Yoga guide
Yoga is a good way for people with scoliosis to stay active and keep the back and trunk strong, and the NHS and the UK charity Scoliosis Support & Research encourage exercise like it. But it won't straighten a curve: the side plank studies behind that claim had no proper comparison group, and the one randomised trial found no change. In a growing child, a brace has the best evidence for slowing a curve.
This guide covers what the studies found, how yoga compares with scoliosis-specific exercise and bracing, how to practise evenly on both sides, yoga in a brace and after spinal fusion, scoliosis in adults, and when to see a doctor. To start, follow our 25-minute even, both-sides yoga sequence.
The NHS says most people with scoliosis can do most activities, including exercise and sport, and that general exercise "should not be avoided unless advised by your doctor". Scoliosis Support & Research (formerly Scoliosis Association UK) says yoga, Pilates and swimming are good for keeping the back muscles strong.
Curves "can't be reversed without surgery", the Scoliosis Research Society says. The side plank studies had no proper comparison group, and the one randomised trial found no change.
In a large study, 72% of braced young people avoided their curve reaching the size where surgery is usually advised, against 48% who were watched. In a Swedish trial, a night brace did better than physical activity alone, and scoliosis-specific exercise didn't.
Do each pose for the same time on both sides unless a specialist gives you a one-sided programme. A one-sided pose copied without knowing your curve could push it the wrong way: the side plank's originator says it can make upper-back curves worse.
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Loose joints are more common in girls with scoliosis, and the international scoliosis guideline warns that techniques to increase flexibility may not suit children with loose joints. Don't force deep bends or twists.
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Exercise "should not harm the fused segments", and most teenagers are back to sport within a year of surgery. Follow your surgeon's timeline, and don't force bending or twisting through the fused section.
Scoliosis is a sideways curve of the spine with a twist, measured on an X-ray as the Cobb angle. The commonest type, adolescent idiopathic scoliosis, has no known cause, starts between the ages of 10 and 18, and is "found in as many as 4 in 100 adolescents", the Scoliosis Research Society says; about 30% have a family history. The NHS says it "is not thought to be linked to things such as bad posture, exercise or diet".
Curves tend to grow during the rapid growth years, and scoliosis "tends to stay the same after you stop growing", the NHS says. In adults, curves under 30 degrees rarely get bigger, while curves of 50 degrees or more may grow by about 1 degree a year. Adult degenerative scoliosis develops later in life and can cause back pain and nerve symptoms in the legs.
Small curves are watched. A growing child whose curve may get worse may be offered a brace, which "will not correct the curve, but might help stop it getting worse". The International Scientific Society on Scoliosis Orthopaedic and Rehabilitation Treatment (SOSORT) recommends specialist scoliosis exercises, which the NHS says are "not recommended by all specialists". Severe or worsening curves may need surgery, in which the fused section becomes "one solid piece of bone". In adults, treatment is mainly for pain.
Only large curves in the upper back restrict the lungs: significant limits are unusual below a thoracic curve of about 70 degrees, and lower back curves are unlikely to affect breathing. See a GP if you're breathless.
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Our search for randomised trials of yoga in scoliosis found only one yoga-like pilot study, and a 2024 commentary on hatha yoga for scoliosis calls for large randomised trials. What exists is a handful of small studies built around the side plank, most of them without a proper comparison group.
In 25 patients aged 14 to 85 at one private clinic, holding a side plank on one side for about 1.5 minutes a day, 6 days a week, for nearly 7 months went with curves about 32% smaller on average (37 to 25 degrees). There was no comparison group, so it can't show that the pose caused the change.
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In 64 patients aged 10 to 17 with curves of 10 to 45 degrees, randomised to a side plank or a front plank, only 22 (34%) did the pose at least 4 times a week. After 6 months the side plank group's curves averaged 32 degrees before and 31 after, and the front plank group's 30 and 30: no significant change.
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In a non-randomised study, only 56 of 131 young people returned X-rays, and the groups were formed afterwards by whether people said they had done the poses: lower back curves fell by about 9 degrees in those who did and grew by about 5 in those who didn't. A small pilot added botulinum toxin injections to side planks done three times a day. Neither design can show what the pose itself did.
A 2023 network analysis of 12 studies (538 people) ranked yoga first for curve size, but no exercise type differed significantly from another, and its own table shows that the yoga ranking rests on two very small studies (8 people in each group) in university students.
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In a study of 242 young people, 72% of those braced avoided the surgical threshold against 48% who were watched (75% against 42% in the randomised group), and more hours of wear meant more success: under 6 hours a day did about as well as no brace, and over 13 hours, 90% or more succeeded. In a Swedish trial of 135 children, a night brace succeeded in 76% against 53% with physical activity alone.
A 2024 Cochrane review of 13 trials (583 young people) found that specific exercise probably reduces trunk rotation a little more than general exercise (moderate certainty), but its effect on the curve itself is very uncertain. In the Swedish trial, specific exercise (58% success) did no better than physical activity alone. SOSORT still recommends it as the first step during growth.
In 130 adults with curves under 35 degrees, 20 weeks of self-correction, everyday task practice and cognitive behavioural therapy (CBT) reduced disability more than general physiotherapy, and the gain lasted a year; the 4-degree difference in curves wasn't clinically meaningful. The NHS says physiotherapy exercises are "unlikely to improve the curvature" but may help pain.
In 785 teenagers braced full time, those who did sport twice a week or more were more likely to improve at 18 months, and the odds rose with how often they did it. It's an association, not proof.
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The idea is to strengthen the trunk muscles on the outside (convex side) of the curve more than the other side, with a side plank held convex side down: 10 to 20 seconds a day for a week, then once a day for as long as possible, on one side only.
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After the trial, the pose's originator wrote that it is "only intended to reverse lumbar and thoracolumbar curves, and actually exaggerates thoracic curves", and his later study used different poses for different curves.
Don't hold a side plank on one side to correct your curve unless your scoliosis specialist prescribes it. A knee side plank done equally on both sides is general strength, as in our routine.
SOSORT's programmes are based on "auto-correction in 3D, training in ADL, stabilizing the corrected posture, and patient education" (ADL means activities of daily living), designed by specialist physiotherapists for your curve.
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Scoliosis Support & Research says there is "no reliable long-term evidence that the method can reduce the size or slow down the growth of a curve, as clinics sometimes claim", and advises staying under a scoliosis specialist's care. In 24 patients, Schroth changed the curve more than Pilates over 12 weeks.
Yoga is general exercise. Do it alongside your team's plan, not instead of it: any brace wear, specialist exercises and check-ups come first. The Scoliosis Research Society says exercise has a role "along with more conventional treatments like bracing".
No trial compares them for scoliosis, and the charity names both, with swimming. Choose the one you'll keep doing, and do it evenly on both sides.
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Give each pose the same number of breaths and the same range on each side, as our scoliosis and Pilates scoliosis guides advise, unless a specialist prescribes one-sided work for your curve.
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Your poses will look and feel different on each side; that's the shape of your spine, not a fault. Don't force your shoulders or hips level or chase a symmetrical shape.
In the studies SOSORT summarises, loose joints were more common in girls with idiopathic scoliosis (23% against 13%, or 51% against 19%, depending on the cut-off), and scoliosis is reported 10 times more often in rhythmic gymnasts and in about a quarter of ballet dancers. It warns that techniques to increase joint mobility "may be contraindicated in children with joint laxity". That doesn't show flexibility work causes scoliosis, but it's a reason to favour strength and control.
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Scoliosis Support & Research's advice for classes applies: "if something hurts then stop". The NHS suggests checking a new exercise programme with a GP, scoliosis specialist or physiotherapist.
Tell the teacher about your curve, any brace or surgery, and which side your specialist says is which, so they don't try to straighten poses that are shaped by your spine. NCCIH (the US National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health) advises people with health conditions to talk with their health care provider and the teacher about changing poses.
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The Scoliosis Research Society says to keep doing the activities and sports you love "even if you wear a brace", and SOSORT recommends continuing sport and school PE (physical education) during bracing, with care for contact or very dynamic sport. The NHS says a brace normally only needs to come off for baths, showers, swimming and contact sports, so ask your team whether to do yoga in or out of it.
The Scoliosis Research Society describes a gradual return to activities over the first 6 months, with full activity from 6 months. Scoliosis Support & Research says regular sport is usually possible 3 to 6 months after surgery, contact sport around 9 months to a year, and to avoid sports that jar or jolt the back for a year or more. In a 2026 review of 11 studies (722 patients), most people returned to sport within a year, usually at 8 to 12 months. Your surgeon's advice comes first.
With a solid fusion, exercise "should not harm the fused segments", doctors writing for the US National Scoliosis Foundation say. With "only one or two mobile lumbar vertebrae below their fusion", excessive twisting or loading "has often been discouraged". Flexible hips can make up for lost spine movement. We found no study of yoga after spinal fusion, so keep twists small and let your hips do more of the bending.
The NHS says "It does not matter what type of exercise you choose, the important thing is to keep your back moving", and that activities that strengthen and stretch your back may help reduce pain. Scoliosis Support & Research says swimming, yoga and Pilates can help with pain.
Scoliosis can irritate or squash the nerves in and around the spine, causing pain, numbness and tingling from the lower back down to the feet. See a GP about new nerve symptoms; our yoga for sciatica guide covers which poses to change while your leg is sore.
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Of 89 people injured by yoga at one US clinic, most were hurt in poses that bent or arched the spine to its extremes, and the authors advise people with low bone density to avoid extreme forward bending. If you have osteoporosis too, our osteoporosis guide's advice applies: bend from the hips instead of rounding deeply, and twist smoothly.
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In interviews, 15 women with spinal conditions, including scoliosis, described relaxation, better stress management, posture and self-compassion from regular yoga. It's a small qualitative study, not evidence that yoga changes the spine.
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Do each one for the same time on both sides: standing poses for 3 to 5 breaths each side, locust 3 holds of 3 to 5 breaths, and the knee side plank 2 holds of 15 to 20 seconds each side (our editorial starting points). Cat-cow and mountain pose use their pages' doses.
3D demoCrocodile breathing (prone diaphragmatic breathing)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSlow breathing (6 breaths a minute)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoMountain pose (Tadasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoBreath reachBeginner · No equipment
3D demoChair pose (Utkatasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoWarrior II (Virabhadrasana II)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoTree pose (Vrksasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoLocust pose (Salabhasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSphinx pose (Salamba Bhujangasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoBird dogBeginner · No equipment
3D demoKnee side plankBeginner · No equipment
3D demoGlute bridgeBeginner · No equipment
3D demoCat-cowBeginner · No equipmentFlexible hips make up for a stiff or fused spine. Hold the stretches gently for about 30 seconds, 2 or 3 times (the hip flexor dose in our hip flexor pain guide; editorial for the others), and keep the lying twist small and equal both ways, or leave it out after a fusion.
3D demoHalf-kneeling hip flexor stretchBeginner · No equipment
3D demoSupine hamstring stretch with a strapBeginner · No equipment
3D demoReclined figure four (eye of the needle, Sucirandhrasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSupine spinal twist (Supta Matsyendrasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoReclining bound angle pose (Supta Baddha Konasana)Beginner · Firm cushion
3D demoCorpse pose (Savasana)Beginner · No equipmentDon't hold a side plank on one side as a corrective pose unless a specialist prescribes it. No study shows these poses make a curve worse, but don't force deep backbends or twists to the end of their range, especially after a fusion, and swap headstands, shoulder stands and plough for legs up the wall.
3D demoSide plankIntermediate · No equipment
3D demoWheel pose (Urdhva Dhanurasana)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoCamel pose (Ustrasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoBow pose (Dhanurasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoHalf lord of the fishes (Ardha Matsyendrasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoRevolved triangle pose (Parivrtta Trikonasana)Advanced · A step
3D demoSupported headstand (Salamba Sirsasana)Expert · A wall
3D demoSupported shoulderstand (Salamba Sarvangasana)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoPlow pose (Halasana)Advanced · No equipmentStart with the 25-minute even, both-sides yoga sequence 2 or 3 times a week (our editorial starting point). The Pilates for scoliosis routine works the same way, and the spine mobility routine suits a stiff back; keep its twists and side bends small after a fusion.
An even, both-sides yoga sequence for scoliosis: breathing, standing poses, back and trunk strength and hip stretches, with no one-sided corrective poses.
25 minBeginner16 movesNo equipmentA 20-minute Pilates routine for scoliosis: back, hip and trunk strength, with each one-sided move done evenly. General fitness, not a curve treatment.
20 minBeginner15 movesNo equipmentA 25-minute gentle yoga class for complete beginners and over-50s: slow breathing, a warm-up, supported standing poses, floor poses and a closing rest.
25 minBeginner14 movesNo equipmentA 40-minute beginners' yoga sequence with props: standing poses at a wall, seated poses on a blanket, two supported poses held for 5 minutes and a long rest.
40 minBeginner11 movesA step, Firm cushionA 15-minute routine that moves your neck, upper back and lower back through bending, arching, side bending and twisting, then holds the spine steady.
15 minBeginner12 movesNo equipmentA 30-minute routine for a rounded upper back in later life, built from the SHEAF trial: floor back-strengthening, posture practice and gentle mobility.
30 minBeginner13 movesA bench or box, A wallIt's unlikely that anything is seriously wrong, but get it checked if:
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Back pain in a child with scoliosis needs checking for other causes, especially with (from our scoliosis guide):
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At any age, for back pain with weakness or numbness in both legs, loss of feeling around the genitals or anus, or new problems controlling the bladder or bowels. In the US, call 911.
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See a GP if your curve or posture is changing, for pain that doesn't settle, for nerve pain down the legs, or for height loss, which can be a spinal fracture from osteoporosis.
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Breathlessness is uncommon and linked to very large upper-back curves, and it needs checking: your GP can measure your breathing or refer you.
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Ask your team what you can do, and when. After surgery, your specialist's recommendations come first.
The side plank reports are an uncontrolled series of 25 and a non-randomised study that lost most of its participants, the one randomised trial found no change, and the pose's originator says it can make upper-back curves worse.
"Generally, the curves in a spine with scoliosis can't be reversed without surgery", the Scoliosis Research Society says, and Scoliosis Support & Research says of Pilates that it "will not reduce or slow the growth of a spinal curve"; the same goes for yoga. In a growing child, a brace has the best evidence for slowing a curve.
The network analysis behind that headline found no significant differences between exercises, and its yoga ranking rests on two very small studies. The Cochrane review found the evidence for any exercise and the curve very uncertain.
Idiopathic scoliosis "is not thought to be linked to things such as bad posture, exercise or diet", the NHS says, and it can't be prevented.
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No study shows that a yoga pose makes a curve worse, and popular lists of banned poses disagree with each other. Don't force them to the end of their range, especially with loose joints or after a fusion, and keep both sides even.
Yes, as exercise: the NHS says people with scoliosis can do most activities, and Scoliosis Support & Research names yoga, with Pilates and swimming, for keeping the back muscles strong. It won't straighten the curve, and no good trial has tested it for scoliosis.
No. Curves can't be reversed without surgery, and no trial shows that yoga, or any single pose, reduces a curve. In growing children, a brace has the best evidence for stopping a curve getting worse.
An uncontrolled series of 25 people reported smaller curves, but a randomised trial in 64 young people found no change. Its originator says it suits curves in the lower back and can make upper-back curves worse, so don't do it on one side only without a specialist's advice.
No pose has been shown to make a curve worse. Don't force deep backbends, twists or side bends to the end of their range, leave out headstands and shoulder stands, and don't do one-sided corrective poses unless a specialist prescribes them.
Neither has been shown to change the curve, and no trial compares them. The charity names both, with swimming, so choose the one you'll keep doing, and do it evenly on both sides.
Usually, yes. The Scoliosis Research Society says to keep up sport even in a brace, and the NHS says the brace normally only comes off for baths, showers, swimming and contact sports, so ask your team whether to do yoga in or out of it.
Yes, once your surgeon agrees: exercise shouldn't harm a solid fusion, and most people are back to sport within a year. Expect less bending and twisting through the fused section and don't force it; flexible hips help make up for it.
Yes, for the same time and range on each side, unless a scoliosis specialist gives you a one-sided programme. Expect the two sides to feel different: that's your curve, not a mistake.
It may. The NHS says activities that strengthen and stretch your back may help reduce pain, and that the type matters less than keeping your back moving. No trial has tested yoga for scoliosis pain, so start gently and check with your GP or physiotherapist first.
Yes, as general exercise: children with scoliosis can usually do most exercise and only need to avoid activities a specialist advises against. It isn't a treatment, so keep any brace wear and check-ups going.
Only very large upper-back curves affect breathing. Breathing practice can help you relax, but no study we read tested it for lung function in scoliosis. See a GP if you're breathless.
See a GP if you notice signs of scoliosis, or a curve seems to be getting worse while a child is still growing, and get a child's back pain checked promptly. Call 999 for back pain with weakness or numbness in both legs, numbness around the genitals or bottom, or bladder or bowel changes.
Exercise education, not a personal prescription, and clinical review of these guides is pending. If you are pregnant, have a health condition such as glaucoma, high blood pressure or osteoporosis, or have had recent surgery, check with a doctor, midwife or physiotherapist before starting, and stop for sharp or increasing pain. Health disclaimer.
