A mobile thoracic spine allows you turn your back in many directions, enabling you to do everyday tasks with ease. Today’s sedentary lifestyle often contributes to reduced spinal mobility. Basically ”motion is lotion” and if you are inactive and also prone to poor posture, your thoracic spine can seize up. If it goes on long enough, say into old age portions of the spine may fuse and not move at all. A lack of thoracic spine mobility means that the lumbar spine, pelvis, shoulders and surrounding muscles have to compensate. Long term, these over-compensations can lead to overuse conditions and injuries, the lower back being particularly suceptable. This is because the lumbar spine is meant to keep us stable and is not very mobile, so when these joints are forced to overcompensate for the lack of movement in the thoracic area, it can place alot of pressure on the discs of the lower back. Possible consequences include inflammation, degeneration, herniation of the discs, generalized low back pain, compression fractures, muscles spasms, and spinal nerve injuries. Similar pressures and injuries can occur in the neck and shoulders. For example, if your thoracic spine isn’t mobile, anytime you have to do a movement overhead, your shoulders make up for that lack of mobility. If you have shoulder impingement or chronic shoulder and neck problems lack of mobility in the thoracic spine will make every thing worse.
Yoga, pre- and post-workout stretching, and mobility exercises are the best way of maintaining and improving thoracic spine mobility. These need to be done regularly and consistently, especially as you get older. Your physiotherapist will be able to guide you on the correct exercises and help correct your form and technique until you get used to them and can do them yourself. Here are a few exercises to get you started.
For more information contact us @ Physiotherapists in Tralee.
