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Exercises for lower back pain

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Conquering the Pain Beast with Exercises for Lower Back Pain

When you have lower back pain it can feel as if you’re carrying around a beast that won’t let go. Sitting, twisting, bending and even walking can be difficult and as a result, it’s tempting to reduce the level of activity. Unfortunately that’s the worst thing you can do. The less you do the more it’s going to hurt. Think of it this way. When you aren’t doing anything to improve the pain, why would you expect it to improve? In other words, if you don’t to exercises for lower back pain, how are the muscles going to get stronger?

 

Lower back pain is the result of both emotional and physical factors. They are intertwined and can’t be separated. Exercises for lower back pain don’t just deal with muscles. They also deal with your mental state that makes you believe lack of exercise is the cure for back pain. Exercise can help you adjust your attitude, get some feel-good endorphins flowing and strengthen your back.

Of course, some lower back pain will need surgical correction if the result of degenerative disease for example. But even in that situation, exercise serves the same purpose. It can reduce the amount of back pain you are experiencing while waiting for surgery by strengthening the muscles. Getting your lower back muscles into good shape will also help you recover faster from the surgery. Exercise is just plain good for you whether you have back pain or not.

Exercises for lower back pain include a variety of exercises that include even aerobic conditioning. The lower back muscles and bones are just a subset of your overall muscular skeletal structure. Whatever you do for the lower back benefits the entire system, and it works the other way around too. The better shape your body is in overall, the better for your lower back. If you are out of shape or overweight, both conditions can contribute to lower back pain.

Following is a list of some exercises for lower back pain. You can do these exercises at home, but if you’re under the care of a doctor it’s important to show the physician the plan. The important thing is to do them regularly. You can’t do them for a few days and then quit and expect to see results. It may hurt at first, but if you stick with the program you’ll be amazed at how the pain beast begins to let go.

• Abdominal contractions
• Wall slides or squats
• Straight leg raises
• Alternating knee to chest
• Treadmill
• Stationary bike
• Balance ball arm and leg raises (lie on stomach)

There are others you can do too. You should start with 3 ten minute sessions a day and add time as your muscles get stronger. Exercises for lower back pain can scare the pain beast away so you can restore your lively step to your daily activities.

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Back Pain Muscle Spasms

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You have long muscles that run along the spine called the erector spinae muscles.  These are often the guilty muscles when you have back pain and muscle spasms.  A spasm is an involuntary contraction of the muscle for a sustained period of time.  Usually a spasm occurs when the muscle has been suddenly stressed somehow which can include injury, sprains, tears or bruising.  The spasm can actually start in the nerves that lead into the muscle though the feeling is the same no matter where the spasm starts.

Most of the time muscle spasms are painful, but not serious.  It should be mentioned though that in some cases, the spasm may be a symptom of a more serious problem.  The back is composed of bones, muscles and ligaments, and injury or disease to any component can result in back pain muscle spasms.

Back pain and muscle spasms can occur anywhere along the spine from the neck to the lower back.  A spasm can occur once or it can happen repeatedly.  Often the spasm makes the muscle feel sore and tight even after the spasm subsides.  So when you deal with muscle spasms you have two goals.  The first goal is to attempt to prevent the reoccurrence of the spasm.  The second goal is to relive the pain and tension after the spasm.

There are many ways you can approach management of back pain and muscle spasms at home.  First, you should keep moving.  You don’t want to go to bed and lie still, because that will cause the muscle to hurt more.  Light exercises will relieve the muscle stress while strengthening and toning.  Also, you can use an ice pack applied to the area and decrease the muscle spasm pain.  In addition, you should avoid any heavy lifting or moves similar to the moves you were doing before the spasm.

If your back pain and muscle spasms don’t get better with home remedies, you may have to visit the doctor.  Frequently, muscle relaxants are prescribed to relieve muscle tightness.  Muscle relaxants are a short term solution meant to give relief from pain while the muscle heals.   Some people find enough relief by using over-the-counter anti-inflammatory pain relievers.  Many medications you can now buy yourself are what were once considered full prescription strength.  All of the drugs can reduce swelling and increase muscle flexibility.

Other forms of therapy for back pain and muscle spasms include massage or physical therapy.  But one of the most important therapies you can do yourself.  That’s to maintain good posture.  Good posture lets your spine work the way it was designed to work.  Maintaining good posture is important during any activity too and not just while standing.   You should stand, sit, walk and lift while maintaining proper spine position.  This will help you avoid muscle injury and sprains that can lead to muscle spasms.

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Some of the Chiropractic Techniques

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When most people think of chiropractic techniques, the standard neck or back adjustment is what comes to mind.  However to understand why chiropractic care is so useful, it is imperative to be aware that doctors of chiropractic have a lot more tricks up their sleeves other than just the famous back adjustment.  Chiropractors treat more areas of the body than just the spine.  These highly trained professionals go to school for in depth training of techniques and when and where they are appropriate, as well as detailed study of how the body works in relation to all aspects of health.  Muscle and bones are just a part of their training.  They also are taught how disease and injury affect each region of the body and how to treat it for optimum healing.  Take a look at some of the chiropractic techniques you may be less familiar with.

One of the most interesting of the chiropractic techniques is known as the applied kinesiology technique.  This one deals with more than just the alignment of the spine and joints.  The placement of the bones can’t be correct unless the muscles surrounding them are in correct placement as well.  Using light massage and manipulation of the acupressure points, chiropractors can encourage normal and healthy muscle function.  This restored balance helps the bones move back into the proper ailment.  This technique is an interesting look at how all the systems of the body work together as one.

Since the spine related adjustments are the most familiar to most of us, here’s a look at some of the spine chiropractic techniques and what they are used to correct.  The Cox flexion distraction is first up on our list.  This technique involves using stretching or traction of the spine to correct lower back pain and misalignment.  The Thompson terminal point technique is another one of the frequently used techniques.  Using a special drop style table, this technique is used to adjust the entire spine.  Another fascinating example of the dynamic of how different areas of the body can adversely affect a seemingly unrelated area of the body is neck pain.  In some cases the Sacro-Occipital technique is used.  The patient lies on their back with padded blocks placed under the pelvic region.  This allows the body to adjust itself and reduce neck pain.  There are hundreds of other techniques chiropractors can use to improve the performance of the body and promote pain relief.  These are just a few.

The various chiropractic techniques are an interesting look at how every area of the body directly impacts its neighbor.  Understanding the purpose of some of the things your chiropractor may do is a good way to reduce fear of the unknown and take a proactive stand in your own health care.

Each of the chiropractic techniques was designed to heal a specific problem.  These techniques help to relieve pain, improve joint flexibility, and increase body function without the use of medications or surgeries.

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