You can maintain your health in various ways. One of them is physiotherapy exercises, in other words - exercise therapy. In this article I want to talk about how you can help your spine with a set of exercises.
Some simple rules
First of all, it is very important to say that exercise therapy for the spine should not bring a person pain and cause too much muscle tension, as this can happen during classes in gyms. The fact is that this is physiotherapy exercises, not strength training. It is also necessary to know that it is better to start with simple exercises and do them a couple of times in several approaches. Only with time can the number of loads be increased. To avoid even small pain during exercise, the body must be warmed up. This can be done in a hot bath or with a steamed towel. The frequency of all exercises is still very important. So, exercise therapy for the spine should become a habit, especially when the question is about people with chronic forms of the disease. The more regular classes are, the better the patient’s result and well-being. However, do not be scared, because even a daily lesson for only 10-20 minutes can bring excellent results. A small nuance: if a person's pain intensifies from time to time, it is better not to conduct classes at such moments and postpone it for some period. And, of course, the ideal option is to consult with your doctor for any doubtful reason, who, by the way, can also prescribe exercise therapy exercises for the spine.
Cervical
Very rarely, a person has problems with the entire spine. Most often, a certain part of it can bother the patient. That's exactly her best and train. So, now we will talk about what physical therapy should be for the cervical spine. It is worth saying here that it is also important to know your problem. After all, you can just train the mobility of the vertebrae, or you can devote classes to relieve pain. This is precisely what will be discussed. So, the complex for muscle relaxation and pain reduction will consist of 5 simple exercises, which, however, will give excellent results.
The first exercise: in a sitting position you need to put a palm on your forehead and do the tilting of the head forward, with your hand as if counteracting this. Continue for 10 seconds, then rest for 10 seconds. The ideal number of approaches: 10. This exercise is good because it ensures the correct position of the head and develops the mobility of the vertebrae.
The second exercise: to strengthen the lateral muscles of the neck, you also need to put your hand in a sitting position, but not on your forehead, but on your temple, counteracting your head with your hand. Again, do ten sets of 10 seconds with the same amount of respite.
The third exercise: in a standing or sitting position, lower your arms along the body. It is necessary to raise the shoulders as high as possible, keeping them in such a tense position for about 15 seconds, gradually lowering them. Break: 10 seconds, the number of approaches: 10 times.
Fourth exercise: in the supine position, you need to massage the part between the back of the head and the soft part, where the muscles are. This should be done for about 3-4 minutes, not being afraid to press on this area. This is necessary to reduce pain, as well as cope with a headache.
Fifth exercise: massage the place of attachment of the cervical muscle to the shoulder blades. To do this, you need to massage the area on top and in the center of the shoulder blades for 3-4 minutes. It is important to say that at first pain can be observed, but over time they will simply disappear.
Thoracic department
With the following disease, exercise therapy can also help : osteochondrosis of the thoracic spine. For this, you can also choose a set of effective exercises. It will be aimed at improving the mobility of the thoracic spine, as well as the return of the possibility of deep breathing.
Exercise one: you need to sit on a chair with a strong high back. First, a person bends well forward, stretching as much as possible, then deviates back. The exercise is best repeated 3-5 times.
Exercise two: you need a roll with a diameter of about 10 cm, if not, you can wrap a towel on a rolling pin. This device is placed under the thoracic region, a person lies on his back, tucking his hands behind his head. The patient must first bend, then raise the torso. This should be done about 3-4 times. To train different parts of the thoracic spine, the roller needs to be moved.
The third exercise, with an assistant: the assistant should massage a little between the shoulder blades. Then the patient brings them together with force, holding on for some time in this position, then relaxes. At the same time, the assistant presses the blades well, as if helping them to get apart to the maximum.
Lumbosacral
There are also exercises for exercise therapy of the lumbosacral spine. So, you can simply train this area, or you can stretch the spine a little to ease the pressure on the tissues in the problem areas of the back.
Exercise one: lying on your back with slightly bent legs, a person should strain his abdominal muscles, while not holding his breath. This is done about 10-15 times. This exercise helps curl your spine a bit.
The second exercise: you need to take the support, kneel in front of it, put your head on it and bend the back up and down, while stretching the muscles. In the upper and lower position, stay for about 10 seconds, however, avoiding back pain. Repeat exercise 10 times.
Exercise Three: you need to open the door and hang on it with outstretched arms, while bending your legs at the knees. So you need to hang at least a minute, after the exercise, rest for 10 minutes. Do a couple of approaches per day. This exercise perfectly stretches the muscles and relieves pressure on the vertebrae.
Fourth exercise: you need to hang on the bar on straight arms, turning the body to the right, then to the left. At the same time, the neck and shoulders should not be strained, everything should be relaxed to the maximum. It is also a stretching exercise that can be repeated several times a day. You need to hang like this for three to four minutes.
Spinal fracture
Exercise therapy for the spine is also needed if a person has a compression fracture. However, it is important to say here that the doctor should prescribe all the exercises, it is extremely not recommended to help yourself, because such behavior can even worsen the situation. It is also necessary to recall that the rehabilitation and recovery period will be very long. So, the first period of exercise therapy for a fracture of the spine lasts about the first two weeks, when the load is minimal, and the exercises for a healthy person seem generally childish. All movements will be carried out in a prone position. The second rehabilitation period is 3-6 weeks after the injury, exercises are performed lying on the back and stomach. The third period is the second month after spinal injury. Already it will be possible to perform exercises, standing on all fours. The fourth period, the last, is the third month after the injury: exercises are added while standing, as well as exercises with the ball.
Protrusions
Exercise therapy is also prescribed for protrusion of the spine. This is one of the most common forms of spinal degeneration, which is observed in almost 80% of people. It is important to note that this is the initial stage of the hernia, therefore, the problem must be very effectively combated. Physical therapy will help in this. However, the classes will not be comprehensive, it is necessary to train the area where the problem exists. The most common options are protrusion of the lumbar, cervical and thoracic disc protrusions are also possible. Again, it is important to say that this is a situation where treatment should be prescribed exclusively by a doctor, and he is also developing a set of useful exercises that will suit this particular person. Only in this case, you can achieve the desired results and not harm yourself.
Scoliosis
If a person has scoliosis, exercise therapy for the spine will also help. Exercises here should not be aimed at stretching the back, this can somewhat worsen the condition of the patient. Classes are held in different positions.
Standing position: walking in place while maintaining an even posture; raising hands up, standing on toes and just at full foot.
Position "lying on your back": pull the elbow of the right hand to the left knee and vice versa; alternately pulling the knees to the chest.
The position of "lying on his stomach": boat - you need to bend up, fixing for a couple of seconds in this position. Returning to the starting position is very slow. Leaning on your arms, raise your legs as high as possible.