I’m no stranger to back pain. While yoga can help it’s important to be mindful, move slow and with intention. This 10 minute class is somatic yoga exploring cat cow for lower back pain. It’s a few of the movement patterns I practice to experience where my tension is, and then work on a practice to release and stretch that area. Hope it helps give you some relief!!
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Cat cow for lower back pain
We’ll begin this practice on all fours. If you’re like me and want some comfort I suggest a folded blanket under your knees. Take a little more space between the hands and knees then begin a cat cow movement. Notice your lower back and how it feels.
After a few repetitions take a pause and offset the knees by bringing the right knee just a few inches forward of the left. Then repeat the movement. This variation of cat cow for lower back pain allows us to notice the difference in tension along the lower back. When doing cat cow here with the knees offset HOW are things different?
Again, take a minute or so to experience the movement, then pause. Keep the knees offset and now do the same with the hands by bringing the left hand just a few inches forward. Repeating this offset cat cow exercise. Notice how this feels different from the regular cat cow, and the variation with just the knee forward.
After a few repetitions, the pause in cat with the back rounded up and sit halfway into child’s pose. Hopefully, here you are feeling a deep stretch through the lower back on one side. Hold for a few breaths, resettle onto all fours, and sit into child’s pose for a reset. Rise back up to hands and knees and repeat on the other side with the left knee coming forward, and then the right hand. At the end of the cat cow for lower back pain practice then rescan in regular cat cow. Has anything changed about the movement?
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Questions
- Have you experienced back pain?
- Is it something you deal with regularly?
- What do you do to relieve back pain?
