Here are a couple of videos that can help you relieve pain from the soles of your feet. It works well with plantar fasciitis as well as general foot pain.
Some guidelines:
Consult your physician first to see if the exercises are safe.
Don’t try these exercises if your feet are excessively painful or swollen
Do not use too much pressure while doing the exercises. You should feel the massage, but it should not hurt. If it does hurt, you are using too much pressure and will slow down the healing process.
There are many variations of this massage, so I have included 2 different approaches. The first video is done seated, while the second one is done in the standing position.
Don’t overdo it. This is the biggest risk with self massage. Too much can lead to inflammation and worsened symptoms. Do it for a maximum of 5 minutes at a time, 3 times a day.
Here is a video for people suffering from lower back pain, sciatica or herniated disc pain. This is a great exercise because it is so gentle and safe. The exercise gently mobilizes the lower back vertebrae and lubricates the joints. It also eases the Lumbar Muscles.
Check with a health care professional before you attempt these exercises to ensure that it is safe for you.
Do the exercises slowly and gently. Failing to follow the instructions or consult with a health care professional could cause your symptoms to worsen.
Try to breathe slowly and keep your body relaxed. Do not tense up or hold your breath as this will invite muscle spasm.
You should not feel any pain during the exercises. If you do feel pain, decrease the range of movement by stopping before you get to the point of pain. Continue the exercise within the pain free range.
If you cannot find a comfortable, pain free way to do these exercises, discontinue immediately and seek the advice of a health care professional.
Do the exercises in a set of 1 minute for a minimum of 3 times a day for best results.
Here are some exercises for Disc Herniation or Discogenic Sciatica. The exercises are part of the McKenzie Method. The exercises are an attempt to take pressure off the sciatic nerve by helping to mobilize the disc back into the place.
Check with a health care professional before you attempt these exercises to ensure that it is safe for you.
Do the exercises slowly and gently. Failing to follow the instructions or consult with a health care professional could cause your symptoms to worsen.
Try to breathe slowly and keep your body relaxed. Do not tense up or hold your breath as this will invite muscle spasm.
You should not feel any pain during the exercises. If you do feel pain, decrease the range of movement by stopping before you get to the point of pain. Continue the exercise within the pain free range.
Stage one where the instructor is on his elbows is the safest position. Do not attempt the other positions until you can do the previous position safely with absolutely no discomfort for 2 days.
Be very careful about going into the position where you are supported by your hands. Only do this position and the subsequent “side bending” pose when you are no longer in the acute or subacute phases
If you cannot find a comfortable, pain free way to do these exercises, discontinue immediately and seek the advice of a health care professional.
Do the exercises in a set of 3 for a minimum of 3 times a day for best results.
Here is another stretch for your chest pectoral muscles. It is a yoga stretch than can easily be done at the work place. Perfect for those moments when you are stressed out at work and don’t have time for a break.
Guidelines for performing the stretches:
Check with a health care professional before you attempt these exercises to ensure that it is safe for you.
Do the exercises slowly and gently. Failing to follow the instructions or consult with a health care professional could cause your symptoms to worsen.
Try to breathe slowly and keep your body relaxed. Do not tense up or hold your breath as this will invite muscle spasm.
You should feel a gentle stretching sensation, but you should not feel any pain during the exercises. Be especially careful of any sharp pain in the shoulder. If you do feel pain, decrease the range of movement by stopping before you get to the point of pain. Continue the exercise within the pain free range.
If you cannot find a comfortable, pain free way to do these exercises, discontinue immediately and seek the advice of a health care professional.
To increase the stretch, try to squeeze your shoulder blades together and slide them down your back while you are doing the exercise.
Do the exercises in a set of 3 for a minimum of 3 times a day for best results.
Hold the stretch for a minimum of 15 seconds each time.
Tightness in the pectoral muscles is an important factor in neck pain or shoulder/upper back pain. Shortness in the pectoral muscles pull the shoulder blades forward and cause the upper back muscles to stay in a stretched, weakened position resulting in neck and shoulder pain. This often happens because of poor postural habits, but more importantly it is due to our always being hunched over our desks or computers. Doing a few pec stretches every day can help reverse poor posture, increase muscle length and decrease shoulder and neck pain.
Guidelines for performing the stretches:
Check with a health care professional before you attempt these exercises to ensure that it is safe for you.
Do the exercises slowly and gently. Failing to follow the instructions or consult with a health care professional could cause your symptoms to worsen.
Try to breathe slowly and keep your body relaxed. Do not tense up or hold your breath as this will invite muscle spasm.
You should feel a gentle stretching sensation, but you should not feel any pain during the exercises. Be especially careful of any sharp pain in the shoulder. If you do feel pain, decrease the range of movement by stopping before you get to the point of pain. Continue the exercise within the pain free range.
If you cannot find a comfortable, pain free way to do these exercises, discontinue immediately and seek the advice of a health care professional.
To increase the stretch, try to squeeze your shoulder blades together and slide them down your back while you are doing the exercise.
Do the exercises in a set of 3 for a minimum of 3 times a day for best results.
Hold the stretch for a minimum of 15 seconds each time.
Here is part 3 of the pilates video: The Glutes Routine.
Strengthening the leg muscles can add strength and stability to your lower back area. You might never guess that your legs could be causing you lower back pain, but as I always say, everything is connected. Most leg muscles originate from the pelvis and any muscle imbalance in the legs can have an effect in shifting, tilting or rotating the pelvis and upsetting the natural balance of the body, thus causing lower back pain.
Pilates is a system of exercises which targets and strengthens core muscles. This video teaches some exercises for toning the legs. It especially works the inner thigh muslces (adductors) and the outer hip muscles (abductors). These 2 muscle groups work together to stabilize your hips in both athletic or non-athletic activity. Like the glutes, dysfunction in the leg muscles is rarely felt in the legs themselves, but rather in the lower back.
Practising these exercises on a regular basis will help to strengthen your leg stability muscles and can give you greater ease standing or walking as well as improved performance in athletics.
You should only try these exercises if you have a very strong core and are relatively athletic already. If you have a weak lower back or abs, you may find these exercises especially difficult or even painful. If you are healthy enough to do these exercises, they can be an important step in improving your health.
Guidelines for performing the exercises:
Check with a health care professional before you attempt these exercises to ensure that it is safe for you. It is especially important to rule out any disc problems before you do this exercise.
Do not do these exercises if you have any kind of acute low back pain or pain due to a herniated disc .
Do the exercises carefully. Failing to follow the instructions or consult with a health care professional could cause your symptoms to worsen.
Pilates is a very technical exercise. It works very well because of the finely-tuned movements. To get the most of the exercises it is best and safest to go to a pilates class or work with a pilates instructor.
Be very careful with the position of the lower back. It should be in a neutral position for the exercises. It should not be arched or rounded. In some of the exercises, you may feel like you do not have the strength to keep your lower back in a neutral position. You may feel like you cannot stop it from arching or rounding. In this case, do not do that particular exercise as it may do more harm than good. Challenging and potentially dangerous exercises are the seal, the hundred and the hundred prep.
You should feel a bit of a workout when doing these exercises, but you should not feel any pain. If you do feel pain, especially sharp or intense pain, stop immediately.
Do not feel like you have to do all the exercises. Only do the ones that you are most comfortable with when you are starting. Listen to your body.
As you gain strength and confidence over the weeks, you may want to add back the exercises that you had skipped. Only do so when you are sure that you can do the exercise safely.
If you cannot find a comfortable, pain free way to do these exercises, discontinue immediately and seek the advice of a health care professional.
Try to do the exercises at least twice a week to start off. You can increase the frequency as you build up strength.