Can Pilates Help With Chronic Back Pain?
Have you suffered from chronic back pain for a long time and just wish it would go away? Or do you want to increase your flexibility, strength, or muscle tone? If so, you’ve come to the right place. In this guide, we’ll tell you all about pilates and how it can assist with chronic back pain.
Pilates has been in existence since the 20th century. Initially, it was an injury recovery method for dancers but has now evolved into much more. The good news is that it can also be helpful for individuals with chronic back pain. Read on to learn more!
Is Pilates Good For Chronic Back Pain?
According to statistics, at least 90% of people around the globe experience an episode of back pain in their lives. Have you experienced back pain, or worse, are you still experiencing back pain? If so, you have to try Pilates.
Pilates is a form of exercise and body conditioning. It involves a low-impact series of exercises to improve physical strength, posture, endurance, mental awareness, and flexibility. Pilates can hugely improve your back pain. Here’s how:
1). It Helps To Counteract Muscle Imbalance
Sometimes, the root cause of chronic back pain is not found in the back but in an existing imbalance in the pelvis or the hips. Back pain can also develop over time due to unconscious behaviours, such as slumping onto one hip while standing or crossing one leg over the other while seated.
These postural imbalances can be corrected and addressed using Pilates exercises. Examples of pilates exercises that can help rectify these are the leg springs series on the cadillac and footwork on the reformer. A professional instructor can use his expertise to single out potential challenges, for instance, if one of your legs works harder.
Alternatively, it could be one side of your hip that often sits higher than the other. With the help of your instructor, you can then effectively work out a program that stabilises and aligns your pelvis and legs. This significantly reduces the strain on your back muscles.
2). It Establishes Correct Posture, Thereby Healing Chronic Back pains
Pilates improves awareness of correct posture and optimal spinal realignment. As such, you can immediately fix a slump, hunch, or hip dump in your posture whether it’s when walking, working, or otherwise. This way, you can improve your habitual, harmful posture while at the same time relieving your chronic back pain and discomfort.
Just a single workout of pilates hugely impacts the extent of your back pain, precisely the same way your muscles get relieved through a massage. However, it is advised to complete two to three Pilates sessions each week for longer-lasting effects and to avoid flare-ups in the long term. You will feel the results by the end of four to six weeks.
The best part yet, these exercises don’t have to be strenuous hour-long workouts at a gym or physiotherapy facility. Consistently performing even a brief series of straightforward stretches and exercises can result in long-lasting recovery.
Final Thoughts
If you experience back pain, consult your physician before you begin Pilates or physical exercises. Depending on the nature of your problem, there might be some exercises or postures that you should avoid.
Once you have a detailed insight, you can begin with “pre-Pilates” movements such as the Chest Lift, Toe Taps, and others. These are easy exercises that teach you the fundamental Pilates ideas, like engaging the abdominal muscles and keeping a neutral spine, and from that, you progress to other movements.
After starting Pilates, you’ll naturally begin incorporating healthier movement patterns into your everyday tasks, like picking up a child or grabbing the groceries from your car. This will improve your overall well-being.
Upwell Health Offers Exceptional Services
Upwell Health Collective has helped thousands of clients systematically recover from chronic back pain through Pilates. We are reputed for our top-quality services, given our high skills and professionalism.
Please get in touch with us today on (03) 8849 9096 or book an appointment today.