Costochondritis is an inflammation in the cartilage connecting your ribs to your breastbone that often feels like a heart attack and worsens with exercise, deep breathing or coughing.
Over-the-counter medications such as NSAIDs and acetaminophen can help decrease pain while supporting chest muscles and rib joints in healing. Physical therapy can also be effective at decreasing discomfort, improving posture, and increasing chest flexibility.
Wall Stretch
Costochondritis causes pain in the front of the sternum, caused by inflammation of the cartilage connecting upper ribs to sternum (breastbone). Often mistaken for heart attacks or other cardiac conditions, but not life-threatening in itself, physical therapy may provide much-needed relief – wall stretches may help as can breathing exercises, stretching chest muscles and stress-reduction activities among other techniques.
Multiple studies have demonstrated the efficacy of physical therapy for treating costochondritis. Hoeltje and colleagues’ study demonstrated this fact with subjects suffering from chronic costochondritis reporting a reduction in duration as well as improvement on both Numerical Pain Rating Scale and Patient Specific Functional Scale scores after treatment with physical therapy. Van Dijk and colleagues’ research also suggests using combination manual therapy and therapeutic exercise treatments effectively against costochondritis.
One effective method for relieving costochondritis-related pain is called the Wall Stretch. Stand about one foot away from a wall, slowly bring your fingertips up the wall towards your shoulder until it feels comfortable, then hold this position for 30 seconds before switching sides.
Child’s Pose, a kneeling yoga pose designed to stretch chest and abdomen muscles. Another useful exercise for those suffering from costochondritis is Downward-Facing Dog Pose which reduces stress levels while alleviating its painful symptoms.
Additionally to stretching exercises, there are also some exercises designed to strengthen chest and abdominal muscles – the Superman Stretch is an easy yet effective solution!
Making time for wall stretches in your daily routine can significantly enhance your flexibility, mobility and muscle health. Even adding just one or two can make an incredible difference to how you feel both physically and emotionally – there are various online fitness books and online sources offering wall stretches as a solution or you could speak with a certified physical therapist for advice on incorporating wall stretches into your fitness regimen.
Doorway Stretch
If you’re suffering from costochondritis, gentle stretches and exercises may provide relief from its symptoms. These exercises aim to increase chest wall mobility and stretch the pectoralis major and minor muscles to alleviate pain and stiffness as well as promote healing while decreasing chances of recurrence. They should be done gradually so as not to strain muscles or rib cartilage during these stretches – whether at home or during physical therapy sessions.
The Doorway Stretch is an effective exercise to add to a costochondritis treatment plan, helping relieve chest pain and tightness. To perform this pose, stand in an open doorway with arms at shoulder height placed on doorframe. Lean forward until you feel a stretch across your chest – holding this pose for several seconds then returning back into initial position; repeat multiple times throughout the day for improved symptoms and chest wall flexibility.
Other costochondritis exercises you could try include the Cat-Cow Pose, an easy yoga posture you can do sitting or standing that stretches the chest muscles and ribcage to reduce tension in this area, relieving pain. Furthermore, this pose can help alleviate back and neck pain as well as overall costochondritis discomfort.
One essential aspect of managing costochondritis is getting enough quality sleep. Achieve a restful slumber can ease pain and discomfort associated with costochondritis while improving heart health, as well as alleviate stress levels that worsen symptoms of costochondritis.
Breathing exercises, chest stretches and posture-improving movements may be recommended to those suffering from costochondritis to alleviate their discomfort and improve their condition. While these exercises can help alleviate your discomfort and restore posture to improve conditions in both chest and upper body areas, before beginning a new program it’s advisable to consult a healthcare professional first before embarking on one yourself. Incorporating other treatments like acupuncture or massage may further complement pain management routines.
Superman Stretch
Superman Exercise, whether done in a gym or at home, is an effective way to strengthen your core and improve posture. Furthermore, it can relieve costochondritis pain by strengthening chest wall muscles – as well as help prevent postural deviations such as hunching over which can cause discomfort leading to costochondritis pain. Although generally safe for most individuals, if you suffer from back issues or are injured it’s wise to consult your physician prior to beginning this workout regimen.
Assume a position where your stomach is down and arms outstretched in front of you to create the shape of a bowl with your body. Hold this position for several seconds when your upper back and shoulders feel it working, then slowly lower arms and legs to start over and repeat this exercise several more times.
Reuss states that the Superman exercise is an effective back extension exercise, while at the same time targeting chest and shoulder muscles with extended arms. Furthermore, it helps improve mobility in your thoracic spine – that section which runs from neck base to bottom of ribcage – and improve overall stability of this part of the spine.
You can perform this exercise with your hands behind your head if that makes it easier for you to lift yourself, being careful not to overexert either your back or shoulders. Your aim should be a stretch across your upper arms, front shoulders and chest without feeling any pain in either your back or shoulders. Alternately you could try doing the Superman exercise with arms down and feet on the ground if lifting off is impossible for you.
If you have difficulty simultaneously lifting both arms and legs at once (for instance if you are just beginning), try switching arms and legs between reps in order to familiarise yourself with this movement before trying a full Superman. This will allow you to focus on building strength across opposing sides of your body without straining joints excessively.
Push-Up
Costochondritis can cause excruciating pain at the point where your upper ribs connect with cartilage that connects them to your breastbone (sternum). This pain may be aggravated by breathing deeply or coughing deeply, reaching across your body or engaging in exertive activities that strain this joint. Costochondritis is generally not life-threatening and the pain typically resolves within days or weeks without medical treatment. If symptoms persist beyond that point or include shortness of breath or the feeling that your heartbeats too quickly or irregularly, however, a visit to your physician should be made. A physical exam will often identify this problem; your provider can feel around the breastbone for tenderness or swelling as indicators of costochondritis before moving rib cage or arms to replicate symptoms and identify possible culprits.
Your doctor may suggest taking over-the-counter pain relievers such as NSAIDs to ease any discomfort, along with hot or cold compresses for soothing chest or ribcage pain. Your physician might also suggest physical therapy to loosen tight muscles in your chest and ribs and increase chest wall mobility.
Physical therapists will show you exercises you can do at home to reduce costochondritis symptoms, such as stretching and posture modifications. A physical therapist may also instruct on exercises you can perform at the gym such as push-ups and other upper-body strength training moves that will strengthen and tone your chest, shoulders, back, and core – making daily tasks easier while improving health and fitness overall.
Physical therapists can teach techniques before and after workouts that will help prevent episodes of costochondritis flareup, while helping you create an overall fitness program to reduce risk. This might involve warming up for 5 to 10 minutes prior to each workout, gradually increasing intensity or duration over time, stretching, foam rolling or using other stretching devices beforehand or after each session to loosen tight chest and rib muscles.
