One of my clients asked me about my oilcan exercises. Somebody might have a better term for them than I made up, but oilcan exercises are the things we do every day to keep our bodies mobile, the equivalent of the Tin Man’s oilcan in The Wizard of Oz.
Because we are all unique Tin People, what we need in our oilcans will vary. Additionally, our bodies change over time. We may realize that our continuous practice has made a former problem area stronger, so we can remove something from our oilcan list. Or, conversely, we may have an injury or develop a new issue that needs the oilcan daily TLC, making the list longer. However, we want to make sure that our oilcan list does not take more than five or ten minutes, start to finish (once we’re familiar with it!), because if it gets longer than that, we will just not do it.
I hesitate to share my oilcan list because, as I just said, we’re all different, but I am the handiest example and I’ll explain why the various things are on my list as a way to access the kind of thinking we need to put into the process.
Here’s what I do:
YTB |
ball under PSIS/glute |
supine arm twist |
supine hip circles |
supine thigh press |
supine knee to chest |
half happy baby |
bridge with block |
side leg lifts |
mermaid |
pelvic floor |
Now I’m going to explain why.
1. YTB – this stands for Yoga Tune-up Balls. They are a brand-name item and come in pairs in a little mesh bag. They’re about as dense as a Pinky ball (remember those?) and two of those in a sock would be a good and cheaper alternative. (People who want a less firm option can use tennis balls; people who want a firmer option can use lacrosse balls.) There are gazillions of ways to use them for self-myofascial release, but I limit myself to two ways on a daily basis. I get on all fours and roll my shins on them to help my ankles flex better. This relieves my plantar fasciitis symptoms and improves my ankle function. For me, this is important because I have ruptured my plantar fascia and I do not want to repeat the process ever again. Then I put the balls in their little bag so that the space between them lines up at the base of my spine as I am lying down. I roll them up my spine from the bottom to the top, slowly, letting them release the knots.
2. ball under PSIS/glute. This is another YTB thing. I, like most people in our culture, am functionally scoliotic, which means that the muscles in my trunk pull my right shoulder and hip toward each other. This affects my posture. It also does not play nicely with my hip issues (right hip pain due to overuse in biking/spin). To even out the muscle tension, I put one of the balls under my right glute and the other under my left PSIS as I lie on the floor. (PSIS stands for posterior superior iliac spine, which is the top of the pelvis in the back, the spot where the dimple is!). I take at least five breaths in this position to allow my body to adjust.
3. supine arm twist. This is one I do both with the YTBs and without. I lie on my back with my knees bent, feet flat on the floor. The first time through, I put the balls just above my bra strap. With straight arms, I put my palms together over my breast bone. Keeping my arms straight and my hips down, I twist my arms right and left, staring at the ceiling. This hurts. It is the good kind of hurt, but it may take some getting used to. I repeat the exercise, taking my head with me (looking at my thumbs). I repeat it one more time, my head turning the opposite direction as my arms. I take the balls out and repeat the whole sequence. The purpose of this exercise is to loosen up the 100+ joints in the thoracic spine. Movement in the thoracic spine allows better breathing, which enables better posture and more aligned movement. This exercise is great for anyone stuck in a chair for long periods during the day.
4. supine hip circles. Lying on my back, I extend one leg along the floor and take the other one up into a tabletop position. Using my hand, not my leg muscles, I circle my femur in the hip socket five times in each direction and then repeat with the other leg. This exercise helps move nutrition into the hip joint (synovial joints get nutrients via movement not circulation), helps set the head of the femur deep into the socket, and improves stability at the sacroiliac joint. For me, it also reduces hip pain.
5. supine thigh press. Again, lying on my back with one leg in tabletop, I press the opposite hand into my thigh as I press the thigh into my hand (isometric pressure). This improves SI joint stability and reduces hip pain.
6. supine knee to chest. Still lying on my back, I hug one knee to my chest while pressing the other leg away from me along the floor. Then I do it on the other side. This improves flexibility in the hip joint, stretches the butt muscles, and reduces hip pain.
7. half happy baby. Happy baby is a yoga pose in which I lie on my back holding both feet with my hands, knees pulling in toward my armpits and feet poking up toward the ceiling. Half happy baby is just like it except that one leg is stretched out along the ground. Both the whole and half versions stretch the lower back and behind and do good things for the SI joint and, again, work to reduce hip pain.
8. bridge with block. Bridging takes the spine through a full range of motion, so it is a good exercise for almost everyone (do a bridge without articulation if you have osteopenia or osteoporosis!). Adding a yoga block under the sacrum on the last rep provides some traction for the lower spine. I do it to improve glute strength, lengthen my spine, work my pelvic floor, wake up my hamstrings, and align my knees.
9. side leg lift. This is exactly what it sounds like. I lie on my side, legs long. With a flexed foot, I lift and lower my top leg, keeping my hips still and stacked on each other. Then I roll over and do the other side. This is more hip nourishment, alignment practice, and pain prevention.
10. mermaid. With my legs in a Z-sit (one shin parallel to the shoulders in front of the body, the other tucked back along the side of the body), I inhale my arms out to the side and then exhale as I side bend away from my back foot. I do about five reps and then stretch the other way. Then I repeat on the other side. This exercise works the internal and external rotation of my hips, helps me align and create space in my spine, and stretches out my rib muscles.
11. pelvic floor. As a person who has had two babies and a hysterectomy, I have pelvic floor issues. I do a quick series of exercises to keep the pelvic floor strong and functional.
This is a long post already, so I’ll discuss what exercises a person might want for some hypothetical issues tomorrow.
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