendations

    Tilts and turns to the side

    Warm-up before the main part of the lesson should begin with the joints of the legs, then the lower and middle parts of the spine, the shoulder girdle, and only after that warm up the neck.

    Movements should not be sharp, jerky, or performed through effort or pain.

    To strengthen your neck muscles, perform static exercises with tension.

    Tilt with rotation (in different projections)

    This exercise is prohibited from performing with hernias in the cervical spine. From everyone else it will require especially increased attention.

    Before performing this type of neck twist, it is better to get an “educational” consultation with an orthopedist or sports doctor.

    Crunches

    While strengthening your abdominal muscles, do not “pull yourself by the neck” by clasping your hands behind your head. This leads to the fact that the load on the abdominal muscles is reduced, and the cervical spine, on the contrary, is overloaded. You should not train your abdominal muscles with your arms extended upward.

    While pumping your abs, keep your arms in the following positions: a) crossed over your chest; b) hands near the ears; c) stretched forward along the body.

    If you have pathologies of the cervical spine, you should not swim in the Brass and Butterfly styles - these are harmful exercises for the spine. Moreover, if you are not trained to move in the water Freestyle (Front Crawl), then the only way left at your disposal is the Back Crawl.

    Important! Despite the assurances of numerous private clinics and centers that treat back pathologies about the healing power of manual manipulation, WHO instructions prohibit the use of chiropractors for patients diagnosed with herniated disc and spinal joint instability.

    Thoracic region

    Despite the fact that pathologies of the thoracic spine are rare (see How to treat thoracic osteochondrosis at different stages of the disease), there are exercises for the spine that are harmful in their biomechanical component.

    Lumbosacral junction

    Image Description

    Bend the torso to the side

    If your lower back is bothering you, then you should refrain from bending to the side combined with turns.

    You can lean forward, but at the same time you need to slightly bend your knees and maintain the natural deflection of the spine.

    The girl in the photo is performing one of the variations of the Bridge exercise, which is only suitable for people with a healthy spine - she arches her lower back.

    With a problematic back, this exercise should be done so that the spine always remains straight (green line).

    In the starting positions: standing or lying on your stomach, arching your back is also prohibited.

    Everyone's favorite exercise, the Cat (angry, happy, looking at the tail), is also on the list of prohibited exercises!

    If you need to perform movements while standing on your knees, then your back should be straight. The exception is the cervical region.

    From a standing position, you also cannot lean forward on straight legs, rounding your back.

    Starting positions – sitting

    Absolutely all exercises that are performed in a sitting position are dangerous for the spine with lower back problems.

    A physical therapy session should consist of 20% exercises in a standing position and 80% in a lying position.

    All parts of the spine

    The photo gallery of prohibited exercises for diseases of the spinal column presented below does not need additional comments.

    You will have to give up playing football, volleyball, basketball and tennis. Cycling - after consultation with a doctor

    And in conclusion, let us remind you once again that physical therapy exercises will be useful and effective only if a treatment plan with their help is developed by the attending physician, taking into account all the nuances of the state of health and the individual characteristics of the development of the disease.

    Rolling Back is a Pilates exercise for stretching and massaging the spine and back muscles.

    Exercise technique

    Initial position. Sit on the mat and, bringing your legs together, pull your knees towards your chest to gather your whole body into a tight ball. Bend your head toward your knees as far as flexibility allows. Wrap your hands tightly around your shins. Lift your feet off the floor and balance only on your buttocks.

    Inhale. Roll back gently on your back.

    Exhalation. Roll forward to return to the starting position. Repeat the rolls on your back 10 times.

    Main working muscles

    Muscles that flex and stabilize the spine: rectus abdominis, external oblique, internal oblique, transverse abdominis.

    Accessory muscles

    Muscles that flex the leg at the hip joint: iliopsoas muscle, rectus femoris muscle.

    Muscles that extend the leg at the hip joint: gluteus maximus, hamstrings.

    Adductor muscles of the thigh: adductor longus, adductor brevis, adductor magnus, gracilis.

    Muscles that extend the leg at the knee joint: quadriceps femoris.

    Muscles that extend the arm in the shoulder joint: latissimus dorsi, teres major, pectoralis major (sternocostal band).

    Muscles that flex the arm at the elbow joint: biceps, brachialis.

    In the 1st phase of rolling on your back, pull in your stomach so that your spine takes the shape of the letter “C” from your head to your tailbone. The hip flexor muscles keep the legs suspended.

    At the beginning of the 2nd phase, draw in your stomach even more to tilt your pelvis back and, leaving the state of balance, gently roll back. Don't try to roll too far; the movement should end in the upper back.

    To facilitate the transition to the return movement in phase 3, use the hip extensor muscles to move the knees a little further from the chest (the arms limit this movement). The muscles that extend the arm at the shoulder joint pull the feet in a downward direction. At the same time, by contracting your abdominal muscles, bend your spine even more in the lumbar region and move your torso forward.

    Throughout the back roll exercise, try to minimize changes in flexion angles at the hip, knee, and elbow joints. The body should roll as one unit. To do this, use isometric contractions of the muscles of the arms and legs, which create tension but do not produce visible movement. When rolling forward, the legs are only slightly extended at the hip and knee joints, as far as their arms allow them to do so. The hands, in turn, try to pull the ankles towards the buttocks.

    Use your hip adductors to keep your legs together throughout the exercise.

    Mental image. Imagine that you are inside a large gymnastics ball that is rolling back and forth, and your back is molded to the shape of its surface.

    Notes

    Articulation of the spine in the back roll exercise is achieved through the action of many muscles. The goal here is to maintain a constant arch in the back so that each vertebrae makes individual contact with the mat as you roll. This requires alternately activating different muscle groups and maintaining a delicate balance between them. You will need all these skills in many other exercises.

    Modifications

    If your lower back and back thigh muscles are tight and it is difficult for you to return to the starting position, place your hands not on your shins, but on the back of your thighs in the knee area.

    Options

    Place your hands on your ankles and spread your elbows out to the sides. This will allow the spine to bend more in the lumbar region, but slightly less in the thoracic region.

    The well-known saying “Physical education heals, but sport cripples” can be rephrased as “Proper physical education heals, but incorrect physical education cripples.” Indeed, physical therapy (physical therapy) can cause serious harm to health, and its classical movements will turn into exercises that are dangerous for the spine, joints, and other body systems.

    Therapeutic physical movements turn into dangerous exercises if the rules of exercise therapy are violated during classes:

    1. Most special exercises are performed only when there is a stable absence of pain. At the acute stage of the disease or during its exacerbation, as well as in the early postoperative period, breathing exercises and a small amount of exercises affecting healthy joints are performed.
    2. The exercise can be carried out in the absence of high intracranial and blood pressure. Elevated body temperature, an acute period of an infectious disease, a sharp exacerbation of any other chronic pathology, poor health are direct contraindications to therapeutic training.
    3. The type, number of repetitions and approaches, sequence of execution, amplitude and tempo of movement, the amount of physical activity received from a specific exercise and from the session as a whole are among the indicators that must be approved by the treating specialist.

    An example by analogy. The doctor wrote out a prescription to take the medicine: 3 times a day, 2 tablets, after meals, with 250 ml of water. The patient bought a drug with a similar name, drank it 5 times a day, 4 tablets, before meals, and swallowed the tablets without washing down. The conclusions are obvious.

    1. Each exercise therapy session should begin with a warm-up of the joints and muscles, and end with a final relaxation exercise. Even healthy, but “unwarmed” joints are easily injured, and therapeutic movements performed without preliminary warm-up will turn into exercises harmful to the spine. Excessive haste at the end of the lesson will reduce all efforts to nothing.
    2. You can exercise only 60-90 minutes after the main meal. Violating this rule additionally burdens the body, distracting it from the digestion process. In addition, if you have problems with the lumbar region, exercising on a full stomach can lead to an exacerbation of the pathology, since the biomechanics of movements will be different from the usual.
    3. It is necessary to strictly follow the “Golden Rule” of exercise therapy – if pain occurs, the session ends immediately. If the problem occurs the next time, you should consult a doctor.

    On a note. If you take a shower, then refrain from hardening procedures, and before swimming in the pool, do not steam! When taking water procedures after physical therapy, the initial water temperature should not be lower than 29 ° C.

    Exercises that are dangerous for your back joints

    So what exercises are harmful to the spine, and when does “medicine turn into poison”? The video will not be presented in this article, but exercises dangerous to the spine will be accompanied by photos and explanations.

    Cervical region

    For diseases of the cervical spine (see), some exercises should be performed with extreme caution. The cost of ignoring the warning is too high - fainting, memory impairment, ischemic stroke, paralysis of the arms.

    Image and title Common mistakes and recommendations

    Warm-up before the main part of the lesson should begin with the joints of the legs, then the lower and middle parts of the spine, the shoulder girdle, and only after that warm up the neck.

    Movements should not be sharp, jerky, or performed through effort or pain.

    To strengthen your neck muscles, perform static exercises with tension.

    This exercise is prohibited from performing with hernias in the cervical spine. From everyone else it will require especially increased attention.

    Before performing this type of neck twist, it is better to get an “educational” consultation with an orthopedist or sports doctor.

    While strengthening your abdominal muscles, do not “pull yourself by the neck” by clasping your hands behind your head. This leads to the fact that the load on the abdominal muscles is reduced, and the cervical spine, on the contrary, is overloaded. You should not train your abdominal muscles with your arms extended upward.

    While pumping your abs, keep your arms in the following positions: a) crossed over your chest; b) hands near the ears; c) stretched forward along the body.

    If you have pathologies of the cervical spine, you should not swim in the Brass and Butterfly styles - these are harmful exercises for the spine. Moreover, if you are not trained to move in the water Freestyle (Front Crawl), then the only way left at your disposal is the Back Crawl.

    Important! Despite the assurances of numerous private clinics and centers that treat back pathologies about the healing power of manual manipulation, WHO instructions prohibit the use of chiropractors for patients diagnosed with herniated disc and spinal joint instability.

    Thoracic region

    Despite the fact that pathologies of the thoracic spine are rare (see), and there are exercises for the spine that are harmful in their biomechanical component.


    Lumbosacral junction

    Image Description

    If your lower back is bothering you, then you should refrain from bending to the side combined with turns.

    You can lean forward, but at the same time you need to slightly bend your knees and maintain the natural deflection of the spine.

    The girl in the photo is performing one of the variations of the Bridge exercise, which is only suitable for people with a healthy spine - she arches her lower back.

    With a problematic back, this exercise should be done so that the spine always remains straight (green line).

    In the starting positions: standing or lying on your stomach, arching your back is also prohibited.

    Everyone's favorite exercise, the Cat (angry, happy, looking at the tail), is also on the list of prohibited exercises!

    If you need to perform movements while standing on your knees, then your back should be straight. The exception is the cervical region.

    From a standing position, you also cannot lean forward on straight legs, rounding your back.

    Absolutely all exercises that are performed in a sitting position are dangerous for the spine with lower back problems.

    A physical therapy session should consist of 20% exercises in a standing position and 80% in a lying position.

    All parts of the spine

    The photo gallery of prohibited exercises for diseases of the spinal column presented below does not need additional comments.

    You will have to give up playing football, volleyball, basketball and tennis. Cycling - after consulting a doctor

    And in conclusion, let us remind you once again that physical therapy exercises will be useful and effective only if a treatment plan with their help is developed by the attending physician, taking into account all the nuances of the state of health and the individual characteristics of the development of the disease.

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