Exercise To Relief
Exercises to Relieve Your Sciatica Symptoms
Strengthening back and abdominal muscles should be the goal of any exercise program where emphasis is on eliminating sciatica pain. It is these muscles that assist in keeping the entire weight of your body off the spine. There are specific exercises and instructions targeting these muscles.
You need to know what they are and how to perform them. For this reason it is recommended that you check in with your physician, chiropractor or fitness coach before beginning any new exercise routine. If the exercises are not done correctly, you could do more harm than good.
In some cases, sciatica symptoms can be an indication that there could be a tumor or infection which might require a different course of treatment.
While many ailments call for bed rest, in the case of sciatica, inactivity can worsen the condition. Lack of movement causes your muscles to weaken and may leave you open to more back injury and pain.
You need to prevent pressure on the sciatic nerve. Exercise will help you do this by distributing the necessary nutrients into the disks, hydrating them and keeping them healthy. This will help you recover quicker from an acute flare up and will help to reduce any swelling you may have.
When beginning your exercise program, start slowly and make an effort to do them on a regular basis.
While your focal point will be to strengthen the abdominal and core muscles, you should also focus attention on the piriformis muscle because it is most closely associated with your sciatic nerve.
This is a small muscle located underneath the gluteal (butt) muscles. It runs in close proximity to the sciatic nerve. If the piriformis muscle becomes tight, it puts pressure on the sciatic nerve causing pain which travels from the lower back and down the leg.
There are several different exercises you can perform to stretch this muscle which will bring quick relief from the pain.
Try this simple low stress exercise. Sit on the floor, stretching both legs out in front of you. With arms outstretched, bend forward from the waist while keeping your knees straight. Reach for your ankles or feet. Hold the position for ten seconds, relax, and then repeat.
Hamstring muscles are used to help in bending the knees. They are located in the back of the thigh and when they are tight, motion in the hips and pelvis is limited. This pressure on your lower back is often a contributor to sciatica pain.
Exercise will keep these muscles flexible. This is even more important because hamstrings are the most susceptible to injury. Be sure to warm up before the exercise and to cool down after.
Here again, because this type of pain can be caused by various other medical conditions, you’ll want to check with your healthcare professional.
Once you decide to engage in a daily program of exercises targeting the muscles linked with sciatica, episodes of sciatica pain should become less frequent and possibly subside.
