Richmond Gluteus Muscle Weakness Helped by Exercise: Planks
The glutes are for more than just sitting! They must be strong and supportive to keep us, especially those of us who suffer with Richmond back pain, walking, balanced, up-right. Johnson Chiropractic takes gluteal muscle strength seriously, especially the gluteus medius muscle, one of the more prominent supportive spine muscles along with the gluteus maximus, tensor fascia latae, lumbar multifidus, external oblique, erector spinae, and rectus abdominus. So many muscles, so little time to discuss them all. Your Richmond chiropractor is focusing on the gluteal muscles in this article. More to come on the others!
FOCUSING ON WEAK GLUTEUS MUSCLES WITH SIDE PLANK OR BRIDGE
When supportive muscles are weak – gluteus maximus, gluteus medius, multifidus and transverse abdominus – doing exercises that strengthen those while not activating others like the erector spinae and tensor fascia latae is desirable. Side bridge while raising the dominant leg is one exercise that showed itself to be good to activate the gluteal muscle and not the tensor fascia latae muscle. (Side note from this study: Back bridge exercise was helpful in strengthening the multifidus muscle.) (1) One variation of side plank is the side-sling plank. Researchers found that it improved gluteus medius strength post-injury. Side-sling plank with hip medial rotation demonstrated itself better in patients with gluteus medius weakness but dominant tensor fasciae latae. (2) Side bridge exercises were described to strengthen hip, trunk, and abdominal muscles as well as challenge trunk muscles without high lumbar compression, an important detail for back pain sufferers like those Johnson Chiropractic care for in our Richmond chiropractic office. Another variation that showed itself better than the others for strengthening a weak gluteus medius muscle was the side bridge with knee flexion. (3) When glute muscles are weaker than their adjacent muscles, exercises focused on activating the gluteus max and gluteus medius without involving surrounding muscles like the tensor fascia latae, etc., are key. One simple exercise that triggered the gluteus maximus and gluteus medius muscles while minimizing tensor fascia latae muscles was the clam exercise. (4) With so many different kinds of exercise possibilities, depend on your Richmond chiropractor to help pinpoint which of your supportive muscles are weak and determine which exercises - natrual parts of chiropractic care - are most beneficial in strengthening them.
CONTACT Johnson Chiropractic
Listen to this PODCAST with Dr. Robert Krause on The Back Doctors Podcast with Dr. Michael Johnson as he describes care of a patient with back pain due to degenerative disc disease who found relief with The Cox® Technic System of Spinal Pain Management that incorporated exercise.
Schedule your Richmond chiropractic appointment with Johnson Chiropractic today. Don’t just sit on your weak glute muscles. Strengthen them, so they can best support you!
