LOWER BACK RELIEF FOR DANCERS

Belly dancers in particular are vulnerable to lower back trouble partly because of the nature of belly dance isolations and partly because of unsafe dance training or popular misconceptions about what looks good. Early detection and excellent technical teaching helps us avoid what can later in life be debilitating lower spine issues that may even cut our dance career short. The exercises described here will keep your back healthy. This type of exercise can also reduce symptoms of pain and inflammation for those with serious spine issues. In fact, recuperative exercise can even make them disappear!
The delayed effects phenomenon is especially potent in regard to the spine: Frequently we won't find out the effects of what we do today for another 20 years. When they do show up, it can often display as bum knees or spine inflammation. Sometimes these conditions ultimately require surgery. Movement therapy can delay or even eliminate that need.

Nature of the spine.

What is the lower back? The spine is divided into 5 sections: The neck (cervical spine), chest (thoracic spine), middle back (lumbar spine), lower back (sacrum) and the tail bone (coccyx). What we all refer to colloquially when we speak of the lower back is really a combination of the lumbar and sacral spine. The sacrum connects to the pelvis through the sacroiliac joints. Lumbar and sacral root nerves pass through these two joints in their journey along the front and back of the legs. The pelvis itself houses the hip joints, connecting the legs to the torso.
The magic triangle: Three joints in the lower back form an extremely important troika of potential stress. 
  • The sacrum: Place your hand on your lower back with your fingers pointing down to your tailbone and your wrist across the top of your pelvis. You will feel a gentle mound there. That is the sacrum. 
  • L5: Your wrist should be right about where the 5th lumbar joint is. It is the point where the lumbar spine joins the sacral spine. L5 in effect connects the pelvis to all else above it.
  • Sacroiliac joints: Each side of your hand will hover over the 2 sacroiliac joints. These joints connect the spine to the legs.
  • More stress is felt in this 3 sided triangle than probably anywhere else in the body. All of the nerves to the legs pass through this area. Inflammation in the lower spine can cause or exacerbate debilitating conditions like sciatica, stenosis, scoliosis, herniated or bulging disks and more.
  • Belly dance mobilizes this area more extensively than any other physical pursuit. That makes proper back health essential to any belly dancer.

Relief in these three joints is profound using the simple seated exercises below. Keeping the area free of stress by practicing the easy exercises keeps the lower back healthy and places the stress where it belongs, in the hip joints and in the core muscles, instead of in the spine joints. 

One reason anyone can suffer lower spine injury: Spine joints are delicate. Hip joints are powerful. We often use them inappropriately.

The spine vs the hips: We all have been taught how to pick up heavy objects without hurting ourselves. Bend your knees and keep your spine straight. Use the hip joints to take the stress instead of the spine joints. Ultimately this is how back injury is prevented. Relearning this lesson is vital to healing.

But in belly dance hip and spine movement is often merged: To accomplish interior hip circles for instance ("umis") the hips move in unison with the lumbar spine. The merging and intense use of this delicate area can result in serious strain and injury, particularly when the lower spine is used improperly. Whether belly dance is safe or not for the spine is naturally all about good technique.

Particular danger for dancers: Over arching the lower back is the cause of many lower back problems in dance. A prime cause of over arching is inadequate abdominal support.

Hyperextension: Lumbar hyperextension is unfortunately too common in belly dance, partly because some consider an arched lower back attractive in a performer. Hyperextension happens when lumbar joints arch backward, shortening the musculature along the back of the lower spine. In turn abdominal use is lessened. Effort is no longer balanced between the back of the lower torso and the front of the lower torso. The back has to work too hard. Over time this imbalance can create chronic lower back issues of all kinds, many of which result eventually in pain and even disability. Hyperextension is solved by pulling in the lower abdominals and placing the sacrum in an upright position.
Knees: If your knees are stiff, the lower back automatically arches backwards. If locked knees are habitual then chronic arching results generating conditions described above for lower spine inflammation. If your lower back bothers you the first thing you should do is notice whether your knees are tight. If so, practice knee release (link to wonderful exercises below) and see if your spine condition improves.

3 secrets to lower back health and rehabilitation:

  1. Isolate hip movement from spine movement within recuperative exercise: This is the key for lower back health. This isolation releases built up stress in a basic and simple yet profound way. The seated lower back series of exercises are designed for this purpose. The exercises have produced dramatic improvement in symptoms for a number of people. However, because belly dancers are in the habit of merging spine and hip movement together, it can be difficult for us to experience this isolation. Ultimately learning to isolate the spine from the hips improves belly dance hip work deeply whether sharp or circular as well as overall lower back health.
  2. Improve core strength especially abdominals: The balance between the back and the front of the lower torso is very important for spine health. Often the abdominal muscles are weaker and the lower back has to take on extra stress. Pull your abdominals in whenever your lower back bothers you. 
  3. Sacrifice what looks good for what is healthy: Don't arch your lower back while dancing at all unless you have adequate core tone in your abdomen. Instead concentrate on keeping your sacrum in an upright relative position as much of the time as possible.

Remedies:

My Mantra: Tension where you need it and not where you don't. Increase tension in the core, particularly the upper back and lower front (abdominals) while releasing tension where you do not need it, in the shoulders, neck and lower back.

Seated lower back series: These are gentle exercises. Release is more the goal than strength or agility. Relax and enjoy. Choose a sturdy straight backed chair. Sit at the front it with your legs apart, knees over your ankles, both feet flat on the floor. Straighten your lower back. 
  1. Bring your knees together and open 4 times to relax your hip joints.
  2. Tilt your torso slowly forward and back 4 times. Focus your eyes straight ahead. Think of your torso plus your head as one plank that tilts.
  3. Rest with yourself tilted forward, elbows or hands on your knees. Relax your lower back with the back of your head in line with your spine. Do not look down. Instead, look at a spot on the floor 3-5 feet in front of you.
  4. Bring your torso over to one side and push the other leg away to stretch your hip. Change sides.
  5. Sitting upright, circle your straight torso several times in each direction. Focus your eyes forward.
  6. Rest again tilted forward, elbows or hands on knees.
Spinal release of the top joint: The joint that connects the skull to the top vertebrae of the spine is a special joint. Release there can automatically trigger sequential release of the entire rest of the spine but nuance and awareness are key. Use the link below to find directions for two special exercises. Both are my own invention. I have used the seated version as an amazing neck release hundreds of times in classes for seniors. The standing version is one that I use myself to release the entire spine. I use it extensively as I practice. Both cause unexpected relaxation of often chronically tense areas.
Knee relaxation relieves lower back stress: The next time your back bothers you notice how your knees feel. If they feel stiff then paying attention to their agility often in turn relieves pain and stiffness in the lower back and hips. Two wonderful knee exercises that are invaluable for improving knee health are described in the article "Knees That Hurt".

My favorite lower back story: 7 years ago I gave a presentation to an audience of 100 men. They were all seated at 8 to a table. At the end of the presentation I taught the group these same lower back seated exercises. One gentleman came up to me afterwards saying that the lower back pain he was feeling completely disappeared doing the exercises. And the same thing happened to all 7 men sitting at his table!

Published July 31, 2021.