Spine Care Exercise Videos

Welcome to the Spine Care Exercise Videos! Thank you for taking a big step toward improving the health of your spine. From time to time, almost everyone suffers from back problems. By strengthening and stretching the muscles in your back and abdominals, you can avoid common back problems and back pain. If you currently suffer from back problems, doing the exercises recommended by your doctor or physical therapist can help you feel better and may help prevent most back pain from recurring.

These videos are a visual reminder of the correct way to do the exercises. If you have any questions about which exercises are right for you - or if you have pain or experience trouble doing any exercise correctly - please contact your provider.

Once you have finished viewing the videos, we would welcome any feedback you have. Let's get started!

If you are unable to view the videos, you may need to download Adobe Flash Player by clicking here.

1 INTRODUCTION
Introduction to Back Care Bill Firtch, MD, Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation
Introduction to Spine Care Exercises Ivan Matsui, Physical Therapist
General Physical Activity Ivan Matsui, Physical Therapist
Finding Neutral Spine Ivan Matsui, Physical Therapist
Exercise can reduce back pain, protect the back against further injury, and help you return safely to doing important activities in your daily life.

Safety first!
Always check with your doctor or physical therapist before beginning this exercise program. Review your medical history with them. Tell your provider if you have:
- Heart disease or high blood pressure
- Lung problems
- Osteoporosis
- Joint arthritis or injuries
- Cancer
- Recent infection or surgery
- Any other major medical condition

Do the exercises that are right for you.
Some exercises may be more appropriate for your specific condition. Your provider will tell you which exercises to do, how many times to repeat each exercise, and how many times per week you should do each exercise.

Ask for help if you:
Aren’t sure how to do an exercise, have trouble correctly doing an exercise, or have pain or don’t feel well during or after an exercise.

Before doing exercises, remember to get into "neutral spine"
- Stand straight
- Arch your back a bit
- Settle into a comfortable position
- Line up ears, shoulders, hips, knees & ankles
- Relax your knees a bit

When you're ready, select from the below categories to begin viewing the exercises.

If you are unable to view the videos, you may need to download Adobe Flash Player by clicking here.

2 STABILIZATION EXERCISES
Exercises 1-13: Strengthen and stabilize your back.

3 STRETCHING FOR FLEXIBILITY
Exercises 14-24: Increase flexibility and movement.

4 BODY MECHANICS
Exercises 25-35: Use proper posture and body movements

5 POSITIONS TO HELP EASE PAIN
Exercises: 37-41: Suggestions for increasing comfort

6 TAKE OUR SURVEY
We would appreciate hearing your comments to the Spine Care videos. Please take just a few minutes to answer some questions. Your answers will help Kaiser Permanente to continually improve our member services and educational programs to help you live well and thrive. Thanks for your help!

Video Help
You will need to have Adobe Flash Player installed on your computer to play the videos. If you need to install the player, or are unsure, you can go here. You can also visit our help page for additional help.

Disclaimer
If you think you have a MEDICAL OR PSYCHIATRIC EMERGENCY, CALL 911 IMMEDIATELY or go to the nearest hospital. DO NOT attempt to access emergency care through this web site. An emergency medical condition is a medical or psychiatric condition that manifests itself by acute symptoms of sufficient severity (including severe pain) such that you could reasonably expect the absence of immediate medical attention to result in any of the following: serious jeopardy to your health, serious impairment to your bodily functions, or serious dysfunction of any bodily organ or part. An emergency medical condition is also "active labor," which means a labor when there is inadequate time for safe transfer to a Plan hospital (or designated hospital) before delivery or if a transfer poses a threat to the health of the member or unborn child.

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