Are there simple exercises I can do at home to ease lower-back pain and sciatica?
The sciatic nerve is the largest single nerve in the body. It begins at the base of the spinal cord as a number of roots and passes through the pelvis and down the back of each thigh to each heel. In yoga it is referred to as the "life nerve" because it carries impulses for muscular action and sensations between the lower back and thigh and lower leg.
It is important to stretch related muscles every day to help prevent lower-back pain problems and conditions such as sciatica, a painful condition caused by pressure or imbalances of the muscles on the sciatic nerve. Here are a couple of simple stretches you can do every morning to help keep your sciatic nerve in good shape.
1. Hamstring stretch while lying on your back
• Lie on your back with feet flat on floor and knees bent. (You can adjust the position of your feet and knees, even straightening the legs completely, in order to make the stretch more comfortable for your body.)
• Gently raise one leg, supporting it behind the knee with both hands or a towel, until your foot is facing the ceiling.
• Slowly straighten your knee until you feel a stretch in your hamstring muscle, at the back of your thigh.
• Hold the position for 20 to 30 seconds, breathing deeply.
• Lower the leg and repeat on the other side.
2. Hamstring stretch while sitting
• Sit on the edge of a chair, feet flat on floor.
• Straighten one leg straight out in front of you with the heel still on the floor.
• Sit up straight then start bending forward at the hips, keeping the back flat.
• Bring the navel toward the thigh until you feel a stretch in your hamstring muscle, at the back of your thigh.
• Hold for about 30 seconds, breathing deeply, then repeat on the other side.
Click here to read about more ways to prevent back pain.
Alison Finney is a certified hatha and kundalini yoga teacher in Ottawa. She is registered with the Yoga Alliance and the International Kundalini Yoga Teachers Association and is the founder of PranaShanti, a health and yoga resource. For more information, visit www.pranashanti.com.
|
|
more ask the expert
