Fitness and Low Back Pain Prevention
In today's society, there is an abundance of technology and convenient options that makes some day-to-day functions so much easier to handle. Because of technology and convenience, people have become less active throughout the day, which plays a part in the increased prevalence of low back pain. Back pain can lead to disability and decreases in quality of life if not eliminated. Here are five essential strategies that can eliminate low back pain.
Strengthen your lower body muscles as it can take stress off of your lower back. This is especially true for your buttocks muscles. When these muscles are not firing properly or aren't strong enough, the hamstrings and the low back muscles becomes overworked and can place excess stress on discs and other tissues in the lower back
Training the muscles that stabilize your spine is another crucial piece of the low back pain prevention program. When you injure your lower back, your spinal stabilizers lose their ability to stabilize the spine during movement. Retrain these muscles for endurance and stabilization with exercises such as lying bug variations
High levels of cardiovascular fitness decreases lower back pain. Cardiovascular exercise such as treadmill walking or swimming helps your muscles and other tissues to use oxygen more efficiently, which helps to eliminate harmful waste products and increase the endurance needed to stabilize your spine. Strive to do 20-30 minutes of cardiovascular exercise 3-5 days per week, maintaining an "above-conversational" pace
Your discs need certain nutrients and water to stay healthy. Increasing your intake of water, fish oil, fruits and vegetables while decreasing highly processed foods ensures that you receive all the nutrients needed to support healthy discs.
The previous four steps will be of little value unless you work to correct improper movement patterns. Improper lifting, bending, twisting, carrying, and reaching for objects are all risk factors for lower back injury. Consulting with a qualified exercise professional or a physical therapist about proper body mechanics will help you become more aware of how you move so that you can avoid injury.
Low back pain is frustrating and at times debilitating. However, prevention is important in helping you to avoid low back pain and injury. Always remember that exercise and proper nutrition is the key to long-term management of disease and injury. Follow these steps above and you will be more successful in the battle against low back injury.
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