Standing Birddog Exercise
I was recently reading Stuart McGill new book titled “Back Mechanic”and came across a modification of the birddog exercise that I had never seen before and thought I would give it a go. Interestingly this modification is quite challenging still when you are standing on an incline and are required to balance and control your movement against gravity. The aim of the birddog exercise to focus on maintaining a stable trunk position whilst moving your limbs. Typically I will start this exercise with either an ipsilateral arm or leg movement and then progress this to contralateral arm and leg movement. Key things to look out for include: breathe holding (is it too challenging), loss of trunk bracing and control in the sagittal/frontal and transverse position, inability to move the arm/leg through the appropriate range of motion. These are just some of the signs that perhaps the exercise is too challenging for the person or perhaps it needs to be regressed before it is progressed.
This blog post was written by osteopath Heath Williams of Principle Four Osteopathy. Principle Four Osteopathy is one of Melbourne City CBD leading Osteopathy clinics. At the clinic we treat a wide range of clients, ranging from the office worker, exercise enthusiast to athlete. We have 3 experienced osteopaths working across both of the clinics. The Melbourne City CBD clinic is located at 29 Somerset Place (basement), close to the corner of Elizabeth St and Little Bourke in the Melbourne City CBD. Our premises adjoin the Jon Weller Personal Training Studio, a fully-equipped training space which allows clients to combine their osteopathy treatment with exercise tutorials or specific training programs and rehabilitation. The Docklands clinic is located at 717 Bourke St (Ground Floor), beneath the Channel 9 building near the walkway from Southern Cross Train Station to Etihad Stadium. Our premises adjoin Pilates on Bourke, a fully-equipped pilates and yoga training space which allows clients to combine their osteopathy treatment with exercise tutorials, pilates or specific training programs and rehabilitation. To speak to an Osteopath or book an appointment at Principle Four Osteopathy, please book online or call 03 9670 9290.