3 exercises to relieve lower back pain and sciatica

From d1softballnews.com

Rachel Tavel, a doctor of physical therapy and certified strength and conditioning specialist at Shift Wellness in New York, knows all about lower back and lower back pain. And living an active lifestyle is a priority for almost everyone, but getting up and moving isn’t always as easy as it seems. Beyond the challenge of fitting workouts into our schedules and knowing exactly what you want to do, the body doesn’t always feel 100 percent ready to perform. Especially with back pain, a major problem for people from all walks of life. According to 2019 statistics, 39 percent of American adults have back pain.

There are many causes of this disease, some of the most common have to do with lifestyle: perhaps spending too much time sitting or not having the correct posture. Low back pain, one of the most common ailments physical therapists treat, may be due to these factors. Other causes have more defined origins, stemming from an inciting incident or injury. Sciatica, a commonly prescribed cause of back pain, is mostly due to injury. (The best exercises to relieve back pain).

What is sciatica?


Sciatica is, by definition, pain caused by compression of the sciatic nerve.

What is the sciatic nerve? The sciatic nerve is the largest nerve in the body and one of the most famous, for better or worse. This nerve emerges between the spinal segments of the lumbar spine and travels through the pelvis and down the legs, ending in the feet. It actually branches off into two separate nerves as it travels down the leg, the tibial nerve and the common peroneal nerve.

What causes sciatica?

The sciatic nerve can be like a sleeping bear; it is silent and will not bother you unless you disturb it. Once you wake the bear up, which commonly happens with sudden bending and twisting movements, like trying to lift something too heavy with poor body mechanics, that bear will start to roar.

Sciatica pain is often described as “radiating” or “sudden” pain. It can be felt in a specific place and position (for example, sitting in a certain way, especially on a hard chair), or it can present as numbness or tingling in the lower extremity. The sensation usually affects one side of the body (and people will know which side is affected pretty quickly), but it can also switch back and forth depending on what’s actually going on in the spine. Nerve pain is sometimes accompanied by low back pain, but often people report that most symptoms are felt in the buttock, hip, leg, or foot.






How can you treat sciatica? Treatment depends on what is really going on in your body, which requires a proper individualized evaluation by a physical therapist and/or doctor. Many factors, such as age, medical history, and mechanism of injury (how you got hurt in the first place) can also help guide treatment.

Core stabilization, education on proper lifting and bending techniques, and probably some posture tips will certainly be an important part of treatment. But if you desperately need a stretch or two to reduce your symptoms, these stretches are a good start.

Stretches to help relieve lower back pain

Piriformis Stretch

30 seconds 2 to 3 times a day

The sciatic nerve runs just below the piriformis muscle, so this is a key stretch for anyone experiencing sciatica symptoms.

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Lie on your back with your knees bent.

Cross the ankle on the affected side over the opposite knee so that it forms a “figure 4.”

Put your hands behind your unaffected leg and gently bring your thigh closer to your chest, creating a stretch in the hip/buttock area on the affected side. Don’t worry if you’re stiff and sore at first: the pear-shaped piriformis muscle can become quite tight when the sciatic nerve is inflamed, so relax this stretch, breathe, and try to hold the stretch for at least 30 seconds.

Do this 2 to 3 times a day.

Knee to Opposite Shoulder Stretch

30 seconds 2 to 3 times a day

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Lying on your back with your legs straight, slowly bend the knee on the affected side and hug the knee to your chest.

Hold this stretch, then draw across your body to the opposite side to deepen the stretch. Breathe.

Hold for 30 seconds, repeat 2 to 3 times.

Prone strut

5 retentions (up to 30 seconds) 1 or 2 times a day

In many cases, sciatica can arise due to a disc bulge or herniation that causes part of the disc to protrude into the spinal canal. In a young spine (one without stenosis) and a person who normally injures themselves by bending, lifting, and twisting (although sitting all day in poor positions can cause similar symptoms), you’ll want to apply the McKenzie Method to help “centralize” symptoms. and promote a return of that disk to your space.

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One of the most important stretches to do is prone support.

Lie face down.

As you relax the muscles in your back and abdomen, use your arms to slowly push yourself up onto your forearms or hands (wherever you can reach in relative comfort).

Hold this position for about 10 to 30 seconds, then lie back down.

Try this for 5 retentions 1-2 times a day.

Symptoms should gradually reduce over several days. If they don’t or if symptoms worsen, discontinue this exercise and seek treatment from a medical professional.

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