“I want you to bend forward with a flexed spine whilst holding this weight”
A scary thought for those with lower back pain. The big no’s are bending with a flexed back and rotating. But as Maciej shows in this video, the spine can adapt to this movement.
If this movement was repeated chronically, the spine probably can’t adapt. The spinal discs do not like it and they don’t recover fast enough to adapt.
But for a patient who lacks flexibility or is even fearful of bending forwards “because of what happened last time…” the Jefferson Curl can be a great way to “teach” the spine to flex without creating a nasty pain response. This is an exercise that is becoming increasingly popular for us at the clinic
If your spine is well, give it a go. If your back is grumbling then give us a call or try some more conservative flexibility exercises. Oh and check out PowerWave at thepowerwave.co.uk.