PT Exercises That Have Unfucked Me
(Obligatory disclaimer that I'm not qualified to give you medical advice, but these have helped me a lot with my muscle tension and pain)
If you're feeling significant discomfort or PAIN while stretching, back off. Don't force yourself. You can always dial these exercises back and stop at the point you need to because the last thing you want is to strain something.
- Open your mouth about 80% as wide as you can for 10 seconds, repeat 3x.
- Push your jaw forward, then open it as much as you can for 10 seconds, repeat 3x.
- Make a fist to rest your jaw on then open your mouth 10x. There should be some resistance as you're lifting the weight of your head.
Rhomboid (shoulders and upper back pain)
- Face the wall and place your arm against it in an L shape then rotate your body away from your arm to open your chest, hold for 30 seconds on both sides.
When you get more comfortable, you can extend your arm straight out behind you against the wall for a deeper stretch.
- Place one elbow on top and inside the other, hold your hands together, then lift your arms to open your shoulder blades. I can only hold this for about 10 seconds but do your best then repeat with the other arm on top.
- With your elbows bent, puff your chest out while squeezing your shoulder blades together, hold for about 10 seconds and repeat 3x.
Psoas release with pandiculation
Your psoas is a big son of a bitch muscle in the center of your body, and when it gets too tight it can affect everything from breathing to digestion. And cause a lot of pain. The exercises in this video helped me a ton. It doesn't LOOK like it does much, but it does.
This full exercise takes much longer than the others and I've found that once I did it for about a week or so, and started being aware of my posture to keep it from tightening back up, I haven't had to keep doing it all the time.
Lower back, piriformis, sciatic nerve
- Do a simple hamstring stretch with your legs straight out in front of you and feet flat against a wall to hold them at a 90* angle. Try not to bend your knees or hunch your back, just stretch as far as you're able and hold for 30 seconds.
Continue by dropping your chin to your chest so you can feel a stretch going down your spine.
- On all fours, rotate your upper body until you can feel a stretch going down the opposite side into your hips. Hold 30 seconds and repeat on the other side.
- Almost sitting cross-legged, stack your legs so that one ankle is on the other knee. Make sure both legs are parallel. Then, lean forward to feel a stretch in your piriformis (side of your ass). Hold for 30 seconds and repeat on other side.
- Form a pinwheel shape with your legs, one in an L shape in front of you and the other to the side. Gently lean towards the side and press your thigh towards the floor to feel a stretch. Hold for 10-30 seconds and repeat other side.
That's about it! I try to do these exercises at least once a day especially during flare-ups, but the simpler/quicker stretches I will do multiple times throughout the day or whenever things feel tight. Consistency is key.
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