Jayne’s blog on back pain alerted us to the importance of movement in keeping a healthy spine. Here are her top 5 moves to do just that.
It’s always a good idea to consult your GP or other medical professional before starting any new form of exercise, especially if you suffer from severe back or musculoskeletal pain or are already undergoing treatment.
Child’s Pose
Child’s Pose is an active stretch that gently elongates the back. This is a great pose to start off with for anyone new to yoga that struggles with lower back pain. It is a very gentle, restful pose that will actively stretch the muscles of your lower back.
Cat Pose
Cat Pose targets the middle to upper back and shoulders and helps to stretch and loosen the muscles in these areas and mobilise the spine. Ideally used in conjunction with Cow Pose in a fluid sequence for ultimate back stretching!
Cow Pose
Cow Pose is best used in fluid sequence with Cat Pose to help mobilise the spine and back muscles.
Bharadvaja’s Twist
Bharadvaja’s Twist is a deep and complete stretch of the body along the backbone, trunk, shoulders and hips. It is especially good for those with lower back pain and sciatica. This is a highly adaptable pose with many modifications to either make the stretch easier (for those with very stiff spines or limited range of motion), or to deepen the stretch for those that want to really challenge themselves.
Downward Facing Dog
Downward Facing Dog is a total body pose that targets your back extensors for a deep tissue stretch. This pose requires some strength and stability so I would not recommended it for anyone with chronic back issues without first seeking advice from your doctor.
For people that have suffered with back pain consistently,there is often no one solution to the problem and it may take a combination of exercise and other interventions to manage your pain effectively. However, yoga has often been proven to be a safe and effective way to alleviate back pain and prevent ongoing and future problems.
>>Enjoy a Back & Shoulders class >>
Easy Spine: 1
This post was written by Jayne Nicholls, founder and director of Group X Training, creator of ‘Freestyle Fitness Yoga’, writer and pioneer. Jayne has spent a lifetime moving to music and has been in the industry for 25 years, initially in fitness before moving into yoga 16 years ago. She has worked as a fitness presenter, has a permanent column in Fitpro magazine and writes for several other publications on a regular basis. In her role as Director of Group X Training, Jayne now helps others “be the best that they can be” by providing the very best training and industry standard qualifications in Yoga & Fitness. If you would like to take your yoga practice a step further and see how you could make your passion your profession, why not consider training to become a fully qualified yoga instructor?
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