Fibromyalgia is a horrendous ailment that can have you feeling fatigued, depressed, and in chronic pain. That pain can be felt in your joints and muscles and most of the time makes you feel like you have a bad case of the worst flu ever. Once you add in the digestive issues and brain fog, a person with fibromyalgia can feel like giving up before they even start their day.
First, if you are suffering from fibromyalgia, or know someone that is, I am sorry. I wish that there was a way that I could stop this autoimmune disease from affecting anyone. However, I am happy that I can share five Pilates exercises that I have found that relieve the symptoms of fibromyalgia.
5 Pilates Exercises Relieve Fibromyalgia Symptoms
Pelvic Clocks
Pelvic Clocks are an excellent way to learn more about your body while doing something that will relieve some of your pain. This exercise will have you learning how to isolate your abs and pelvis while relaxing the rest of your body.
For this exercise, you will lay flat on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. Your legs should be parallel and in line with your hips. As you place your hands on your hips, you must imagine a clock on your hip bones. The twelve o’clock position is your belly button, while the six o’clock position is your pelvic bone. Both three and nine o’clock are at your hip bones.
As you contract your abs, you need to tilt your pelvis to make your back straight. Use your abs and tilt your pelvis to move around the clock in one direction and then reverse in the opposite direction.
I recommend repeating this two or three times.
Pilates Single Leg Stretch
Pilates Single Leg Stretch is a beginner Pilates move that will have you lying on a mat with your back flat against the floor. Your legs should extend to the ceiling, while your head rests on the floor. Pull both your knees to your chest and then extend one leg to the ceiling as you keep the opposite knee tucked to your chest. Switch to the other side.
I recommend doing between eight and ten repetitions for the best results.
Bent Knee Fall Outs
During this Pilates exercise, you will find that you are working your obliques, abs, inner thighs, and quadriceps. You will begin by lying on the ground with your spine in a neutral position. Your knees should be bent with your feet flat on the floor. Before you begin moving, bring your shoulder blades down, so they are helping you stabilize your body.
As you exhale, contract your abs and let your right knee open to the side slowly. You must do this without moving your hip bones and you should feel a gentle stretching through your inner thighs. Bring your knee back to the center and then let your left knee open to the side slowly.
I recommend doing five reps of this exercise, but make sure you are keeping your abs engaged the entire time.
Ribcage Arms
Ribcage Arms will have you lying on your back with your arms straight down and next to your side. Your knees should be bent with your feet on the floor. As you inhale, lift your arms up over your head. You want to do this without arching your back, which may sound difficult, but it isn’t. Simply stabilize your ribcage and use your abs to support your core.
Bring your arms back down to your sides before repeating.
I recommend doing this three to five times every day.
Bridge
The bridge will help you build up your muscles in both your glutes and your legs. Your goal is to ease some of your back pain and the tension that you carry there.
You will begin by lying on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor. As you inhale, lift your hips off of the floor and continue going up until your hips are higher than your ribcage. This will be easier if you activate core muscles and use your glutes. Once you are up, hold that position for a count of one and then return to your original position.
It is important to keep your shoulders wide on the floor, so you do not arch your back. Ignoring this and raising your shoulders can cause major back pain, which is what you are trying to alleviate!
I recommend starting with five of these and then working your way up to ten.
These five Pilates exercises will help alleviate at least some of your fibromyalgia symptoms, while also allowing you to build up your muscles and relax them at the same time. In fact, did you know that Pilates can help reduce muscle tension, reduce joint pain, improve your posture, and improve your coordination all at the same time? It’s true!
Give these five exercises a try and see how much lower your pain levels are after a few days. I think you will be pleasantly surprised and you will want to make these exercises a part of your daily routine long into the future.
