hey everybody it's Doctor Jo, and today I'm going to show you my top 5 sciatica
stretches for piriformis syndrome. so let's get started.
If you haven't already subscribed, make sure
and click on the button down there. so these specific stretches are for
sciatica when it's entrapped or press on with that piriformis muscle. so this is a
little different if it's coming from the herniated dis,c or a disc issue, this is
that piriformis muscle right on the butt area there. and that sciatic nerve runs
right under it, so when this muscle is irritated or not working properly, a lot
of times it can push on that nerve. so the first stretch is just going to be
lying down on your back and this is gonna be a figure four stretch. so with
this one you can lie on the floor, you can lie on your bed, you can lie on the
couch, so if you have a hard time getting up off the floor, lie on something else.
don't don't get on the floor and then not be able to get back up. so take the
side that you want to stretch and cross it over where your ankles just above the
knee on your thigh area. and the reason it's called a figure four is because if
you look down, it looks like a four. so with this for some people just getting
in this position if that piriformis is really tight, you're going to feel that
stretch, and that's that's fine. you can just hold the stretch right here. if you
want just a little bit more of a stretch, you can take your heel of the other foot
and slide it closer to your bottom and that will start getting a little bit
more stretch right through there. if you still need a little more of a stretch,
take your hands and grab the other leg and just gently pull it towards you. so
this is a pretty big stretch right here. you want to be able to hold it for 30
seconds, so if it's too much, come back off of it just a little bit. now if
you're really tight and you're having a hard time trying to grab underneath your
leg there, you can take a belt or a strap or something and wrap it down there and
then just pull your leg up that way. if this is still a hard position for you to
get into, I'll show you a different way to do it at the end so stay tuned for
that. so for the stretches, you want to do them you want to hold it for 30 seconds
and do three of those. even if you just have one side that's bothering you, I
would really stretch both sides just to keep
everything even. so after you do that one, then you're going to do another
piriformis stretch what that's called the knee to opposite shoulder. so I still
kind of again in that figure-four because it's starting position. not everybody
does. I feel like it's just a little bit easier this time take your opposite hand
and grab that knee, and you want to pull that knee up and over like it's going
towards your opposite shoulder. so not just over across your body, but you're
going up and over. so again you should be feeling a stretch kind of through that
bottom area right there. sometimes it's a little bit different than that
figure-four so that's why I think it's important to try both. if one feels
better than the other, you don't have to do both, but I do feel like it stretches
it just a little bit differently. so you can just hold it with one hand. some
people if they have a lot of flexibility kind of like to grab and hug on to that
side. you can do that as well. some people even feel a little bit better having
that other leg down. as long as it doesn't irritate your low back that's
okay. so you want to get in a position that's comfortable and gives you the
best stretch. so again you're holding that stretch thirty seconds, doing it
three times. I really do recommend doing it on each side. so the next one you're
gonna kind of sit up a little bit. the leg that you want to stretch, you're
gonna bend it up and place it over towards the other side. so one leg's out.
the one you want to stretch is bent up and over and then you're just gonna
twist your body to take the elbow to the outside of that knee. so you're just
coming over and twisting this way. so I'm getting that little bit of stretch here.
I'm also getting a stretch in my trunk area, so if that tends to bother your
back for some reason, you might want to hold off on this one. sometimes when you
have that sciatica even if it's from the piriformis, or your back is a little sore,
so this might actually feel pretty good. so definitely up to you. holding that
stretch again for 30 seconds and then doing three on each side. so just
crossing over and then twisting this way. so again, if you feel like you need your
back to stretch a little bit, that's great if not then you might want
to just try the other ones. so the fourth one is going to be kind of a modified
pigeon stretch. a lot of times people tell me the pigeon stretches a little
bit too much for them, so that's fine, you can do it in a modified position. the
pigeon stretch is kind of a yoga pose and it is pretty intense, so for the
modified one the side you want to stretch you're gonna put it in front of
you. I'm gonna turn towards the camera a little bit so you can see. it you want to
have your hip going forward this way, your thigh hip area, and then your knee
bent at a 90 degree angle kind of in front of you. then you're gonna take that
back leg and put it back behind you. so you can see here that I'm kind of a
almost a 90 degree angle here, and then almost a 90 degree angle there. so
getting into this position might be a little uncomfortable for some people. it
just depends on how flexible you are. with a full pigeon you take this leg and
go straight back so that's even a lot more. a lot of times people get can get
in this position, but make sure you have your leg kind of straight here. if it's
tucked up behind you it's not quite the same stretch. you're gonna feel it more
on this side, but you're trying to get the stretch on this side, so once you get
into this position keep your upper body straight forward, and then just lean in a
little bit this way, and you should feel that stretch underneath the bottom area
right where that piriformis is. so again this might be a difficult position to
get into, it might not be you might feel a lot yo,u might not feel a lot, so again
you the more you bend forward the more of a stretch you're going to feel. so
hold that stretch for 30 seconds, come off of it, I like switching sides just to
give the other side a break, and then do three on each side. so the last one is
going to be sitting in a chair. this is what I was talking about that if you
can't really do it very well lying down, you can do it sitting in a chair. so the
last stretch is going to be a seated figure four stretch. so it's the same
kind of motions as when you're lying down. take the leg that you want to
stretch and cross it over where your ankle's just above your knee on your
thigh. and this time you're gonna keep your back straight but you're gonna bend
forward at your hips. that's where it's different. you're not
pulling the legs up towards you, you're leaning forward, but make sure you keep
your back straight. sometimes people curl like this are like
"I don't feel anything," but you're getting the stretch from the hips, so that's
where you want the movement. so again some people just in this position might
feel that piriformis stretch. if it's really tight and is pushing on that
sciatic nerve, you might feel some just doing this, and
it might reproduce that numbness tingling feeling, but as long as once you
stop it goes away, that's alright. but if you need a little bit more, keep that
back straight and just lean forward at your hips and you should feel that
stretch right through there that bottom area at the hip, and then hold that
stretch 30 seconds and then do three on each side.
so there you have it. those are my top five sciatica stretches for piriformis
syndrome. if you'd like to help support my channel, click on the link up here ,and
don't forget to subscribe by clicking down there. and remember be safe, have fun,
and I hope you feel better soon.