Standing Side Glides

Appropriate for low back pain and disc injuries that increases in sitting and for which relief is achieve by leaning away from the painful side. One may note that they lean away from the pain cup side in a standing position.

How it works: Repetitively shifting the shoulders towards the side of pain allows the spine to develop a renewed tolerance to that direction thus reducing pain.

REPS: 5-15 repetitions every 1-4 hours

Symptom Expectations:

• Positive: Pain that moves toward the spine is a good sign of success
• Negative:  Pain moving away from the spine, into the buttocks, or further down the leg is a poor symptom response. See your physician or physical therapist if you are experiencing this with exercise.

Appropriate for patients with a scoliosis diagnosis.

How it works: Stretching the opposite direction of the curvature will stretch the shortened muscles of the spine. 

REPS: 2-3 times a day with 2-3, 20-30 second stretches

Symptom Precaution:
Extreme pain muscle pain 1-2 hours later, and symptoms moving into buttocks or down into the lower leg