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Exercises to relieve sciatica

by Alivia Nyhan
Published: Last Updated on

The sciatic nerve runs through our body from the lower back to the end of the leg. When this nerve becomes irritated, usually by being compressed by the discs of the spine, it causes severe pain in the lower back and can also extend down the leg.

Despite not being considered a disease as such, but rather a symptom of a major pathology, sciatica is a very uncomfortable and annoying problem that can last up to a couple of months and become an obstacle at the time to carry out our daily lives. However, there are some exercises and care to relieve sciatica pain ; We will tell you about them in this FastlyHealarticle.

Steps to follow:
1

Pain caused by compression of the nerve root by a herniated disc , especially pain that focuses on the leg, can be relieved by leaning back. This is what is called an extension exercise ; for it:

Lie on your stomach and push your elbows up, lifting your entire torso. The hips should remain on the floor, along with the legs. The exercise should be done very carefully, holding the posture for about 5 seconds, relaxing and repeating again, up to a total of 8-10 times.

2

more advanced form of this same extension exercise is to lie down on your stomach again and, instead of leaning on your elbows, do it on your hands, pushing to raise your torso and keeping your pelvis down. Holding the posture for a second, relaxing and repeating about 10 times is enough.

3

If lying down requires too much effort, you can also do the standing extension exercise . To achieve this, you must place your hands on your hips and lean back patiently, holding the position for a few seconds, relaxing and repeating again.

4

On the other hand, there are a series of exercises, the objective of which is to achieve a better support by supporting the back , thanks to the strengthening of the muscles of the same. In addition, this improves your flexibility, so that the pain caused by sciatica can also be reduced. To get it:

Lie on your stomach, but this time clasp your hands behind your back and lift your head and chest gently, while still looking at the ground. The goal is to stay in the air for about 5 seconds and then try to hold on for a little longer. We recommend performing 8-10 repetitions.

5

Another way to strengthen your back is by lying on your stomach, with your legs and arms extended, and trying to lift your right arm and left leg a few inches off the ground at the same time, tense and holding for about 5 seconds. Then relax and repeat with your left arm and right leg. We also advise you between 8 and 10 repetitions.

6

Likewise, maintaining strong muscles in the front part of the torso is vitally important in ensuring good support for the spine. For this, there are other exercises focused on achieving this:

The abdominal exercises lifetime are very useful. To do this, lie on your back, bend your knees, cross your arms over your chest and try to keep your back straight. Perform sit-ups, lifting your head and trunk off the ground and lowering yourself back down gently. Try doing a couple of sets of 10 crunches each.

7

Another way to strengthen the abdominal muscles , this time the lower ones, is by lying on your back again with your knees bent, and slowly lifting one of your legs tight, without moving your back off the floor. Keep your leg in the air for about 8 seconds, lower it and raise it again. Try 10 reps.

8

Finally, we recommend other exercises aimed at stretching the muscles of the lower back and which are especially recommended in cases of sciatic pain due to vertebral stenosis , a disease characterized by the narrowing of the channel through which the sciatic nerve passes:

A first way to get your back to stretch as much as possible is by laying on your back, bending your knees as much as possible and bringing them closer to your chest, as if you were going to pick up your legs with your arms. Hold the position for about 30 seconds, relax your legs, and then repeat 4-6 times.

9

Another recommendation is to kneel on the floor, sit on your heels, and extend your arms forward, touching your knees to your chest. After half a minute in this position, slowly back up, lifting your torso little by little and then repeat the stretch also between 4 and 6 times.

10

In addition to the exercises above, another of the easiest ways to perform sciatica pain relief exercises is to walk . This practice is a low-impact aerobic exercise that helps reduce the problem, in addition to having other benefits for our health. It is enough to go for a walk for 30 minutes to achieve the benefits that this entails. In addition, as the pain disappears, we can increase activity, including cycling or increasing the pace of walking.

11

We want to remind you that these exercises are only a recommendation and that it is vitally important to go to a specialist who finds the focus of the pain and who recommends more specific exercises for your problem. Everything about the back is extremely delicate, so it should not be taken lightly.

On the other hand, it is essential to perform the exercises to relieve sciatica pain correctly, since otherwise we could aggravate the problem. Therefore, it is best to learn these exercises with the supervision of a professional , such as a physiotherapist, chiropractor or physiatrist.

This article is merely informative, at FastlyHeal .com we do not have the power to prescribe medical treatments or make any type of diagnosis. We invite you to see a doctor in the case of presenting any type of condition or discomfort.

If you want to read more articles similar to Exercises to relieve sciatica , we recommend that you enter our Bones, Joints and Muscles category .

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