When you think about all of the treatments available for back pain, you most likely think of the usual treatments such as doctors, medication, acupuncture, massage, and physical therapy. But what about Pilates? There are so many people who are spending countless dollars in order to relieve their pain. When you are already in pain, stress tends to make things worse.
We are going to assume that you have the worse possible case of back pain accompanied by bulging, herniated, and slipped disks. An individual’s pain can be so bad that it causes numbing, tingling, and an inability to walk, lie down, sit, or stand without experiencing muscle spasms and agonizing pain. This sounds like a nightmare but it happens to a lot of people.
There may be doubts in your mind that you will ever find relief. It can be very difficult not to feel like you will ever achieve relief because the pain is literally unbearable. There is only so much that doctors and pain medication can do. When it is all said and done, everything comes down to how well you take care of yourself. Taking steps to relieve your pain as well as heal your body will help you to live a much happier, pain-free life.
Pilates may be considered the better treatment for back pain because it involves no medication, no long drives to the doctor, no expensive massage treatments, and no fancy acupuncture treatments. People who experience the worst pain are wonderful candidates for Pilates. The exercises are completely safe and recommended for a number of things from pain relief to weight loss.
The exercises involve lying down on a mat, watching a DVD or video, and following simple instructions on how to complete a movement. There are advanced, intermediate, and beginner ways to do each of the exercises, so everyone gets a chance to heal. You might be thinking to yourself, “If Pilates is just exercise, I can perform my own.” Pilates isn’t just any type of exercise, it is a set of movements that involves the power of the mind, deep breathing, relaxation, small movements, and balance.
It is not difficult at all to master. When you first start out, you are going to wonder if you are even doing anything at all because the movements are so minimum and the exercises are so easy. Within about two weeks, you should begin to notice that you have more strength all throughout your body. The exercises mainly target the abdominal muscles, lower back, buttock, and hip muscles, but still work to tone everything else from the legs to the arms.
Something that is very important to know about Pilates is that it helps to lengthen and straighten the spine. A weak spine cannot heal, that is why it needs more strength. Your body needs to naturally fall back into alignment so your pain isn’t as bad. Once you can get your spine back into the proper alignment, the body heals itself from there. It all starts in the lower back.
The only thing that you can do from here is give it a try. Other than that, just remember that ultimate healing comes from taking care of yourself. If you notice that you are taking an abundance of pain pills or are trying various other methods to relieve your pain, then you know that you have nothing to lose. What you will notice about Pilates is that it doesn’t make your pain worse or take a lot of time to do. It is beneficial for everyone who wants to get better.
You can find range of DVD’s on sale with Pilates and stretching exercises for easing back pain which have been recommended by a leading British Osteopath / Physiotherapist.
Please also visit my blog on using stretching and Pilates to help ease back pain, and leave your comments.