Does Pilates Really Help With Back Pain?

Does Pilates Really Help With Back Pain?

Have you ever been debilitated by back pain?

Few things can lay us out like back pain. Everything, from walking to twisting to even sitting, can become excruciatingly painful. It’s estimated that 85% of people experience back pain or disc issues, and not necessarily in their later years. This impacts their work, personal lives, and certainly their overall health.

When you’re unable to move without pain, exercise can understandably take a backseat. Unfortunately, not exercising can cause further health issues, exacerbating the reasons for your back problems in the first place. If your back pain is chronic, rather than a direct result of a known injury, it can also have a significant impact on your psychological health.

Thankfully, there are many things you can do to help with your back pain, aside from taking muscle relaxants and painkillers (which only mask the pain). Pilates is one of the best kinds of exercise to build abdominal muscles that will provide extra support to your back.

Why Pilates Works for Back Pain

When you’re experiencing back issues, most doctors recommend avoiding strenuous exercise, as one wrong move can make the problem much, much worse. This means forms of exercise, such as jogging, weight lifting, and traditional aerobics, should be avoided while you recover. Pilates, however, is different.

One of the main focuses of Pilates is to strengthen your deep abdominal muscles and pelvic floor. These are the places that provide back support. A Pilates program will build core strength, rebalance chronically stressed musculature and restore vital circulation – all reasons why people with back pain find relief!

That doesn’t mean you can simply jump into any old Pilates program. Many moves in Pilates could further damage your back. That’s why you need teachers who are knowledgeable about how to treat back issues and avoid further pain and injury.

Go to a Doctor First

Before you dive into a Pilates program, it’s essential to know what your underlying issue is. If you have disc issues or osteoporosis for example, you’ll want to avoid forward bending while generalized tension and tightness will benefit from moving in all directions.

Fix Your Back Pain with Pilatesology

The reason why Pilatesology is one of the best resources for Pilates online is because of our wide range of videos and classes.

No matter what your level of Pilates experience, tons of classes will be perfect for you on our website. Not only that, they feature dozens of different teachers who are professionals in the Pilates industry all over the world. If you don’t mesh for one teacher, you can easily switch to another!

You can also search our database for help with specific issues, such as back pain. Here are some of our most popular videos for a variety of Pilates experience levels that focus on helping you manage any back discomfort, building up your strength to improve chronic pain over time:

Basic-Level: Low Back Pain Relief with MeJo

In this basic-level workout with celebrity trainer MeJo Wiggin, those who are newer to Pilates will get a slow and steady class designed to strengthen and protect your back.

Intermediate-Level: Magic for Bad Backs

If you’re already experienced with Pilates, you are ready for this intermediate workout focused on bad backs with celebrity trainer Alycea Ungaro. In it, she focused on rehabbing core strength and flexibility without any forward bending or twisting that could further hurt you.

Advanced-Level: Alisa’s Spine Corrector Workout

While this Spine Corrector Workout (taught by yours truly) can help with back pain, it is NOT meant for those who are not at an advanced level of Pilates. This workout integrates the mat into the Spine Corrector repertoire while also opening the hips, chest, shoulders, and neck.

Observe & Learn: I Have a Client with Back Pain

If you’re a Pilates teacher, this workshop with Sonjé Mayo will teach you how to work with your clients who have back pain. It might also be of interest to Pilates fans who are curious about how teachers approach back pain with their students.

This is only a small selection of our Pilates videos that focus on back pain and how to heal with Pilates. You can find all of them right here!

For most people with back pain, Pilates can be a godsend. With the proper exercises, you will strengthen your core, build up your back support, relax and stretch chronic tightness. Before you know it, you’ll realize your back pain has disappeared!

I’ve helped countless clients learn to manage their back issues through Pilates, saving them from years of discomfort and a reliance on painkillers to get through the day. If you’d like to see how Pilatesology can help you, I invite you to join us on our website today!