Thread: Scoliosis help please

Hi everyone,

I have a student who has scoliosis. Class isn't a problem for her, but she's on a path of getting in better shape, losing weight, etc. She really can't do "normal" abdominal exercises because it's painful for her back because of her scoliosis.

I know Shira has this and hopefully chimes in. I know there are others on here as well. If anyone knows of a way to modify abs exercises so she can strengthen her core, I'd appreciate it. I think strengthening the abs would help her with her back, but it's like a catch 22 where she can't strengthen her abs because of her back!

Any advice on abdominal exercise modifications or alternate ways to strengthen the core?

I'm a registered yoga teacher, a certified group fitness instructor and was an exercise major in college -- and I still won't advise students with physical limitations on these things. That's something they need to ask their doctor or physical therapist.

I'm sorry to be such a wet blanket I know you just want to help and you're being sincere.

Don't get me wrong, I do provide alternatives for *dance* movements (or yoga, as the case may be) to help them participate safely in my classes. That participation often helps them with their issues a lot (I've worked with scoliosis, MS, lupus, and many other issues). I *will* guide the student to dance/yoga movements I think will help them and help them modify those movements. I also guide them to resources -- books, magazine articles, websites -- about their condition that seem relevant to my class, written by physical therapists and other grad-school level experts. I will *not* prescribe any exercises to use outside of class or give them any movements to do that fall outside my areas of training. So. modified omis, yes. Modified sit ups, no.

Unless you have serious qualifications, it's very risky to give advice. Not only is it a huge liabiliity issue, but imagine how you'd feel if she followed your well-meaning advice exactly and ruptured a disk!

As her dance instructor, you have *just* enough authority for her to take your advice more seriously than some joe schmoe off the street. Which means you'd better be an expert at anything you're going to recommend.

Again, I know you just want to help, I strongly advise you to stick to your role as a dance instructor -- modifying the dance movements to keep her safe. If you stick with moves that she can do safely with her current level of core strength (probably no mayas, for instance) she'll be building strength as you go, within an area of expertise where you're qualified to guide her.


p.s. Do you know the location/direction/type of her curvature or any other details? Maybe we can help you with some modifications?

I completely understand where you're coming from Lauren. That's why I said I'd check into it before giving any advice.

I'll email her tomorrow and ask her the specifics. Thanks for your response :)

I have to agree with Lauren- always have them check with their doc/PT first! If they have consulted enough with the professionals to know what they can & can't do, then I can help them work around the problem with variations, etc.
I have scoliosis too, but it affects everyone differently, so even I wouldn't make recomendations without a doctor's input.

Originally Posted by alyssaraks

I completely understand where you're coming from Lauren. That's why I said I'd check into it before giving any advice.

I'll email her tomorrow and ask her the specifics. Thanks for your response :)

Oh I'm so glad you understood what I was trying to say. I was afraid I was just sounding snotty and... well, like my mother! ..l;,

Meanwhile, what you can do is refer her to some online resources or print articles out for her.

I just googled briefly and found some that were written for physical therapists -- I wouldn't pass those along, she doesn't have the background to fully understand it. Here's an example of one that seems to be written with the patient in mind:

Exercise for Scoliosis > Articles > iScoliosis.com


Again, what you *can't* do is help her read/interpret the article or try to assist her in figuring out what they're saying, or have her do those exercises in your presence in class. It's SO hard to stay hands-off in these cases, but it's necessary.

what you can't say -
I think abdominal strengthening will help your scoliosis (prescription)
I think you should try these exercises
I think they mean to do it this way...
Let's try it in class
Are you doing those exercises I gave you?

What you can say -
I think abdominal strengthening will help your dancing.
I found an article about abdominal strengthening for people with scoliosis and I wanted to share it with you
Did you find that article/website helpful?

Sounds good. I'll pass it on to her. Thanks again :)

I have scoliosis as well and I had the surgery (the top half of my spine is fused.) But i've never had trouble with the dance. Sometimes some upper body work hurts and I just take it easy. Overall I think the dance has really helped my scoliosis. But really I never had much pain even before I had the surgery. I think because I was always active. I've found that the problem with asking Doctors about it is that they don't have any idea what we even do in this dance form. But my orthopedic surgeon said that activity is good.

What kind of abdominal exercizes were you doing? I know i've never been able to do crunches. But I have a very strong core now just from the dance.

Originally Posted by rakgirl

I have scoliosis as well and I had the surgery (the top half of my spine is fused.) But i've never had trouble with the dance. Sometimes some upper body work hurts and I just take it easy. Overall I think the dance has really helped my scoliosis. But really I never had much pain even before I had the surgery. I think because I was always active. I've found that the problem with asking Doctors about it is that they don't have any idea what we even do in this dance form. But my orthopedic surgeon said that activity is good.

What kind of abdominal exercizes were you doing? I know i've never been able to do crunches. But I have a very strong core now just from the dance.

the trouble with scoliosis is that it can have any number of causes & occur anywhere along the spine, so what works for me (upper spine, non-degenerative) might not work for someone with lower spine issues. There are boards that deal entirely with scoliosis & variations- it's been a while & I can't find my book marks, but a google search should get her started. Nothing compares to professional help tho, it is worth the expense to get it treated properly!!! (& trust me, I'm on a tight budget so that was a hard concept for me.)

Originally Posted by rakgirl

What kind of abdominal exercizes were you doing? I know i've never been able to do crunches. But I have a very strong core now just from the dance.

Well, for one, when we warm up I have everyone in a seated position on the floor and we lean back a little (find the center of gravity), lift the toes off the ground, and take the hands from side to side. It is a great exercise for the obliques and it gets everyone warmed up quickly. That's what I'm thinking is the problem. I always do mention that if anyone has medical problems and thinks something isn't good for them, to not do it or to stop and not worry about it. I'm constantly stressing about posture, mostly the lower back and not locking the knees, but all I can do is to say not to do something if they know they have a problem. I do have insurance and I do have people sign a release form before class, but I still worry about someone getting hurt and then my dance career would be over

She mentioned to me that her back was hurting this last time, but I'm not sure if it's just her scoliosis or the added fact that she just joined a gym this past week and has been really dedicated to going there often now.

I think I'm going to tell her that she should talk to either her doctor or a personal trainer or something because everyone is right- scoliosis can affect people differently and I have no idea how to direct her on it, so I'm just going to tell her to not do anything that resembles an ab workout in class.