Cervical spine exercises

If a nerve is pinched in the cervical spine, other symptoms such as headaches, dizziness, tinnitus or nausea can also occur. The following exercises reduce the pain and promote mobility. Exercise 1: The patient lies on a mat in supine position.

The legs are set up and the hands are lying next to the head in a U-position. The head is supported by a Pilates ball or a narrow pillow. The patient makes a double chin, pulls the chin slightly towards the chest and presses his head into the ball/pillow.

At the same time he pushes the sternum upwards and presses the shoulders down. Hold position for 5 seconds, then release. Perform 5 repetitions.

Exercise 2: The patient sits upright on a chair. The chin is pushed backwards to form a double chin. Now stretch the back of the head upwards so that the cervical spine straightens.

Push the sternum upwards, pressing the shoulders down. Hold this position for about 10 seconds, then slowly release. Avoid jerky movements.

Repeat 3 times. Exercises 3: To loosen hardened muscles, loosening exercises help. These include shoulder circling (in the same direction, in opposite directions, alternating or both at the same time).

This improves blood circulation in the shoulder and neck muscles. Exercise 4: People affected should stretch their neck muscles. This can be done, for example, by placing the left ear on the left shoulder.

Hold position for 5 seconds, then repeat on the other side. Patients can also perform slight rotation (=no movement) and inclination (=yes movement) of the head. These exercises may also be of interest to you: Exercises against neck pain

Exercises BWS

The main goal in the case of a trapped nerve in the thoracic spine is to relax the tensed muscles and straighten the thoracic spine. However, training the abdominal muscles should not be neglected either: Exercise 1: The affected person stands so close to a wall that his back touches the wall. Now he takes a tennis or hedgehog ball and positions it so that it lies next to the spine on the painful spot.With his back he squeezes the ball between his back and the wall and now starts to move his body slightly up and down or in circles.

This massages the corresponding area and relaxes the muscles. Exercise 2: The patient rolls a large towel or blanket into a long roll. The patient lies on this roll in a supine position so that the blanket is directly under his spine.

The feet are positioned hip-wide and the arms are laid down next to the head in a U-position. Hold the stretch for about 5 minutes. Exercise 3: The patient lies on a mat in prone position.

The legs are stretched out and the toes are positioned. Now the head is lifted slightly from the mat and the gaze falls down towards the mat. The arms are also lifted from the floor in a U-position, the thumbs point upwards.

Important: Tense the stomach so that the lumbar spine does not get into a hollow back. Hold this position for 10 seconds. Repeat 3 times.

Increase: Move the arms simultaneously up and down (= hacking movements). Exercise 4: The patient sits upright on a Pezzi ball. The arms are positioned right-angled in U-position next to the head.

The palms of the hands point forward. Now the palms are moved towards each other until they touch. Then bring the arms apart again.

While doing so, push the sternum far up, press the shoulders down and tense the abdomen. 15 repetitions. Basically, exercises on the Pezzi ball are advantageous when nerves are pinched: the mobility of the spine is improved, the intervertebral discs are better supplied with blood and the tense muscles are stretched. You can find more exercises here: Exercises for the thoracic spine