5 spinal stenosis exercises to avoid

When you think of physical fitness, it’s easy to assume that every option can only bring positive results. But even though exercising can provide many benefits for both your mental and physical health, not every type of exercise is safe for certain conditions or medical concerns. 

Your spine plays a pivotal role in your physical fitness. It provides your body with the support it needs to carry out movements. But when you have a medical condition that affects your spine, such as spinal stenosis, there are some exercises that can do more harm than good. That’s why it’s important to know which spinal stenosis exercises to avoid so that you don’t experience back pain or risk an injury.

We’ll discuss the basics of spinal stenosis, exercises that you should avoid if you’ve been diagnosed with spinal stenosis and which are safe to perform. 

What is spinal stenosis?

Your spine consists of three main segments: the cervical spine (neck), the thoracic spine (upper and middle back) and the lumbar spine (lower back). Spinal stenosis refers to the narrowing of the spinal canal, particularly in the cervical and lumbar spine.

Spinal stenosis, also known as spinal narrowing, puts pressure on your spinal cord as well as the surrounding nerves. Even though some cases are asymptomatic, spinal stenosis can result in symptoms including:

• Pain.
• Muscle weakness.
• Numbness.
• Impaired bowel or bladder control.

Spinal stenosis is especially common in older people due to the increased risk of developing osteoarthritis as you age. Osteoarthritis is a common cause of spinal stenosis, resulting in many people who are 50 or older developing a narrowed spine. 

Other common causes of spinal stenosis include bone spurs, spinal injuries and herniated discs.

5 spinal stenosis exercises that you should avoid while working out

The key to effective exercises is making sure that they are safe for your particular conditions. There are many exercises that can worsen your spinal stenosis symptoms or further the damage. 

Here are five spinal stenosis exercises that you should avoid:

• Long walks — Walking is nearly impossible to avoid on a daily basis, and regular walks around the park or your neighborhood are usually low-impact exercises. But for people with spinal stenosis, walking for a long period of time, or a long distance, can cause back pain due to the extra pressure being placed on the lumbar spine. Long walks can also cause muscle fatigue.
• Running or jogging — While running and jogging are often ways to work in some cardio exercise, these high-impact activities aren’t recommended for people with a narrowing spine. They can lead to back pain due to the repetitive strain that the movements put on your back muscles. It’s especially true when running or jogging on unforgiving surfaces, such as hard pavement.
• Excessive back stretches — When you’re sitting for a while, it’s normal to get up, put your hands on your hips and bend backward to stretch out your back muscles that may have tightened up. But for people with spinal stenosis, it can cause increased compression in the affected vertebrae, leading to painful inflammation.
• Contact sports — It goes without saying that any contact sport has a risk of injury. But a traumatic hit during a sport like football, soccer or martial arts can risk severe damage to your spine that is already in a fragile state. You want to make sure that you’re keeping your muscles and nerves safe from further issues.
• Heavy lifting — Putting excessive strain on your back, especially during exercises that require a rounded back, can lead to possible injury if you have spinal stenosis. Lifting weights while your back is rounded can put too much pressure on your spine, leading to the surrounding muscles becoming destabilized.

Exercises to test out with spinal stenosis

Just because there are some exercises that have been deemed as unsafe for people with spinal stenosis doesn’t mean that there aren’t others that you can try. Overall health and wellness is essential to your quality of life, and exercise is an important component of that. 

If you’re trying to build a workout regimen that won’t exacerbate your spinal stenosis, here are a few exercises that you can try:

• Swimming — A common exercise for people with spinal stenosis is swimming. The lack of gravity in a body of water takes away the pressure placed on your spine and surrounding muscles during movements while still boosting your muscular strength.
• Stationary biking — Many people with spinal stenosis in their lumbar spine find relief from their back pain when they lean forward on an exercise bike. It can help spinal stenosis pain because flexing the back forward tends to be more comfortable than sitting in an upright position.
• Core and hip strengthening exercises — Even though twisting motions can exacerbate your back pain, there are still many strengthening exercises that are safe and effective for spinal stenosis. Exercises like planks and lunges can improve your core and hip strength without pain.

Whatcom Physical Therapy can teach you safe exercises for spinal stenosis 

Having a narrowing spine doesn’t mean that you can’t work out. Even though there are some spinal stenosis exercises that you have to avoid, there are still plenty that can help you work toward your fitness goals. The physical therapists at Whatcom Physical Therapy are here to guide you through safe and effective exercises.

Contact our team today for more information or to schedule an initial appointment.