Low Impact Exercises For Injury Recovery
Looking back at my post on 31st Jan, we can see that our first place on the map in our Fitness First Aid journey is isometrics. Isometrics are a low impact recovery technique that can be used for both rehabilitation and prevention. If you can “find” a muscle, then you can use isometric techniques to get it stronger and change what might start as a small dirt track into a bustling highway of electrical activity. In this post, we will use lower back injury (for example, disc injury to the more mobile of the lumbar joints – L4/L5).
Begin by working above and below the pelvis – find the muscles that are ON! They are likely overworking (usually lumbar erectors).
Find the muscles that are off above and below the pelvis (usually glutes below, and core above). Then find positions and ways of working the muscles that are off, and massage the ones that are on. For example, A glute bridge, where the focus is individual activation and building on activation – lying on your back with knees bent, pull the front of the core up by hollowing out the belly (core), and leaving the glutes relaxed. Then hollow the core and add a butt squeeze, then relax the butt and keep the core. Then do core + butt then lift the hips, lower and switch off glutes, then core. This simple exercise will build glute strength but make sure the body doesn’t confuse glutes and core (because they can both make the pelvis tip backwards). Combine this exercise with regular lower back massage and in time the lower back will work less.
Pilates mat work is an excellent method of learning to access individual muscles. Make sure you are in a small group and your teacher is comfortable with direct cuing (and ideally touch, if you’re comfortable with that). I know some basics but am not a professional in that discipline.
Do you have a tight area? Why not try switching different muscles on and off around that area. Tight neck? Move the muscles in your shoulders and upper back and see if it takes some pressure off. If a particular muscle activation takes pressure off, why not train it with some isometric contractions and see if that helps?
It’s low risk and might save you a trip to the physio!
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