House Gym Part 2 - Wall Sit: Scoliosis & TMJ Exercise

One of my favorite things to do when stretching my back is to use a wall or other stationary surface as a grounding plane. Using a strong, stable surface such as a wall ensures that I cannot cheat my body movements toward one side or the other. My body is so used to doing things "wrong" and moving in an anatomically incorrect way that the wall serves as the ultimate teacher, instantly correcting my movements with firm and undeniable clarity. Also, it's free and who doesn't have a little wall space available for a stretch?

Here is an easy exercise that you can do at home for free - the wall sit!

Wall Sit Exercise Steps:

1) Stand with your back against the wall with your feet about 1 foot away from it.
2) Lean back so your butt touches the wall and keep your arms near your side or slightly pressing backward against the wall to further ground your body.
3) Slowly bend the knees so that your lower back makes contact with the wall.
4) Continue to bend the knees into a deeper sitting position ensuring that the back maintains contact with the wall at all times.
5) Go as low down as you feel comfortable (or capable?). The goal is to keep the butt, lower back, and shoulder blades glued to the wall in your wall sit position.

This is a great stretch for your back and it shows you which side you may have a tendency to lean toward.

For more fun with the stretch, while in the wall-sit position, place your hands on your knees and EVER-SO-GENTLY sway the hips from side to side while maintaining full back contact with the wall. Think slow-and-sexy belly dancer movements (see video below!).

For me, this gentle hip rocking is much more challenging on the right side than on the left given my spinal tendency to curve to the left.

Another fun variation of this wall sit exercise is to push up on your toes while in the low sitting position. You can then push up into an easy yoga bridge against the wall, ending in a resting position on your toes and leaning back against your shoulder blades. To achieve this position from a wall-sit position, push up on your toes, elevate the hips and push them out away from the wall, and push the ribcage up and out away from the wall. You should end looking somewhat like the lady in white pictured below... After you've remained in this position for a few breaths, slowly roll the spine back down against the wall until the entire back is flat again against the wall.

Easy yoga bridge... (Use your imagination and picture this against a wall...):

I have an earlier posting here about using a foam roller between the knees to stabilize and stretch the lower back. This is a variation on the wall-sit stretch and I encourage you to try it.

So, to summarize, this exercise is: 1) free; 2) a great thigh strengthening workout; and 3) an easy back straightening exercise!

Whatcha got to lose?