Practicing Yoga as a Scoliosis Rehab Method: A Detailed Guide

Scoliosis is a condition defined by a certain degree of spine curvature. It negatively affects the patient’s back health. In many cases, patients can experience back pain. That’s especially true if their condition deteriorates. 

Luckily, there are various scoliosis rehab options available, one of which is yoga. It is one of the exercise types that brings a range of benefits for scoliosis patients.
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In this blog post, we will cover all the dos and don’ts of practicing yoga for scoliosis, including all the benefits and the best poses.

What Are the Benefits of Yoga Scoliosis Rehab?

Yoga is a popular option for scoliosis patients due to its low-impact exercise style. There’s no jumping or lifting weights. All the exercises uniquely stress the muscles without too much pressure on the spine. That’s why many people opt for yoga in their scoliosis treatment.

The following are the crucial benefits of yoga for scoliosis.

• Core strength
• Lower pain and stiffness
• Spinal position improvement

​Core strength is essential with any type of back problem. Muscles in this body part are responsible for helping the spine work at all times. 

On top of that, numerous spine muscles alleviate unnecessary pressure from the spine. Core strength will significantly improve with regular yoga practice.

Strengthening these muscles leads to other benefits such as alleviating lower back pain and less stiffness. As many exercises involve a lot of stretching, the muscle elasticity and strength continually grow. The alleviated stress from the spine results in less lower back pain.

Like with many other disorders, it is essential to keep them at bay. Since curvature degree can worsen over time, doing everything to stop that includes practicing yoga actively. 

According to a study, maintaining the same curvature degree or improving it a bit is possible with yoga.

Let’s go over some of the poses that you should consider in your yoga regimen.

Yoga Poses for Scoliosis

Yoga is rich with a wide range of poses. Not all of them are scoliosis-friendly. The general rule is to avoid those that involve a lot of twisting. The good news is that there are plenty of exercises that you can do.

Here are some of the poses that will help you fight scoliosis:

• Side Plank - A great exercise that targets your core. It also helps you improve your balance. Most importantly, it achieves this without putting any stress on the spine.
• Mountain Pose - It’s a simple exercise that focuses on improving posture.
• Bridge Pose - It’s one of the exercises that will activate many muscles in your back and legs. It’s a great way to build core strength.
• Locust Pose - This pose is a great way to build back strength. It also activates the arms and legs. It’s one of the exercises that should be in your program, as it keeps all spine muscles active.
• Downward-Facing Dog - If you are looking for a core yoga pose, Downward-Facing Dog is the one. It’s a unique pose that keeps the whole body active. Incorporating them will help you more easily stretch your back, hamstrings and calves. Another benefit is activating your shoulders.
• Child’s Pose - It’s an excellent pose for alleviating any pressure from your back.
• Forward Fold - You should do this one with caution. If you sense any pain from this pose, you should avoid doing it. However, if you can do it without any problems, it is a great way to stretch your back and hamstrings.

These yoga poses will help you keep your spine muscles active. There are many others to explore, but remember to avoid any that involve a lot of twisting.

Yoga for Scoliosis: Dos and Don’ts

Scoliosis is a type of condition that requires a lot of care. Even though yoga is an option, there are still things that you should do and avoid doing. Let’s take a closer look at the dos and don’ts of yoga for scoliosis.
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Do’s

• Know Your Curvature’s Side - learn what is your spine’s curvature degree. Also, find out on which side the curve is. That way, you can optimize your poses to focus on the side of the body that’ll prevent any further deterioration.
• Mirrors - consider doing the poses in front of a mirror. It’ll help you do the poses correctly.
• Make Your Core Strength a Priority - keep your focus on exercises that help you strengthen the core muscles. Use the more relaxing poses as your workout session is coming to an end.

Don’ts

• Monitor your pain - Don’t do any poses that cause any type of uncomfortable pain. As soon as you feel pain, stop what you are doing and move on to another pose.
• Don’t focus on your curvature - Remember, you are working to keep your curvature from worsening. However, the focus of your workouts should be the correct form. Once you get that right, the results will come.
  
• No sudden movements - Yoga is a discipline that utilizes slow and controlled movements. Never make any sudden movements, as they can lead to an injury.

Follow the dos and don’ts to make sure that you are doing everything correctly. Keep a check on your body and monitor how it reacts to the implementation of yoga in your daily schedule.

What Are Your Other Scoliosis Rehab Options?

If you have scoliosis, you should know that there are other rehab options available. 

One of the viable methods is Schroth Therapy. Through a set of specific exercises, you can strengthen your back muscles. Additionally, through breathing exercises, you can overcome any challenges caused by spine curvature. 

Overall, another significant benefit of using the Schroth Method is an improvement in your body’s posture.

Another solution is a scoliosis brace for adults. They are a great way of improving your posture while keeping the curvature degrees from growing. Furthermore, it will also alleviate back pain.

Reach Out to a Scoliosis Clinic for More Details

If you want to learn more about scoliosis treatment, you can visit one of our Align Clinic locations. Our professional team is waiting for your call. We are eager to help you keep your back healthy.