Exercise After a Back Injury is All About the Core
I have a love-hate relationship with the core-strengthening exercises my yoga instructor never fails to introduce at some point during our 90-minute session. Although I know the region-specific workout is important and an indicator of overall fitness ability, it's hard! It burns!
We're told that strengthening the core is the key to having a strong back, to lifting correctly, and to ultimately burning more fat. And Dr. Andrew Cappuccino, a reknowned spinal surgeon in Western New York, explains that abdominal work is a huge component of exercise after a back injury.
When discussing two primary well-known back exercises, the Williams' Flexion Series and the McKenzie Exercises, Dr. Cappuccino so frequently brings up the word core that I ask him if having a strong tummy means you're less likely to get injured in the first place. Absolutely, he tells me. "Literature is replete with studies that show the better the integrity of the core, the less instance of wear and tear injury," he says. It's an excellent reason for getting a strong belly now... even if the necessary exercises are decidedly teeth-gritting.
In the event of an injury, however, a patient who is post-surgery or simply post-trauma must undergo a rehabilitation regime. It doesn't matter how physically fit you are before the back injury; you'll still need to take your time in getting back on the bike or track. It's crucial that recovering patients regain a basic range of motion. "We want them to redevelop as much as possible," says Dr. Cappuccino. Everyone, he says, has to take a step back after an injury.
As you advance through the prescribed exercises that aim to strengthen and rebuild not just the abdomen but the quads, hamstrings and glutes, then (with the green light from your physician) you can begin to add cross-training, which Dr. Cappuccino believes is essential to maintaining a strong level of fitness, injury or no injury. He suggests getting on the elliptical machine one day, the stairmaster the next. You might try swimming or biking another day.
For a brief look at what the Williams' low back flexion exercises are all about, check out the YouTube video below. And don't forget about that all-important core. After that, check out the 7 Heidi Powell exercises that will whip that belly into shape from the inside out.
1. Begin lying on the ground face-up, knees bent between 45 and 90 degrees, and arms extended to the sides.
2. Keeping your shoulders anchored to the ground and knees together, rotate your legs over to the left side. Touch your left knee to the ground to mark a complete repetition.
3. Rotate your legs over to the right side and touch your right knee to the ground to mark another repetition
4. Begin lying on the ground face-up, legs extended, and arms extended overhead. In one motion, draw your knees toward your chest and swing your arms forward, crunching upward with your torso. Touch your elbows to your knees.
5. Extend legs downward and arms back overhead. Touch heels and hands to the ground.
6. Begin lying face-down, propped up on your elbows. Elbows should be aligned directly underneath your shoulders, and your legs should be fully extended with ankles extended and toes on the ground.
7. Squeeze your buttocks, draw your belly button in toward your spine, and raise your body 1 foot off of the ground. Hold the position as long as you can.
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