SPINAL WAVES for Lower Back Relief
@laia_violeta
There are lots of eastern esoteric texts that talk about sending waves of mystical energy, kundalini, and all that jazz up and down your spine.
And I have an interest in that sort of stuff, but I prefer to focus on the physical, rather than flooding your brain with new-age mumbo jumbo.
Spinal waves enhance your ability to:
Open and close your spinal vertebrae to their full range of motion (they really improve back bends, without all the lower back tension)
Transmit force more effectively through the spine in a wave-like manner from one extremity of the body to another (hands - feet/feet - hands). This is important for martial artists to develop more powerful punches, kicks, and throws.
Move with a more fluid quality, which I've found leads to greater strength, power, mobility, and endurance for a range of activities, from martial arts, to dance, climbing, and playing.
How to Introduce Spinal Waves into Your Movement Practice
I teach the application of Spinal Waves in a range of ways, each with unique benefits:
Standing spinal waves
Hanging spinal waves
Climbing spinal waves
Crawling spinal waves
I know, that's more waves than Bondi Beach! Dad jokes aside, there are lots of ways you can do Spinal Waves.
I highly recommend you begin this practice gently, as the waves may seem easy on the surface, but there's a lot going on underneath the skin.
One of the most gentle ways I've found to introduce spinal waves into your movement practice is Kneeling Spinal Waves.
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The Importance of Spinal Flexibility
Your spine is designed to assist you in nearly every plane and type of motion, including rotation, bending, twisting, flexion, and extension. If a spine is weak or misaligned or inflexible, any number of these movements can be hindered, which can lead to reduced performance, or worse: a spinal injury. Working on spinal flexibility can lead to several crucial benefits (although I hate to even call them “benefits,” since they’re really key spinal health aspects that everyone should have, regardless of if they’re hardcore training).
Improves flexibility and stability
In the same way, stretching your muscles increases flexibility and movement range, stretching and moving your spine through spinal exercises can increase whole-body flexibility. For instance, just to use one example: a stiff spine may not be able to rotate as far as a flexible spine. When we think of this in terms of movement, we can see how an inability to rotate fully could reduce, say, the power behind a football throw, or make movements where you are reaching diagonally across your body less fluid.
A strong spine can also lead to more stability and more power output. Anytime we perform asymmetrical movements with weight (say, an alternating kettlebell swing) our spine acts as a stabilizing force along with our core muscles to keep us upright as the weight pulls at us. Strengthening the spine can help us increase the amount of weight our entire body can support, while still keeping us stable throughout the movement.
Improves posture and stance
This probably comes as no surprise, but improving spinal flexibility can also improve posture by helping the spine return to proper alignment. When our spines are stiff and stuck in a misalignment, like in a forward neck curve, and we build muscles around that misalignment, we can in a sense “lock-in” that posture. When we train the spine for flexibility and then strengthen muscles around the spine when it is in correct alignment, we can then encourage it to retain its proper position.
Improving posture can also assist in maintaining proper stance for exercises, which can of course increase power output, and therefore, gains. If your stance is off in any movement, it can limit your muscles and put a cap on performance.
Reduces the chance of injury
Lastly, improving spinal flexibility reduces your chance of injuring yourself. Similar to muscles, a stiff spine can be at a higher risk of tearing of pulling when put under pressure or stretched, whereas a flexible spine will simply bend with the movement.
The Kneeling Spine Wave: One of the Best Spinal Flexibility Exercises
Ready to cash in on these spinal flexibility benefits, Primal Swoledier-style? Enter the Kneeling Spine Wave. This exercise stretches your spine from the bottom up, and back again, for a full flexibility movement for your spine. Follow along in the video and see the step-by-step instructions below.
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