In this video, I'm going to show you how to fix a twisted
back at home using no special equipment. Stay tuned.
Hey, everyone. Dr. Rowe coming to you from SpineCare in Saint
Joseph, Michigan. In this video, we're going to deal with
a twisted or rotated back appearance. That is if you feel
like you're just turned to one side and not in alignment, this
is a video you're not going to want to miss. So, the big
question, how do I know if I have a twisted or rotated back?
Here is a very easy way to tell. Stand up right, put your
feet in line with each other. Also, make sure that your hips
and pelvis are in a nice, straight line. From there, take
two fingers, place them off to the bottom of the ribs. If you
notice that one is forward compared to the other. So,
let's say that I have a little bit going forward on my left
side. My right fingers are brought back. You may have some
right rotation going towards the fingers that are brought
backwards. To double check this, place the fingers over
the chest and work your way up to the collarbone. If you're
noticing the same thing, it becomes more likely that you
are having rotation towards the side where the fingers are
brought back. So, all of these exercises are geared towards
getting rid of that very quickly. The nice part is they
can all be done at home and do not require any special
equipment and again may give quick relief even in as little
as 30 seconds so let's get started and fix that twisted
back appearance right now in the first part we're going to
focus on a major cause of a twisted or rotated back which
are tight muscles we're going to start pretty much from the
upper back and work our way down to the lower back because
there's different spots in the spine that might need to be
addressed I'm going to start with what is known as the
sprinkler and I'm going to show a beginner sprinkler and then
I'm going to show a more advanced sprinkler directly
after this ad exercise. For the beginner sprinkler, let's start
seated with very good upright posture. Whatever side that
we're having that rotation so assuming that I'm having a
little bit towards my right, I'm gonna take that side's
hand, place it on the outside of my left knee. We want to
hook into that knee to create a stable anchor point. From
there, I'm going to straighten the left arm just like this and
then I'm going to start to go backwards just like this. So,
I'm turning my upper body, my head, everything, and going
backwards. Almost looking backwards. When you do this,
you're really going to feel the muscles into the upper back,
shoulder blades, into the neck really start to fire. So,
really focus on trying to feel that but go back as far as you
feel comfortable. Once we hit a comfortable stretch, let's hold
this one for at least twenty seconds. From there, you're
going to relax, take a breather, and then you're going
to repeat this up to five times. With each repetition
also, make sure to go back as far as you can. Really
challenge yourself to build into that rotation because it's
only to help stretch the muscles that might be causing
that rotated appearance and when you're done on one side
for good measure always switch to the other to keep them both
in balance for the advanced sprinkler we're going to go
next to a wall whatever side that you're having rotation so
in this case I'm gonna say I'm having a little bit more
towards that left side I'm going to place that side
directly against that wall ankle knee hip shoulder whole
body flush against it also lean into it a little bit to create
a stable anchor point The other knee is going to be bent on the
floor so make sure to put a pillow or towel underneath it
for extra comfort. Let's start with very good upright posture.
Let's also do a slight chin tuck. Whatever side is closest
to the wall, in this case, is my left, I'm going to take that
side's arm, straighten it at the elbow, place the back side
of the hand, flush against it just like this. The other arm
is going to go straight and then I'm going to overlap my
hands. Almost to the point where they're able to clap. The
movement from here is very easy. I'm going to lean into
the wall and then I'm going to take the hand furthest away
from the ball, the right and then look towards the other
direction. So, I'm rotating towards my right to help
counter balance that left rotation. Go back as far as you
can. You really want to move through your upper back, your
shoulders, and also turn your head while you do this. You
should feel a lot of muscles firing. Pretty much glute
buttock, lower back, chest muscles, upper back. Make sure
to feel those muscles really firing. Once we had a very
comfortable stretch, let's hold for about twenty seconds. From
there, you're going to relax, take a breather, and then
you're going to repeat this up to five times. With each
repetition, always drive back just a little bit further to be
able to get a better stretch. You'll notice with me, I don't
have the flexibility to quite touch the wall. Some of you
might but really challenge yourself to try to build in
there and to be able to touch the wall with the backside of
your hand and for good measure, whatever you do on one side,
always switch to the other to keep them both in balance. With
this stretching exercise, we're going to focus a little bit
more from the mid back down into the lower. This is a
popular yoga pose called the cobra but we're going to take
it to the next level to help address a twisted or rotated
back appearance. This one you can do in bed or on the floor.
Let's start off on our stomach. I'm gonna start with a half
cobra or a press-up stretch. So, the goal with this one is
to keep the hips, pelvis, all the way down to the toes flat.
So, no raising it up during this exercise and we're going
to prom our body up our upper body on our elbows like this
putting the back into extension when you do this it's going to
feel good you should feel a stretch pretty much from the
upper back all the way down into the lower back you want to
focus on feeling that good stretch to begin with how we're
going to take this one to the next level we're going to put a
little bit rotation in there so if I'm rotated towards the
right I want to then rotate a little bit towards the left to
counter balance that right rotation so I'm going to press
up until I feel a comfortable stretch and then I'm going to
turn my upper body including my head and shoulders towards the
left and this will really start to fire those muscles across
the lower back into the mid back. Really focus on feeling
it around the spine. Hold this position comfortably for twenty
seconds. Do nice, slow, controlled breathing too to
help ease tension. If this feels comfortable, you can hold
it for longer. Half minute all the way up to a minute as long
as it feels comfortable but when you need a breather, just
relax and then on the next repetition, go up just a little
bit more and then rotate into it just a little bit more to
get a better stretch. Five complete repetitions. If this
becomes too easy, we can take it to the next next level. So,
instead of the half cobra, let's go into the full. So,
instead of going up on our elbows, let's put our hands
down like this and then, I'm going to push up as much as I
can. Again, don't raise the hips and pelvis. Keep that flat
as possible. Once we hit a very comfortable stretch, that's
when we build into our rotation. So, this time I'm
going to go towards my right. I'm just turning my whole back
like this towards my right and it feels wonderful. Again, 22nd
holds and you want to relax and then repeat this up to five
times and for good measure, always switch to the other side
once you're done to keep both sides in balance. With this
last stretching exercise, we're going to focus on the lower
back, into the hips, into the pelvis. This is known as a
corkscrew stretch and it's a personal favorite of many
because it can end in a satisfying self pop, crack, or
release into the lower back or into the pelvis that usually
feels pretty good. So, whatever side that we're having a
twisted back. Let's say that I have a lot of right-sided
rotation. I'm going to take the opposite side. In this case
will be my left, place it on the edge of a bed. So, let's
start off in bed, flat on our back just like this. I'm gonna
take my left leg or whatever side is closest to the edge of
the bed, straighten it like this. The other leg is going to
go bent at ninety degrees. I'm going to take my left hand or
whatever hand is closest to the edge of the bed and place it on
the outside of the other side's knee. From here, I'm going to
do is then rotate this knee downwards over my body towards
the floor. You want to keep the hips, pelvis, butt as flat as
possible during this exercise too. You'll get a better
stretch but keep pulling it over. When you do this, you
might feel a sudden pop, crack, or self release into the lower
back or into the pelvis. That is completely normal if it is
locked up and it just goes. It's just gases being released
from that joint but once we hit a very comfortable stretch,
let's build into the corkscrew. I'm going to straighten my
right arm at the elbow and then I'm going to turn my upper
body, shoulders, and head in the opposite direction towards
my right and this really intensifies this stretch. It
feels really really good. Once we had a very comfortable
stretch, let's hold this for at least 20 seconds but you can
hold it longer if you feel comfortable. Also, focus on
nice, slow, controlled breathing to help ease tension.
When you need a breather, just relax and then repeat this up
to five times. With each repetition, try to drive this
knee down even further. Try to rotate your upper body and head
in the opposite direction just a little bit more to get a
better stretch and for good measure, when you're done on
one side, always switch to the other to keep them both in
balance. In the second part, we're going to focus on muscle
imbalances and weakness that might be causing that twisted
back appearance. All of these exercises are geared towards
just promoting better alignment, better posture, and
less rotation in the spine. This first one is an isometric
exercise called a wall twist. We just need a a door or a
wall. What I'm going to do is place my feet together, space
them out roughly about a foot and a half upwards to two feet.
Enough where you're going to be able to lean into the door kind
of like a plank position. During this exercise, I want my
belly button facing towards the door. My hips always kept
facing forward. We don't want to try to rotate through the
lower back. We're only going to go through the upper back and
the middle back. I'm going to support my upper body weight by
driving my weight from my elbows to my hands into that
door or again, a anchor point. The movement is very easy. What
I'm trying to do is turn my shoulders and upper back and
head towards the opposite direction that I'm having
rotation. So, if I'm twisted towards my right, I want to
then try to focus on going towards the other direction.
But what we're going to use is the wall right here to be able
to fight that movement. So, freely, I'd be able to turn but
if I press my weight into my elbows and my arms into the
door, it's going to fight me while I do that. And when I do
this, I'm going to feel a great amount of activation. Into that
right side. So, really focus on feeling that but hold this
position comfortably for about five seconds. From there,
you're going to relax, take a breather, and then you're going
to repeat this up to ten to fifteen times. With each
repetition, try to turn into it just a little bit more to fire
those muscles. But it's just a good way to really help
strengthen that area using no equipment. With this exercise,
let's focus a little bit more on the full back from our upper
back into the lower. I'm going to start off on all four so
make sure to put a pillow or towel underneath your knees for
extra comfort. During this exercise, we want to keep the
hips, pelvis flat. We're going to only twist or rotate through
our back. So, whatever side that we have a twist going,
let's say that I have a lot of right-sided rotation. I'm going
to counterbalance that by turning or rotating towards the
left. So, I'm gonna take that side's arm off. This case my
right, I'm gonna bend the elbow at ninety degrees. Place it
underneath me like this so my palm is facing up towards me or
towards the ceiling and I'm going to rotate from my upper
back slowly down into my lower back again keeping the hips and
pelvis flat when you do this aim to feel the muscles
activate pretty much from the upper back down into the lower
you should also feel it into the core muscles those abs also
off to the side into the obliques once we hit a very
comfortable activation of those muscles let's hold this for 5
seconds from there relax take a breather and then do this for
ten to fifteen repetitions with each repetition drive over or
even further, challenge yourself to activate those
muscles because it's only going to help strengthen them and
hopefully lead to a less twisted back appearance. In
this part, we're going to focus on what is called a posture
reset. Bad posture causes so much throughout the back. Pain,
discomfort, twisted back appearance. So, let's really
address that in a very easy but effective way. I'm going to
start off on my back just like this. Let's put something
underneath our legs, a chair, you can even do this next to a
couch. We just need them elevated to the point where our
legs, our lower back, pelvis are going to be nice and
relaxed. The key with this exercise, relax everything. So,
once we have that in position, let's focus a little bit more
into the mid back into the upper back. I'm gonna feel
right on my rib cage and what I wanna do is roll my bottom ribs
forward towards my belly button to help open up the mid back
region. Let that relax as much as you can. From there, let's
just take the arms, straighten them, put them off to our side
to let the shoulders also be flat against the floor. While
that's relaxed, if you need a pillow or towel underneath the
neck for extra comfort, put one underneath there. We want
everything relaxed pretty much from our head all the way down
to our toes. Once we're in position, everything is
relaxed. Let's hold this for three minutes. Do nice, slow,
controlled breathing. Just let tension out throughout the
whole body. When we're done with that, we can take this to
the next level to really focus on a little bit more tightness
that needs to be a rest. I like to do what is called a snow
angel. So, I just straighten my arms like this, palms up
towards the ceiling. Imagine that you're just outside in the
middle of winter. There's snow on the ground and you can do a
nice snow angel. What I'm doing is I'm going all the way up
like this and then I'm going to come all the way down in a
nice, slow arc. It should take you about 5 seconds to do one
complete arc from the top to the bottom. What I want to
notice too is that while I do this, when I go upwards towards
my head, my arms might start to lift off ground like in my case
right here, they really start to lift off. That usually means
that you have a lot of chest tightness or another muscle
might be tight that is not allowing that to be flushed
against the floor. So, really focus on trying to bring those
arms down as much as you can but you want to do this nice
and slow for about ten to fifteen complete repetitions
and really again, focus on trying to keep the arms and
hands flat against the floor as much as possible. You can also
do what is called a floor angel. So, what I'm going to do
is bend the elbows like this at 90° take my the back side of my
hands towards the floor and I'm going to go up and then I'm
going to go all the way down with it. It's just going to hit
those just a little bit differently. Those muscles.
Again, you might notice that one spot just feels very tight
and achy and it won't allow your elbows like right here for
me to touch the floor. So, I want to throw a lot of
repetitions in there. Focus on trying to drive my elbows down
to stretch more into my chest and also into my back to
address that muscle tightness. Again, ten to fifteen
repetitions should take you about 5 seconds to do one
complete repetition. Just a good way to really relax
everything, reset your posture, and target areas that feel very
tight and achy that might be causing that twisted back
appearance. If the video helped, please support the
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below. I'll get back to you as soon as I can. Thank you for
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