5 Essentials About Lower Back Pain

In recent years, nearly 31 million people in the United States alone have suffered from lower back pain. As a matter of fact, lower back pain is the single major cause of disability across the world. Global figures estimate musco-skelatal disability sufferrers number to over 1.7 billion. Now it is summer and the best time to enjoy the great outdoors. Outdoor activity such as gardening, cycling and running all put strains on our backs. This is especially true for those who have been cooped up indoors for a long time period. This is where back pain comes in and we all need to know how to avoid it.

A premiere orthopedic surgeon recommends these five essentials for a healthy back.

1.   Keep your weight down to its normal levels.
2.  While exercising, make it a point to keep your core muscles strong.
3.  No Smoking
4.  Do lots of cardiovascular exercise.
5.  Treat your back right and it will treat you right.

Let’s talk about ideal body weight.

The science here is pretty straightforward. It your back carries more than its normal weight – you put more stress to it. This is especially true if you have a large belly. This excess weight will affect your posture. It will put more stress on your back muscles. Keep your weight to its ideal levels.

Now for Core Muscles

 Your core muscles are one of the strongest muscles in your body. They connect your lower body to your upper body. They absorb most of the weight when you do regular activities such as walking, sitting standing and running. If they are weak, you risk a poor posture that will aggravate and create back pain. Do some exercises that make your core muscles and abdominal muscles stronger. There are a lot of information online on beginners to advanced core muscle exercises and lots of them are in our free be: Free Pain Relief Exercise Program on our Home page.

No Smoking

This adds a ton of health related problems such as greater risk to lung cancer and hypertension. For current smokers: quit. There are helplines across that you can call. For those who are thinking about it, forget it or you will get no benefits at all.

Aerobic Exercise

These are activities that fall in the criteria of running; walking and swimming. Simply put, these are actions that make you move your legs, arms and your whole body. So much so that you produce sweat and your heart beats faster and you take in more oxygen. This activity improves overall circulation and makes you shed excess fat. Aerobic exercises as recommended by eminent cardiologist should be done for 30 minutes/exercise. It should be done for an average of 5 times in a week.  This is at an either moderate or a vigorous pacing — depending on what you are comfortable with. For those who want low-impact activities, you can go cycling or get an elliptical trainer.

How to treat your Back

Remember do not just ignore back pain. It will not just go away. If you ignore it, it will lead to a greater state of lesser mobility and will definitely cause you more weight gain. It is a vicious cycle.

To avoid back pain and injury follow these simple tips.

•  Watch your posture. Make sure that you stand up straight and do not slouch. Keep your chest out and shoulders back.
• Find support. When you need to stand and even sit for a long time period, make sure that you lean on something, or that you change your leg stance. When you have the chance, put your feet up or lie flat on your chest. This decreases the pressure on your back.
• Lift Right. When you carry or lift object do not forget to bend your knees. This will distribute the load and lessen back stress. Do not over reach or over extend.
•  Regular Exercise. This will wonders for your whole body. Pace yourself.  Start light first and as your resistance builds, level up to more intense workouts. What is important is that you get a good sweat out of each workout and you do it regularly.
• Do some stretching and some pacing. This is most true if you are staying in position for a long time, like if you have been sitting in front of a computer for example. Take advantage of your break times.

Follow these simple and effective tips and you will be sure to avoid this lower back pain plague.