Pilates for Scoliosis · scoliosis in my thoracic spine, I needto work on chest expansion, strengthening core and back muscles, and aligning my body.Myright shoulder tends to roll

PilatesforScoliosis

SriSuratmi(Chichi)December27,2017

BASIPILATES INDONESIA

Abstract

What isscoliosisandhowcanclientsmanagechronicbackpainand improve their

posture? Scoliosis is a curve in the spine. There are different degrees of scoliosis. Mild

scoliosiscanhaveacurvethat isalmostimpossibletoseeanditdoesn’taffectaperson’s

dailyactivities.Itcanalsobesevereandaffectbreathingandincludechronicbackpain.Itis

unknownwherescoliosis comes frombutsomepeople canbebornwith itasotherscan

developitintheirteenageyears.Insomecases,childrenwillneedtowearabodybraceor

haveaspinalsurgery,butusuallyitcanbemanagedwithexercise.Inthis researchpaper,it

isunknownwhethertheclientwasbornwithscoliosisordevelopeditinlateryears. I have

chronic back pain but after practicing Pilates for the past few years, it has drastically

decreasedandmy posturehas improvedaswell. Ithasbecomemy regularroutinetodo

Pilatesclasses3-4timesperweek.TheBASIblocksystemconditioningprogramhasbeen

recommendedtokeepmanagingmyscoliosisandbackpain.

TableofContents

What is Scoliosis?................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 4

AnatomyoftheSpine ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............ 6

CaseStudy................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 9

DesiredResultsof ConditioningProgram................................ ................................ ................................ ...12

Conclusion ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................... 13

WorksCited................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................. 14

What is Scoliosis?

“Scoliosis is a deformity of the vertebral column characterized by abnormal

curvaturesinallthreeplanes,mostnotablyinthefrontalandhorizontal.Thedeformity

mostofteninvolvesthethoracicspinebutotherregionscanbeaffected.”(Kinesiologyof

theMusculoskeletalSystem,p.289).

Accordingtohttps://www.gstatic.com/healthricherkp/pdf/scoliosis.pdf,mostcasesare

mildwithsmalldiscomfort,butpeoplewhodevelopmoreseverescoliosiscanfeelpain

anddiscomfort.Visually a person canbe leaning to one side, andcandevelopmuscle

spasmsandphysicaldeformity,oranunevenwaist,hipsandshoulders. Insomecases,

peoplemightrequiresurgical treatmentorabackbrace tostabilizeandsupport their

backbut,inmostcases,scoliosiscanbemanagedthroughexerciseandachiropractor’s

treatment.Ifthespinalcurvegetsworse,thespinewillalsorotateortwist,inadditionto

curvingsidetoside.

Thiscausestheribsononesideofthebodytostickoutfartherthanontheother

side.

Therearetwotypesofscoliosis:

Functional:∑ Can be corrected by an active shift in posture.

Structural:∑ Is a fixed deformity that cannot be corrected by an active shift in posture.

AccordingtoKinesiologyoftheMusculoskeletalSystem,p.290,approximately80-

90%ofallcasesofstructuralscoliosisaretermed“idiopathic.”Thismeansthecondition

has no apparent biological or mechanical cause. This type of scoliosis most commonly

affectsadolescentgirls.

Scoliosisisdescribedbythelocationonthespineandthenumberoffixedfrontal

planecurvatures.Themostcommonscoliosisconsistsofasinglelateralcurvearound the

T7-9regionbuttherearemanyotherpatternsthatinvolveasecondarycurve,whichwould

beinthelumbarspine.Ribcagedeformityisalsopresentalotoftimes(addmorefrom

page292).Somecomplicationsmightincludeheartandlungdamage,orchronicbackpain.

AnatomyoftheSpine

Image1

Image2

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CaseStudy

Since IwaskidIneverknewthatIhavescoliosis allIknewthatmybodyalwaysfeel pain

andwhenIgotpainisreallyworsttillIthoughtIwillbedied.Ieversawmyfriendwhohavesimilar

problemwithmeandshevisitedadoctorandanothertimeIsawherbodywithsomethinginher

backtosupportherbody to walkandstandup,Ididn’tknowwhatisthat.

In 2004IwasjoininReebokUniversityforresolution,Iwasaerobicinstructor.When

Iwasthere Imet oneinstructorfromSpain,shewastellingmeaboutscoliosis.Sincethe

dayIknewwhatmybackproblemis.SheaskedmetojoinhersessionwhichcalledPilates.

Ididintensiveclassfor3monthswithherandreallyamazingcosreduceallmypain.Since

thattimeIlovetosharewithallmyclientsaboutPilates as Idid.

In 2017 I join with BASI PILATES in Bandung Indonesia for comprehensive

programs.Ifeelsoluckycanbepartof BASIPILATESfamilybecausewiththemIknow

muchmorebetteraboutPilates,Iknowmuchbetterhowtomovedtoprotectmy body

frominjury.ImoreconfidenttosharewhatIamdoingasinstructortoallmyclients.The

BASIexerciseprogramensuresthatmy wholebodyis targetedperformingBASIblock

systemexercises.

ConditioningProgram UtilizingBASIBlockSystem

Thefollowingconditioningroutinewillincludeafull-bodyworkoutfollowingthe

BASIblock system. Iwill start and finishwith a rolldown to seemyalignment at the

beginningandattheendofthesession.Therolldownisagreattooltoassessimbalances

inmybody andIcan startwarmingupmybody.Therestoftheexerciseswillfollowthe

BASIblocksystemtoensurethatallmusclesaretargetedduringthesession.SinceIhave

scoliosisinmy thoracicspine, Ineed toworkonchestexpansion,strengtheningcoreand

backmuscles,andaligningmybody. My rightshouldertendstorollforwardsoI willneed

tofocusonopeningmyrightshoulder.SinceI havebeenpracticingPilatesforfew years,I

have becomeawareofmybodyalignment.

ThefollowingisanexampleofaConditioningProgram.

RollDown

Warmup(Mat)PelvicCurl,SpineTwistSupineChestLiftChestLiftWithRotation

FootWork(Reformer)HeelsParallelToesParallelVPositionToesWideHeelsWideToesCalfRaisesPrancesSingleLegHeellSingle LegToes

AbdominalWork(Reformer)100PrepCoordination

HipWork(Reformer)FrogCirclesDownCirclesUpOpenings

SpinalArticulation(Reformer)BottomLiftBottomLiftwithExtension

Stretches(Reformer)KneelingLunge

Full-BodyIntegrationI(Reformer)ElephantUpstretch1Upstretch2ReverseKneeStretch

ArmsSupine(Reformer)ExtensionAdductionCirclesUpCirclesDownTriceps

LegWork(WundaChair)LegPressStanding

Lateral(WundaChair)Side Reach

Back Extension(WundaChair)SwanBasic

RollDown

DesiredResultsofConditioningProgram

FollowingtheBASIconditioningprogram3-4timesperweek, it isdesiredthatI

willhavemoreawarenessofbodyalignment,haveabetterposture,strengthenmuscles

andreducebackpain.

Conclusion

Ihave beenawarethatIhavescoliosisandchronicbackpainsinceyears.Ihave been

introduced toPilatesabout fewyearsagoandhasbeenpracticingPilates3-4 timesper

week. Although I still experiences back pain in my thoracic spine, it has reduced

tremendously with Pilates. I will continue my Pilates practice to work on strength,

alignmentandposture.TheBASIblocksystemensuresthateverymuscleistargetedduring

theexerciseprogram.

WorksCited

Lowne,H.2012.HelpMyDaughterHasScoliosis.NewYork:HilaryLowne.

Wellings A, Herdman A. 2009. Curves, Twists and Bends: A Practical Guide to Pilates for Scoliosis. Philadelphia: Singing Dragon.

Wolpert D. 2006. Scoliosis Surgery: The Definitive Patient’s Reference. Ed 3rd. Texas: SwordfishCommunication.