Yoga guide
Most people can do yoga after a spinal fusion, but not straight away and not every pose. While the bone grows across the fused levels, over about 3 months and more, NHS leaflets restrict bending, twisting and lifting, and your surgeon's and physiotherapist's limits always come first. No trial has tested yoga after a fusion, so this guide follows the NHS leaflets and the rehabilitation trials, and says where it is our own reading.
Early on, yoga means breathing, walking and moving your hips, legs and arms with your back still: standing poses at a chair, bridges, bird dogs and side planks. Small spinal movements come back from about 12 weeks if your team agrees. Long term, the fused levels don't move, so we suggest keeping folds, twists and backbends moderate and leaving out headstand, shoulder stand and plough. This guide covers when to start, the poses to keep and change, neck fusions and scoliosis surgery, the levels above and below, what the evidence shows, a free 25-minute spine-still class and the warning signs. Our back surgery guide covers walking, lifting, sitting, driving and work.
NHS leaflets range from avoiding any lifting or prolonged bending for the first 6 weeks to no extremes of movement or twisting for at least 12 weeks after a low back fusion. A study of 32 NHS leaflets found "considerable variation", and no study has tested restrictions after a fusion. Follow your own team's list.
The only yoga trial after lumbar spine surgery was a feasibility study of 41 people given breathing, relaxation and gentle core tightening in hospital, which can't show whether yoga helps. A 2025 review suggests treating a return to yoga like a return to sport: step by step, with your team.
Healing shows on X-ray from about 6 weeks, it is substantial by about 3 months, and the bone keeps remodelling for up to a year. That is why bending and twisting wait.
The NHS fusion plans we read start with frequent short walks and gently drawing in your lower tummy, and one asks you to keep your back as straight as possible and use the movement in your hips, knees, shoulders and arms. That is spine-still yoga: breathing, standing poses at a chair, bridges, bird dogs and side planks.
Most fusions join only a short part of the spine. After a fusion of 1 or 2 low back levels, people reported no serious limits in most daily activities, and in another study 91% found any extra stiffness an acceptable trade-off. You bend more from your hips.
The levels above and below a fusion wear faster over the years, and in one clinic's series, extreme forward and backward bending featured most in yoga injuries. No study links yoga poses to wear next to a fusion, so this is a precaution: keep folds, twists and backbends moderate, and leave out headstand, shoulder stand and plough.
A spinal fusion joins two or more bones of the spine. Screws, rods, cages and bone graft hold the level still while bone grows across it, which the British Association of Spine Surgeons says takes 6 to 12 months. NICE (the National Institute for Health and Care Excellence) says not to offer a fusion for low back pain except in a clinical trial; fusions are done for a slipped vertebra, instability, scoliosis and other curves, some fractures and some trapped nerves.
Adults after a low back (lumbar) or neck (cervical) fusion, or a longer fusion for scoliosis, who did yoga before or want to start, and teenagers after scoliosis surgery and their parents. After a discectomy or decompression without a fusion, the limits are usually lighter: our yoga for herniated disc and yoga for spinal stenosis guides cover yoga after those operations, and our back surgery guide covers recovery after all three.
In 32 NHS lumbar surgery leaflets, 11 of them about fusion, there was "considerable variation in the recommendations and definitions provided". A 2025 systematic review found only 4 studies of activity restrictions after spine surgery, all after a discectomy, and none after a fusion. Surgeons' own advice varies just as widely in surveys. So the timings on this page are examples, and your team's list comes first.
In the first months, yoga that keeps the fused part of your back still while your hips, legs, shoulders and breath move. A 2025 review suggests stretching the hips and other joints early "in neutral-spine positions" and bringing back bending and twisting of the low back from about 12 weeks after a fusion. Later, the fused levels stay still, so folds, backbends and twists come from your hips and the levels that still move.
These stages are our reading of NHS fusion leaflets and the rehabilitation trials, not a tested plan. Each one starts when your surgeon or physiotherapist says so, and hospitals differ.
Walk little and often: one NHS fusion leaflet says "frequent shorter walks are better than fewer longer ones". Add slow breathing, ankle circles while you rest, and the exercises the hospital gave you, such as gently drawing in your lower tummy. Get in and out of bed with the log roll (below).
Source 1
Most exercise programmes in the trials after a fusion started between 6 and 12 weeks, and one NHS trust says gentle non-contact sport and fitness exercise can start between 6 and 12 weeks. When your team starts your rehabilitation, our 25-minute spine-still class 2 or 3 times a week fits alongside walking (our editorial starting point).
A 2025 review suggests bringing back bending and twisting of the low back from about 12 weeks after a fusion, and one NHS fusion leaflet holds other specific exercises until 12 weeks unless your physiotherapist advises otherwise. Bring back cat-cow in a small range, a gentle seated turn and a low cobra, one at a time, then beginners' classes with the swaps below.
Bone healing and remodelling can continue for up to a year. By then many people can join general classes if their team agrees, keeping folds, twists and backbends moderate and leaving out plough, shoulder stand and headstand. Ask your surgeon before anything more demanding (our editorial starting point).
From our back surgery guide. Many NHS leaflets teach this for the first weeks. The 3D figure doesn't show it.
Source 1
Our searches found one yoga trial after lumbar spine surgery: a single-centre feasibility study that gave adults having a laminectomy or a fusion daily breathing, relaxation and core tightening in hospital, not poses that bend or twist. Of 41 people enrolled, 30 completed, and the abstract doesn't say how many had a fusion. It shows the practice can be done in hospital, not that it helps. We found no report of yoga damaging a fusion.
A 2025 review says "There is sparse research available about using these exercise modalities following lumbar surgery", meaning yoga and Pilates. It suggests practising what the activity demands under a clinician's eye before going back to it, as you would with a sport. It is a narrative review, not a guideline. Our Pilates after spinal fusion guide covers the Pilates side.
Source 7
In 18 trials (1,402 people), exercise eased disability and pain more than usual care in the first months (a small to moderate effect: standardised mean difference -0.41 for disability), and adding a cognitive-behavioural approach, which works on fear of movement, helped more. The effects "disappeared beyond one year", and the evidence is low quality. About 40% of people still have significant back-related disability a year after a lumbar fusion. Yoga hasn't been tested for either.
In 82 people after a lumbar fusion, the same group programme started at 12 weeks gave a better disability result at a year than starting at 6 weeks, with no difference in walking or fitness. In 52 people, starting functional training within 12 weeks was no better than later, and in 107 people, rehabilitation in the first 3 months was safe. Follow your team's timing.
In a multicentre trial of 202 people after surgery for a trapped nerve in the neck, mostly a fusion from the front, structured neck exercise from 6 weeks caused no adverse effects but gave no extra benefit over standard care at 2 years. Gentle neck movement within your physiotherapist's limits is fine; there's no need to push your range.
In 5 trials (362 people), a brace after lumbar fusion made no difference to pain, function, complications or whether the bone fused. Wear one only if your surgeon prescribes it, as they advise.
For pain that persists after spine surgery, the evidence for treatments without surgery, exercise included, is low quality, and yoga hasn't been tested. Talk to your team or GP about a pain service; our back surgery guide covers what to ask.
Source 34
NHS fusion leaflets ask you to avoid any lifting or prolonged bending for the first 6 weeks; or to avoid extremes of movement, repetitive bending and reaching, and "more importantly twisting", for at least 12 weeks; or to "minimise movement of the part of your spine that has been fused, particularly bending and twisting". In yoga, that rules out forward folds that round your back, twists, side bends, backbends, cat-cow, child's pose and knees-to-chest. Everything else keeps your spine still and neutral (our reading).
A London NHS hospital's leaflet on exercises after low back surgery says it is safe to lift, bend and twist. It doesn't say which operations it covers and never mentions a fusion, and the fusion leaflets above are stricter. After a fusion, follow your own team's leaflet (our reading).
A 2025 review suggests "A conservative resumption of motion would be at 6 weeks following discectomy and disc arthroplasty, and at twelve weeks following fusion". Bring back small, slow movements one at a time: cat-cow in a small range, a gentle seated turn from the upper back, a low cobra (our reading).
Source 7
One adult fusion leaflet: "When reaching down low and up high; keep your back as straight as possible; use the movement in your hips, knees and shoulders and arms". That is the hip hinge, and it's how to come into and out of every standing pose, early and later.
Source 11
Experts' advice on long-term limits varies, and for teenagers after scoliosis surgery an international panel agreed on no restrictions from 12 months. We suggest keeping folds, twists and backbends moderate, hinging from the hips, and leaving out plough, shoulder stand, headstand and forced end-range positions for good.
The reasons: in one clinic's series of 89 people hurt in yoga, poses with extreme forward and backward bending of the spine featured most, and the levels next to a fusion wear faster over the years. No study links yoga poses to that wear, so this is a precaution, not a tested rule.
The American Academy of Orthopaedic Surgeons says "most spinal fusions involve only small segments of the spine and do not significantly limit motion". After a 1- or 2-level low back fusion, people (average age 69) reported no serious limits in most daily activities, while 3- or 4-level fusions limited more; 91% of 62 people found any extra stiffness an acceptable trade-off. A single-level fusion at the front of the neck doesn't significantly reduce overall neck movement.
Picking something up from the floor uses the most low back movement of everyday activities, and each lower lumbar level contributes its share (about 11 to 17 degrees between the fourth and fifth lumbar vertebrae in healthy volunteers). After long low back fusions in people averaging 71, the hips made up only part of the lost movement, and activities down at floor level got harder. Hinge from the hips, use a block or a chair, and give floor poses more time.
After a lumbar fusion, about 2.5% a year needed surgery at a neighbouring level (22% at 10 years), more after longer fusions: 1.7% a year after one level, 5.0% after three or four. After a fusion at the front of the neck, 2.9% a year developed symptoms at a neighbouring level, which the authors put down to ongoing wear.
We found no study testing whether exercise, stretching, yoga or Pilates changes wear next to a fusion, in either direction (106 records screened). The risk factors found were surgical, alignment and body factors and earlier disc wear. So don't try to win back the lost range by pushing the levels above and below to their end range: build strength, move through your hips, and get new pain at a neighbouring level checked (our reading).
A fusion that loses the low back's normal inward curve can leave people leaning forward and working hard to stand upright: flatback syndrome. When it's marked, it's a surgical problem that exercise often doesn't fix. If standing up straight takes effort after a fusion, tell your team (see the warning signs).
One NHS health board says: "Don't twist, push, pull, or lift anything heavier than a couple of kilograms (a kettle full of water). Gradually increase your load after six weeks." It starts exercise and sport at 8 to 12 weeks. A collar, if you're given one, is usually worn at all times for the first 4 to 6 weeks, and the spine surgeons' booklet asks you to avoid reaching up above your head for the first few weeks. One NHS trust holds back sports that twist or change direction for at least 12 months.
In yoga (our suggestion): no headstand, shoulder stand or plough, ever, no overhead reaching in the first weeks, and neck turns that never force the end of your range. Turn your head with your body in seated twists.
One NHS trust keeps PE and contact sport out for at least 3 months, with swimming from 3 to 6 months and diving and butterfly at a year; another allows low-impact sport from 3 months and contact sport from 6 to 12 months. Most teenagers go back to sport between 8 and 12 months, and an international expert panel agreed to avoid extreme bending and twisting early, with "no restrictions from 12 months onwards".
Follow the scoliosis team's timetable first and start with spine-still poses. Our yoga for scoliosis and yoga for teens guides cover more.
Getting down to the floor and up again is harder after long fusions, and in a survey of 95 adults after fusions to the pelvis, going back to yoga at the same level was uncommon (the paper's yoga figures don't add up, so treat them as rough). Do lying poses on a firm bed and standing poses at a counter, or try our chair yoga guide (our suggestion).
Short walks several times a day, adding a little each day (our back surgery guide's first stage). Slow breathing, 2 minutes, on your back with your knees bent or on your side with a pillow between your knees, in for about 4 and out for about 6 (our yoga for spondylolisthesis class). Breath reach: "5 breaths, exhale longer than inhale" (the move page's dose), arms only to shoulder height in the first weeks. Tummy draw-in: gently draw in the lower tummy and hold up to 10 seconds, breathing normally, 10 times, twice a day, back still (one NHS hospital's dose after a fusion, in our back surgery guide). Ankle circles: 10 slow circles each way with each foot (our yoga after knee replacement class), every hour or so while you're resting. Nerve slider: 10 slow repetitions, twice a day, only if your pain went down the back of a leg and your team taught it (our back surgery guide).
3D demoTreadmill walkingBeginner · Cardio machine
3D demoSlow breathing (6 breaths a minute)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoBreath reachBeginner · No equipment
3D demoSide-lying tummy draw-inBeginner · No equipment
3D demoAnkle circlesBeginner · No equipment
3D demoLying sciatic nerve slider (nerve glide)Beginner · No equipmentThe leg moves, the back doesn't. Heel slide, 10 slow repetitions each side, and sit to stand, 2 sets of 8 from a firm chair against a wall (both our yoga after knee replacement class). Dead bug heel taps, 2 sets of 8 each side; glute bridge, 2 sets of 10, only to a straight line from shoulders to knees; one-limb bird dog, 2 sets of 6 each side with 3 to 5 second holds; side plank on your knees, 2 holds of 15 to 20 seconds each side, once your team allows trunk loading; mountain pose, 5 slow breaths; chair pose, 3 holds of 15 seconds holding a chair back; warrior II, 3 breaths each side with a short stance and hands on your hips; hip hinge, 2 sets of 8; tree pose, 3 breaths each side with fingertips on a wall; corpse pose, 3 minutes, then the log roll to get up (all our yoga for spondylolisthesis class). Semi-tandem stance, 15 to 30 seconds, 4 times, at least once a day near a counter, and wall push-up, about 1 minute, building to 2 (both from a London NHS hospital's leaflet for low back surgery, in our back surgery guide).
3D demoSupine heel slideBeginner · No equipment
3D demoDead bug heel tapsBeginner · No equipment
3D demoGlute bridgeBeginner · No equipment
3D demoBird dog, one limb at a timeBeginner · No equipment
3D demoKnee side plankBeginner · No equipment
3D demoMountain pose (Tadasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoChair pose (Utkatasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSit to stand from a chairBeginner · A bench or box
3D demoWarrior II (Virabhadrasana II)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoHip-hinge practiceBeginner · No equipment
3D demoTree pose (Vrksasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSemi-tandem stanceBeginner · A wall
3D demoWall push-upBeginner · A wall
3D demoCorpse pose (Savasana)Beginner · No equipmentOur wording of an NHS adult fusion leaflet's advice to keep your back straight and use the movement in your hips, knees, shoulders and arms (Lancashire Teaching Hospitals). The dose in our yoga for spondylolisthesis class is 2 sets of 8.
See the movement on the 3D figure: Hip-hinge practice
Bring these back one at a time, small and slow. Cat-cow: "8 waves, slower than feels natural" (the move page's dose), in a small range at first, or sitting with your hands on your knees. Thoracic rotation, 5 each side, sitting with your arms crossed and your hips facing forward, turning from the upper back well short of the end (our yoga after knee replacement class); after a neck fusion, turn your head with your body. Low cobra, 5 lifts held 3 to 5 seconds, forehead on your hands between lifts, skipped if it brings on leg symptoms (our yoga for osteoporosis class). Seated upper-back lift: "3 to 5 repetitions, each held 3 to 5 seconds" (the move page's dose). Strap hamstring stretch, 2 holds of 20 to 30 seconds each side, and reclined figure four, 30 seconds each side, with your pelvis still (both our yoga for spondylolisthesis class). High lunge, 5 breaths each side, short stance and no arch (our yoga for balance class).
3D demoCat-cowBeginner · No equipment
3D demoThoracic rotationBeginner · No equipment
3D demoLow cobra (Bhujangasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSeated upper-back lift (sit tall, shoulders back)Beginner · A bench or box
3D demoSupine hamstring stretch with a strapBeginner · No equipment
3D demoReclined figure four (eye of the needle, Sucirandhrasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoHigh lunge (crescent lunge, Ashta Chandrasana)Intermediate · No equipmentFor at least the first 12 weeks: swap seated, standing and wide-legged forward folds, head-to-knee pose, child's pose and knees-to-chest for the hip hinge; leave out twists (or later, turn only the upper back while sitting), side bends such as triangle, and backbends such as cobra, camel and wheel; do half sun salutations with your hands on your thighs. After that, keep them moderate. Leave out plough, shoulder stand and headstand for good after any fusion, and above all after a neck fusion; legs up the wall with your hips on the floor is the swap. Skip hot classes until the wound has healed and you're past the early stage: NCCIH (the US National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health) warns of overheating and dehydration. Our reading of the NHS leaflets, the yoga injury series and the moves' own cautions. If a pose leaves your back or neck sore, our back pain after yoga and neck pain after yoga guides cover what to change.
3D demoSeated forward fold (Paschimottanasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoWide-legged standing forward fold (Prasarita Padottanasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoHead-to-knee pose (Janu Sirsasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoChild's Pose (Balasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoSupine spinal twist (Supta Matsyendrasana)Beginner · No equipment
3D demoHalf lord of the fishes (Ardha Matsyendrasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoRevolved triangle pose (Parivrtta Trikonasana)Advanced · A step
3D demoTriangle pose (Utthita Trikonasana)Intermediate · A step
3D demoCobra pose (Bhujangasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoCamel pose (Ustrasana)Intermediate · No equipment
3D demoWheel pose (Urdhva Dhanurasana)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoPlow pose (Halasana)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoSupported shoulderstand (Salamba Sarvangasana)Advanced · No equipment
3D demoSupported headstand (Salamba Sirsasana)Expert · A wall
3D demoSun salutation A (Surya Namaskar A)Intermediate · No equipmentOur 25-minute class first, from about 6 weeks when your team agrees: nothing in it bends, twists or arches your back. It's our own selection, untested in a trial, with doses from our spondylolisthesis and knee replacement classes and our back surgery guide. The breathing and hip replacement classes also keep your back still and suit the first weeks. The spondylolisthesis, chair yoga and osteoporosis classes include cat-cow, side bends or a twist, so leave those moves out until about 12 weeks; the beginners and back pain classes fit from about 3 to 6 months with the swaps above.
A 25-minute spine-still yoga class for the months after a spinal fusion: breathing, legs moving around a still back, standing strength at a chair and balance.
25 minBeginner15 movesBench or box, wallA 6-minute breathing routine: slow breathing, crocodile breathing, alternate nostril breathing, box breathing and 4-7-8 breathing.
6 minBeginner5 movesNo equipmentA 25-minute yoga class for after a hip replacement: seated on a high chair, standing at a counter and strength lying down, with no deep bends, crossing or twisting.
25 minBeginner17 movesBench or box, something with weightA 10-minute routine for straight after a meal: an easy walk, a few simple standing moves from blood sugar trials, then a short walk to finish.
10 minBeginner6 movesCardio machine, bench or boxA 25-minute yoga class for spondylolisthesis: trunk strength with the spine still, bending-forward rests, hips, hamstrings and standing poses, with no backbends.
25 minBeginner19 movesNo equipmentA 15-minute chair yoga routine done entirely sitting: slow breathing, neck, shoulder and wrist stretches, seated twists and side bends, and a calm finish.
15 minBeginner16 movesBench or boxA free 20-minute chair yoga class for older adults: slow breathing, gentle seated stretches and twists, standing poses holding the chair, and a calm finish.
20 minBeginner18 movesBench or box, something with weightA 30-minute yoga class for osteoporosis: standing strength, balance at a wall, back-strengthening holds and hip hinges in place of deep forward folds.
30 minBeginner19 movesBench or box, wallA 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 gentle 20-minute yoga sequence for back pain, based on the first weeks of a 12-week trial programme: lying, all-fours and standing poses, then rest.
20 minBeginner12 movesFirm cushionThese are the warning signs from our back surgery guide and our yoga guides, word for word, with three lines of our own, labelled. This is general information, not a diagnosis. A&E means accident and emergency; in the US, call 911 for 999.
After a fusion, needing to 'contract the back muscles, and possibly flex at the hips and knees' to stand upright: tell your surgical team or GP. It can be flatback syndrome, which may develop after 'a lumbar spinal fusion that does not maintain the normal curve of lordosis'.
Our suggestion: leg pain, numbness or weakness that comes back after a spell of being better, or new pain above or below the fusion, means telling your surgical team or GP.
Call 999 if:
In the first weeks, your back will be sensitive, and at times your pain may increase without anything being wrong, one NHS hospital says; if new or increased pain is stopping you doing things, go back a stage until you feel more comfortable. Another says that if you do too much one day and your back is very sore, keep up the gentle exercises until it settles before doing more, as making your back painful early on is unlikely to do harm but adds inflammation and delays healing. Good and bad days are normal.
From about 6 weeks, this site's back pain rule applies: discomfort up to about 5 out of 10 that settles within an hour or so and is no worse the next morning. That figure is for back pain in general and hasn't been tested after surgery.
Our suggestion: stop any pose that brings on numbness, pins and needles or pain in a leg, and tell your team if it doesn't settle.
A joint pain that is sharp, gets worse during a session, lingers into the next day or changes how you move is a reason to use an easier version, and to see a GP or physiotherapist if it keeps happening (the rule in our plans). Muscle soreness for a day or two after something new is normal. In a hot class, stop if you feel dizzy, sick or unwell; our hot yoga guide lists the signs of heat illness.
You can say no to any hands-on adjustment, and a teacher registered with Yoga Alliance must get your explicit consent each time.
Our suggestion: tell your teacher which levels are fused, and say no to any hands-on push into a fold, twist or backbend.
With glaucoma, or high blood pressure that isn't under control, skip headstands, shoulder stands and long head-down holds. With osteoporosis, swap deep forward folds for a flat-back hinge from the hips, and twist smoothly. In pregnancy, our yoga in pregnancy guide covers the changes. NCCIH advises beginners to avoid headstands, shoulder stands, the lotus position and forceful breathing.
The NHS advises getting advice from a healthcare professional first if you have a health problem, an injury or symptoms, or have recently had a heart attack or an operation.
The fused levels stop moving, but most fusions are short and don't greatly limit movement. After 1- or 2-level low back fusions, people reported no serious limits in most daily activities, and 91% in another study found extra stiffness an acceptable trade-off. You bend more from your hips, as the hip hinge teaches.
No guideline we found bans it. The restrictions cover the months while the bone heals, and a 2025 review treats going back to yoga like going back to a sport, step by step. Long fusions limit more, especially on the floor.
The fused levels are joined by bone and don't loosen, and no study has tested whether stretching, exercise or yoga changes wear at the neighbouring levels, in either direction. Forcing extra range from the levels above and below isn't a sensible goal (our reading).
In 5 trials, a brace after lumbar fusion made no difference to pain, function, complications or whether the bone fused. The time limits come from bone healing, not the brace.
In one clinic's series, yoga injuries came most often from poses with extreme forward and backward bending of the spine, headstand features most in case reports of harm, and the levels next to a fusion wear faster over the years. No study links these poses to that wear, so keeping folds, twists and backbends moderate and leaving out headstand, shoulder stand and plough is a precaution.
The NHS fusion plans start with gently drawing in your lower tummy with your back still, and spine-still moves (dead bug, bird dog, side plank, bridge) train the trunk without bending it. Sit-ups round the back, which the leaflets restrict early.
Yes, for most people, once your team agrees, starting with breathing and spine-still poses and building up over months. No trial has tested yoga after a fusion, so the poses here follow the NHS leaflets' restrictions and the rehabilitation trials. Your surgeon's and physiotherapist's limits come first.
Breathing, walking and the simple exercises your hospital gives you start in the first days. Spine-still yoga, such as standing poses at a chair, bridges and bird dogs, usually fits from about 6 weeks, when rehabilitation starts, and bending and twisting from about 12 weeks if your team agrees. The bone keeps strengthening for up to a year.
For at least the first 3 months: forward folds that round your back, twists, side bends, backbends, child's pose, knees-to-chest and full sun salutations. For good, we suggest leaving out plough, shoulder stand, headstand and forced end-range folds or backbends. Hinge from your hips instead of folding.
Not in the first months: one NHS trust restricts twisting for at least 12 weeks after a low back fusion, and another asks you to keep bending and twisting of the fused part to a minimum. After that, if your team agrees, bring back gentle seated turns from the upper back, well short of the end of your range.
Yes. Early on it's a good way to breathe, move your arms and legs and practise standing up well, as long as you skip seated twists, side bends and cat-cow for the first months. Our chair yoga classes include those moves, so leave them out until your team allows.
It hasn't been tested. Exercise after a fusion eased disability and pain a little for the first months in trials, with no difference after a year, and adding help with fear of movement did better than exercise alone. Yoga can be one way to keep exercising, alongside your physiotherapy.
We don't know: no study has tested it either way. The levels next to a fusion do wear faster over the years, so build strength and avoid forcing them to the end of their range. Get new pain above or below the fusion checked.
Yes, with changes: no headstand, shoulder stand or plough, no reaching overhead in the first weeks, and gentle neck turns that never force the end of your range. One NHS health board starts exercise and sport at 8 to 12 weeks after neck surgery.
Yes, following the scoliosis team's timetable: most teenagers go back to sport between 8 and 12 months, and experts agree on no restrictions from 12 months. Start with spine-still poses and avoid extreme bending and twisting early. Our yoga for scoliosis and yoga for teens guides cover more.
Only if your surgeon has prescribed one and asked you to wear it for exercise. In trials, a brace after lumbar fusion made no difference to recovery or to whether the bone fused.
Usually, and sooner: after a discectomy or decompression the limits are lighter and shorter. Our yoga for herniated disc and yoga for spinal stenosis guides cover yoga after those operations, and our back surgery guide covers recovery. Follow your own team's advice.
Call 999 for numbness around your genitals or bottom, new bladder or bowel problems, or weakness or numbness in both legs. Get help the same day for new leg weakness or numbness, a hot, red or oozing wound, a high temperature, a severe headache that eases when you lie down, or a swollen, painful calf.
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.
