Yoga Postures for Back Pain
Back pain can be an acute or chronic condition that can affect people of ages, fitness levels, and health. Back pain is so common that it affects up to 80% of Australians at some point in their life.
There are many different reasons that back pain may occur so understanding what has caused the pain will help with the treatment, management and overall recovery for our patients.
Back pain can be caused from muscular, soft tissue or joint injury. It may also have an underlying more serious cause such as cancer, kidney, abdominal or pelvic issues which need immediate medical attention.
If your problem is musculoskeletal in nature, you may be experiencing
- Muscle spasm or strain
- Ligament strain
- Joint sprain
- Disc bulge or prolapse (also commonly known as slipped disc)
- Nerve pain
- Pain associated with conditions such as
o Arthritis
o Disc bulge
o Osteoporosis
o Nerve impingement
There are many ways to manage back pain — and usually a combination of approaches is what works most effectively for people in pain.
This includes hands on manual therapy such as osteopathy, pain relief medication (prescribed by your doctor), use of heat or ice, avoidance of aggravating activities, and of course exercise/rehabilitation.
It has been proven that exercise and rehab is extremely important in helping alleviate back pain, as well as preventing it from occurring again or being as bad the next time it may occur. It can also help recovery times to be quicker as well as less medication required.
Exercise for back pain can include, but not limited to
- Walking
- Swimming
- Yoga
- Pilates
- Cycling
- Tai chi
When doing exercises and rehab for back pain it is important that what you are doing doesn’t exacerbate your pain or make your condition worse.
Having a program designed for you will ensure the safety and progression to a happier and healthier recovery!!
We are asked a lot about yoga poses that are good for back pain –
Here are a few poses — if done correctly — and are specific for your condition may help alleviate your pain and help increase your movement.
Please avoid these exercises if they cause more pain, discomfort or strain as you could be doing further damage. The exercises below are in no particular order.
Use a yoga mat or soft surface such as a towel on the carpet for the poses below, as being directly on the floor can be too hard on your back and your body.
For all exercises, try and keep your pelvic floor and lower abdominal muscles activated, or at least turn the muscles “on and off” as you are performing each movement. This will give you better support, stability and create better movement patterns through a controlled state.
- Child’s Pose
Aim:
Child’s pose helps alleviate some of the pressure off your lower back by stretching out the spine
How to do Child’s Pose:
- Kneel on the mat
- Keep knees hip width apart and feet together behind you
- Inhale
- As you exhale, bend your body forwards over your thighs, rest your chest on your thighs, as you sit on your heels and extend your hands out in front of you above your head resting your palms on the mat
- Lengthen out your upper body, feeing your neck, upper back and tail bone moving apart from each other
- Hold for 20 seconds up to a few minutes as you keep breathing deeply and in a relaxed state
- Come into and out of the pose slowly
2. Cat/Cow Pose
Aim:
To mobilize the spine, including the lower back, upper back and neck. It allows you to move as much or as little as you feel comfortable, while supporting yourself on all 4’s. It also encourages flexibility and stability of the spine through movement and understand where your ”neutral spine” may be which will give you a greater sense of core muscle, posture and body awareness in space.
How to do Cat/Cow Pose:
- Be on all 4’s
- Keep shoulders over the wrists and hips over the knees
- Inhale
- As you exhale, curl your tail bone under, round your back up towards the ceiling and drop your head to the floor — CAT POSE
- Try and maintain some abdominal muscle activation as well as keep your body nice and relaxed
- Inhale
- As you exhale, lift your head and start to extend your upper back and roll your tailbone towards the ceiling as you arch your lower back — COW POSE
- Try and maintain some lower abdominal muscle activation throughout this movement, and keep your neck and shoulders relaxed as they have a tendency to creep up and get tight.
3. Reclined Pigeon Pose or also called Eye of the Needle Pose
Aim:
Gluteal muscle and hip stretch
How to do Reclined Pigeon Pose o also called Eye Of the Needle Pose:
- Lie on your back
- Bend your knees and rest feet on the floor
- Lift your right leg, bend the knee as you place your outer right ankle on the left quadriceps muscle near the knee,
- Use your hands to hold the left thigh as your bend your hips up to pull towards your chest
- Feel the stretch in the right gluteal and hip region
- Hold for 30 seconds to 2 minutes while you keep your shoulders relaxed and keep breathing
- Repeat on the other side
4. Bridge Pose
Aim:
Lower back mobility, stability and strengthening of gluteal muscles
How To Do Bridge Pose:
- Lie on your back, knees bent
- Activate your “core muscles” — your pelvic floor, lower abdominals and engage your lower back muscles
- Inhale
- As you exhale, lift your hips and pelvis off the floor slowly towards the ceiling by pushing your heels into the ground
- Feel your gluts working to lift the pelvis
- Inhale at the top
- Exhale as you slowly lower your pelvis back to the ground
- Repeat 6–12 times, or you can hold the pose at the top too while you keep breathing
5. Sphinx Pose
Aim:
To breate spinal mobility into extension and help engage your lower abdominal muscles and your gluteal muscles
How to do Bridge Pose:
- Lie on your stomach, keeping your legs straight and feet together behind you
- Put your elbows under your shoulders and your forearms on the floor next to you
- Inhale and activate your “core muscles”
- As you exhale, slowly lift your chest up off the floor as you push your hands and forearms into the ground to help lift your chest.
- Think about lengthening your spine from the tailbone to your neck as you extend — but be careful not to overextend
- Feel a nice stretch in your lower back
- Inhale at the top
- Exhale as you lower back down
- You can hold the stretch for 20 seconds to 2 minutes, making sure you are comfortable and not feeling a pinching in your lower back
6. Knees to Chest with Slow Rock
Aim:
Lower back release and mobility
How to do Knees to Chest with Slow Rock:
- Lie on your back
- Bend your knees into your chest
- Feel a small stretch in your lower back as you allow your back to relax into the floor and your hips to fall into the back of their sockets
- To increase the stretch, gently rock the knees side to side allowing your lower back and torso to move
- Keep breathing and do this for 30 seconds to a few minutes
Even after this if there isn’t any improvement see an osteopath near you.
