Menu/chaptering: The dvd menu has 4 selections: Introduction (12 minutes), Upper Back Pain Relief (says 14 minutes on the menu but runs 10 minutes), Lower Back Pain Relief (14 minutes) and Back Pain Prevention (30 minutes). The introduction and mini upper back pain workout are single chapters. The mini lower back pain workout has 2 chapters and the 30 minute workout has 3 chapters.

Equipment needed: Chair and a mat

Setting: Filmed at the Rosehall Resort in Jamaica. Miranda appears to be on a walkway with palm trees, plants and a pool in the background.

Note: I have been doing these workouts for a few months but I have never done them while experiencing active back pain so can’t speak to how effective they are for pain relief. I use Classical Stretch workouts regularly, 4-6 times a week and own most of the Classical Stretch dvds.

Introduction: Miranda discusses her back pain history. She incorporated what she learned from her treatments into the CS program. She is able to use exercise to prevent her own back pain. She advises that you seek a medical diagnosis and states that most back pain can be treated with exercise but some requires medical intervention. She discusses the causes of back pain and how to treat spasms with exercise, ice and heat.

Upper Back Pan Relief (10 minutes): This workout starts with 6 minutes of standing stretches for the shoulders and upper back. You keep your arms relaxed during this section and move your arms, shoulders and upper body around in different directions. The last 4 minutes are stretches for the upper back and neck while seated on the chair. Miranda states that the purpose of this workout is to release stress and to take away pain.

Lower Back Pain Relief (14 minutes): Miranda states that this mini workout should be used when you feel back pain coming on or to relieve pain when you are having an attack. Its purpose is to use movement to stretch out the muscle spasm and bring blood and oxygen to the muscles. The workout starts with seated exercises to stretch out the low back, rounding and straightening the back, lifting the knee into the chest while moving, pulling out your flexed foot. Standing on one leg with the opposite foot on the seat of the chair,you drop the upper body down, then add arm reaches and sweeps. At the 5 minute mark, you move to the mat for floor work. While on your back, pull your knee in and stretch across your chest to stretch out your hip, then do some gentle hip and IT band stretches. Hamstring stretches 3x on each leg. Roll over on to your stomach for mini cobras and leg lifts to strengthen your lower back. End with child’s pose and movements from side to side in child’s pose.

Back Pain Prevention (30 minutes): Once you are able, you are supposed to do this every day while suffering from back pain until you are ready for the regular CS workouts. Its purpose is to rebalance your muscles and relieve pain. It is predominantly stretching (not as gentle as the mini workout) with a few minutes of gentle core strengthening exercises. Starts with gentle standing stretches to loosen up the back. Move to the chair for rounding and stretching the back using the chair for resistance. Lift the knee into the chest and move, cross the foot over the opposite knee and shift the hips around. At the 5 minute mark, move to the mat for 3 minutes of cat/cow and child’s pose variations. Move to your back for 5 minutes of hip, hamstring, glute and IT band stretches. At the 13 minute mark, you work to strengthen your core with isometric contractions of your abs while on your back. Add pelvic tilts, lift the head, put foot on the opposite knee and rotate shoulder to work the obliques. At the 17 minute mark, you flip on to your stomach for cobra and leg lifts, then child’s pose. At the 20 minute mark, you move to a seated position on the floor to stretch out the back, hips, sides and IT bands. At 23 minutes, you go back to the chair for standing stretches with one foot on the chair (hips, hamstrings, quads, psoas). With both feet on the floor, put your hands on the back of the chair and use it for resistance to stretch out your upper and lower back, sides, hips and hamstrings.

Comments: I was convinced that I didn’t need this dvd because I own the older back pain/stress relief dvd and also have the Season 4 back pain workouts. I first got it on loan from a kind vf friend and much to my surprise it has become one of my most used CS dvds over the past few months. I have only done the 30 minute workout a few times but use the mini workouts a lot, particularly the upper body mini workout which I find very effective for relieving tension in my upper body. I like to use it as on add on after upper body strength workouts, for a quick stress relief workout or as a nice break from working on the computer. I use the mini back pain relief workout as an add on after intense lower body workouts or after a long stint in the car. I’m glad to have the 30 minute workout on hand in case I ever need it for back pain because I like the way it is sequenced but it is quite similar to the older back pain workout. One difference to me between the older and the newer workout is that the newer one provides more information on the mechanical causes of back pain and how exercise works as a remedy (both in the introduction and throughout the workouts). The mini back pain workout on the new dvd offers a quick gentle stretch workout for the back muscles for those in pain. Miranda has a fairly serious demeanor in this dvd and offers a lot of education and encouragement to those suffering from back pain. This is a new and improved version of the older workout and I’m glad to have it.

Instructor Comments:
Miranda sets a more serious tone for this workout than she does in other dvds. She seems very knowledgeable about the anatomy of the back and the causes of back pain and does a lot of explanation and teaching.

KathyS