Abstract
What isscoliosisandhowcanclientsmanagechronicbackpainand improve their
posture? Scoliosis is a curve in the spine. There are different degrees of scoliosis. Mild
scoliosiscanhaveacurvethat isalmostimpossibletoseeanditdoesn’taffectaperson’s
dailyactivities.Itcanalsobesevereandaffectbreathingandincludechronicbackpain.Itis
unknownwherescoliosis comes frombutsomepeople canbebornwith itasotherscan
developitintheirteenageyears.Insomecases,childrenwillneedtowearabodybraceor
haveaspinalsurgery,butusuallyitcanbemanagedwithexercise.Inthis researchpaper,it
isunknownwhethertheclientwasbornwithscoliosisordevelopeditinlateryears. I have
chronic back pain but after practicing Pilates for the past few years, it has drastically
decreasedandmy posturehas improvedaswell. Ithasbecomemy regularroutinetodo
Pilatesclasses3-4timesperweek.TheBASIblocksystemconditioningprogramhasbeen
recommendedtokeepmanagingmyscoliosisandbackpain.
TableofContents
What is Scoliosis?................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ..................... 4
AnatomyoftheSpine ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............ 6
CaseStudy................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ .. 9
DesiredResultsof ConditioningProgram................................ ................................ ................................ ...12
Conclusion ................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................... 13
WorksCited................................ ................................ ................................ ................................ ............................. 14
What is Scoliosis?
“Scoliosis is a deformity of the vertebral column characterized by abnormal
curvaturesinallthreeplanes,mostnotablyinthefrontalandhorizontal.Thedeformity
mostofteninvolvesthethoracicspinebutotherregionscanbeaffected.”(Kinesiologyof
theMusculoskeletalSystem,p.289).
Accordingtohttps://www.gstatic.com/healthricherkp/pdf/scoliosis.pdf,mostcasesare
mildwithsmalldiscomfort,butpeoplewhodevelopmoreseverescoliosiscanfeelpain
anddiscomfort.Visually a person canbe leaning to one side, andcandevelopmuscle
spasmsandphysicaldeformity,oranunevenwaist,hipsandshoulders. Insomecases,
peoplemightrequiresurgical treatmentorabackbrace tostabilizeandsupport their
backbut,inmostcases,scoliosiscanbemanagedthroughexerciseandachiropractor’s
treatment.Ifthespinalcurvegetsworse,thespinewillalsorotateortwist,inadditionto
curvingsidetoside.
Thiscausestheribsononesideofthebodytostickoutfartherthanontheother
side.
Therearetwotypesofscoliosis:
Functional:∑ Can be corrected by an active shift in posture.
Structural:∑ Is a fixed deformity that cannot be corrected by an active shift in posture.
AccordingtoKinesiologyoftheMusculoskeletalSystem,p.290,approximately80-
90%ofallcasesofstructuralscoliosisaretermed“idiopathic.”Thismeansthecondition
has no apparent biological or mechanical cause. This type of scoliosis most commonly
affectsadolescentgirls.
Scoliosisisdescribedbythelocationonthespineandthenumberoffixedfrontal
planecurvatures.Themostcommonscoliosisconsistsofasinglelateralcurvearound the
T7-9regionbuttherearemanyotherpatternsthatinvolveasecondarycurve,whichwould
beinthelumbarspine.Ribcagedeformityisalsopresentalotoftimes(addmorefrom
page292).Somecomplicationsmightincludeheartandlungdamage,orchronicbackpain.
CaseStudy
Since IwaskidIneverknewthatIhavescoliosis allIknewthatmybodyalwaysfeel pain
andwhenIgotpainisreallyworsttillIthoughtIwillbedied.Ieversawmyfriendwhohavesimilar
problemwithmeandshevisitedadoctorandanothertimeIsawherbodywithsomethinginher
backtosupportherbody to walkandstandup,Ididn’tknowwhatisthat.
In 2004IwasjoininReebokUniversityforresolution,Iwasaerobicinstructor.When
Iwasthere Imet oneinstructorfromSpain,shewastellingmeaboutscoliosis.Sincethe
dayIknewwhatmybackproblemis.SheaskedmetojoinhersessionwhichcalledPilates.
Ididintensiveclassfor3monthswithherandreallyamazingcosreduceallmypain.Since
thattimeIlovetosharewithallmyclientsaboutPilates as Idid.
In 2017 I join with BASI PILATES in Bandung Indonesia for comprehensive
programs.Ifeelsoluckycanbepartof BASIPILATESfamilybecausewiththemIknow
muchmorebetteraboutPilates,Iknowmuchbetterhowtomovedtoprotectmy body
frominjury.ImoreconfidenttosharewhatIamdoingasinstructortoallmyclients.The
BASIexerciseprogramensuresthatmy wholebodyis targetedperformingBASIblock
systemexercises.
ConditioningProgram UtilizingBASIBlockSystem
Thefollowingconditioningroutinewillincludeafull-bodyworkoutfollowingthe
BASIblock system. Iwill start and finishwith a rolldown to seemyalignment at the
beginningandattheendofthesession.Therolldownisagreattooltoassessimbalances
inmybody andIcan startwarmingupmybody.Therestoftheexerciseswillfollowthe
BASIblocksystemtoensurethatallmusclesaretargetedduringthesession.SinceIhave
scoliosisinmy thoracicspine, Ineed toworkonchestexpansion,strengtheningcoreand
backmuscles,andaligningmybody. My rightshouldertendstorollforwardsoI willneed
tofocusonopeningmyrightshoulder.SinceI havebeenpracticingPilatesforfew years,I
have becomeawareofmybodyalignment.
ThefollowingisanexampleofaConditioningProgram.
RollDown
Warmup(Mat)PelvicCurl,SpineTwistSupineChestLiftChestLiftWithRotation
FootWork(Reformer)HeelsParallelToesParallelVPositionToesWideHeelsWideToesCalfRaisesPrancesSingleLegHeellSingle LegToes
AbdominalWork(Reformer)100PrepCoordination
HipWork(Reformer)FrogCirclesDownCirclesUpOpenings
SpinalArticulation(Reformer)BottomLiftBottomLiftwithExtension
Stretches(Reformer)KneelingLunge
Full-BodyIntegrationI(Reformer)ElephantUpstretch1Upstretch2ReverseKneeStretch
ArmsSupine(Reformer)ExtensionAdductionCirclesUpCirclesDownTriceps
LegWork(WundaChair)LegPressStanding
Lateral(WundaChair)Side Reach
Back Extension(WundaChair)SwanBasic
RollDown
DesiredResultsofConditioningProgram
FollowingtheBASIconditioningprogram3-4timesperweek, it isdesiredthatI
willhavemoreawarenessofbodyalignment,haveabetterposture,strengthenmuscles
andreducebackpain.
Conclusion
Ihave beenawarethatIhavescoliosisandchronicbackpainsinceyears.Ihave been
introduced toPilatesabout fewyearsagoandhasbeenpracticingPilates3-4 timesper
week. Although I still experiences back pain in my thoracic spine, it has reduced
tremendously with Pilates. I will continue my Pilates practice to work on strength,
alignmentandposture.TheBASIblocksystemensuresthateverymuscleistargetedduring
theexerciseprogram.
WorksCited
Lowne,H.2012.HelpMyDaughterHasScoliosis.NewYork:HilaryLowne.
Wellings A, Herdman A. 2009. Curves, Twists and Bends: A Practical Guide to Pilates for Scoliosis. Philadelphia: Singing Dragon.
Wolpert D. 2006. Scoliosis Surgery: The Definitive Patient’s Reference. Ed 3rd. Texas: SwordfishCommunication.