[Clayart] Potters Back Care Exercises

[Dick Lumaghi via Clayart]

Years ago at a two week workshop with Warren Mackenzie, the subject of pot-related back injuries
came up and Warren told of having injured himself and, thinking his pottery career might be at an
end, he went to “an old country doctor” who gave him a series of gentle exercises to keep the back
flexible and strong. Hopping down off that rickety wooden wheel of his, he got on the floor on his
back with his knees up and demonstrated the 6 (or maybe it was 4) exercises that, he claimed, saved
his life in pottery.

If any of his old students can, unlike myself, accurately remember those exercises, a new generation
of potters, especially those who concentrate on wheel work, might find them beneficial.

Thanks.

Dick Lumaghi
Potter Valley, CA

[joel joelfink.net via Clayart]

I have a comment, but I apologize that it isn't in reference to your quest to find his students.

I throw production, often at the wheel for hours, always 5-7 days a week, in the two seasons. I don't have back pain. While I admit that most health issues are genetically determined, I keep my core as strong as I can. I learned as a kid that this was the secret to a good back. I'm in my mid-sixties, and this week I unloaded close to a ton of 50# bags, in one setting, no problem. I understand there are other ways, but I believe that if you keep your core as strong as you can, your back will be just fine. I also believe that if you keep your big muscles as fit as you can, you'll generally have good health as long as you do. In the studio, my practice is to not take shortcuts every time I find one. Do some things the hard way, and keep your body fit.

I got trigger thumb last March, just a week before I was to get a cortisone shot for a bone spur in the same thumb. So, I got both shot. The trigger thumb didn't fully mend, and was back with a vengeance by July. I make my living as a potter, and my business is just a few years old; I have to work all the time. The thumb got so bad by late July that I would have pain shutdowns, where the pain would reach a point that the thumb just quit, regardless my wishes. So I got onto AI and learned about some exercises with rubber donuts and stretchy finger things. At first, this was very painful, and I had to keep it up as exercise. The pain mollified, then pretty much went away, and now my thumb barely clicks when the tendon moves through the ?synovium?. It seems the punishment of the living is to always labor for any good they find.

I also walk with a 20-pound weight. I'm old enough that testosterone is waning, and the less-used muscles, especially in my legs, are given work that they maintain the network of tension that is my leg's musculature.

Anyway, if that helps anyone, it is good.

Joel.
________________________________
From: Clayart <clayart...@lists.clayartforum.com> on behalf of Dick Lumaghi via Clayart <cla...@lists.clayartforum.com>
Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2025 3:36 PM
To: Ivy Glasgow via Clayart <cla...@lists.clayartforum.com>
Cc: Dick Lumaghi <dlum...@cybermesa.com>
Subject: [Clayart] Potters Back Care Exercises

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[Vince Pitelka via Clayart]

Hi Dick -
I can't help you with Warren Mackenzie's back exercises, but I can tell you of my own experience. As a full-time potter in Blue Lake, California, working on the wheel, I experienced periodic back issues that often kept me out of the studio for days or even weeks. Those problems continued occasionally through grad school and into my teaching career. In 1996-98, when Tennessee Tech University attempted to shut down the Appalachian Center for Craft and I was at risk of losing my dream job in that wonderful facility, I decided I needed to get in better shape to face whatever lay ahead. I started walking a few miles every morning and stuck with it seriously, and in 1998 we saved the Craft Center and our jobs. 27 years later, I'm still walking two to four miles almost every morning, and through that time I have never experienced back issues that kept me out of the studio.
- Vince

Vince Pitelka
Potter, Writer, Teacher
Chapel Hill, NC
vincep...@gmail.com
www.vincepitelka.com
https://chathamartistsguild.org/

-----Original Message-----
From: Clayart <clayart...@lists.clayartforum.com> On Behalf Of Dick Lumaghi via Clayart
Sent: Wednesday, November 12, 2025 4:36 PM
To: Ivy Glasgow via Clayart <cla...@lists.clayartforum.com>
Cc: Dick Lumaghi <dlum...@cybermesa.com>
Subject: [Clayart] Potters Back Care Exercises

[Dragonbelly Ceramics via Clayart]

Retired physical therapist here.

One of the most common complaints I hear from my pottery colleagues
(especially women) is sacroiliac pain. This is because centering puts a
very asymmetrical force across the lower spine.

Potters at our studio needed reminders to use the brick to raise up their
leg height and take their foot off the wheel pedal during throwing.

And because centering torques the spine, I recommend standing up frequently
and gently turning the spine in the opposite direction. For right handed
throwers, that would be a spine twist to the right.

Keeping the core strong is key. Some beginning exercises that can help:

1. Supine bridge https://www.physio-pedia.com/Bridging
2. Supine hip/spine rotation
https://goodexerciseguide.com/the-exercises/simple-back-pain/exercises-for-low-back-pain/lumbar-rotation/
(I recommend doing it both with legs together and with legs slightly apart
- both ways will strengthen and stretch the hip/low spine
3. Standing twist
https://goodexerciseguide.com/the-exercises/simple-back-pain/exercises-for-low-back-pain/lumbar-rotation/

If you currently have back pain, consult with a medical professional before
starting an exercise program. General caveats: be gentle with the exercises
and don't move into pain. It's fine to move into stretch. The slower you
work, the more your muscles will gain stability and strength.

Best,
LJ

www.ljcbluemuse.blogspot.com
www.ljcohen.net

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[laughinglion via Clayart]

Look up a book by Robin Mckenzie on Amazon.  The back exercises in there are useful.  They Have kept my back going for almost 40 years. I was taught them by a PT, its called Treat your own back and is a good solid maintenance routine.Sent from my T-Mobile 5G Device
-------- Original message --------From: Dick Lumaghi via Clayart <cla...@lists.clayartforum.com> Date: 11/12/25 6:47 PM (GMT-08:00) To: Ivy Glasgow via Clayart <cla...@lists.clayartforum.com> Cc: Dick Lumaghi <dlum...@cybermesa.com> Subject: [Clayart] Potters Back Care Exercises Years ago at a two week workshop with Warren Mackenzie, the subject of pot-related back injuriescame up and Warren told of having injured himself and, thinking his pottery career might be at anend, he went to “an old country doctor” who gave him a series of gentle exercises to keep the backflexible and strong.  Hopping down off that rickety wooden wheel of his, he got on the floor on hisback with his knees up and demonstrated the 6 (or maybe it was 4) exercises that, he claimed, savedhis life in pottery.If any of his old students can, unlike myself, accurately remember those exercises, a new generation of potters, especially those who concentrate on wheel work, might find them beneficial.Thanks.Dick LumaghiPotter Valley, CA

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