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To Know and Help with Your Back Pain

[Sponsored Article] Did you experience an acute lower back pain which radiate down to lower limbs after trainings or moving heavy objects? Such pain would make you unable to straighten your trunk, picking up things from the ground by bending your trunk or even feel pain when sneezing and coughing?

[Sponsored Article]

Did you experience an acute lower back pain which radiate down to lower limbs after trainings or moving heavy objects? Such pain would make you unable to straighten your trunk, picking up things from the ground by bending your trunk or even feel pain when sneezing and coughing?

This pain is likely caused by the intervertebral disc injury, also known as “disc herniation”. Most sufferers are at their young and middle age, especially those who repeatedly bend over during workouts or sit in a wrong posture for a long time. Some common intrinsic and extrinsic factors include:

  • Lifting heavy loads with bend-over posture
  • Incorrect training posture
  • Trunk rotation with heavy loads
  • Weak tranversus abdominis
  • Sitting in the same position for a long duration
  • Improper body alignment

Once back pain occurred, detailed diagnosis for the seriousness of the injury from medical doctor must be obtained to identify the injured location for specific therapy and post-rehabilitation trainings. Common injury management includes girdles, avoid high risk movements, NSAIDs (Non-steroid anti-inflammatory drugs) or pain killer from doctors, manual and electric therapy, and traction from physiotherapists.

Correct Postures and Regular Routine Exercises to Reduce Back Pain
Most lower back pain can get better if you stay active, avoid positions and activities that may increase or cause back pain, such as cycling, basketball, weightlifting etc. Exercises to reduce lower back pain are not complicated and can be done at home without any special equipment. The following shows some postures & exercises that will strengthen and support your back, offering relief from back pain.

Correct Posture

Correct techniques of lifting heavy objects can also prevent disc herniation (figure 1).
Figure 1

Back Pain Relief Exercises

1. Self-traction of the spine
Chair self-traction (figure 2)

Exercise techniques: sitting on a chair with arm rests. Support the body weight by straightening the arms on the arm rests. Keep your trunk in an upright position, scapulae depressed. You should feel the traction in the lumbar region.

Frequency: 3-5 reps, 10-30 seconds per rep

Breathing: keep breathing normally
Figure 2: chair self-traction

2. Spine mobility
Crook-lying rotation (figure 3)

Exercise techniques: prone lying on a mat, open the arms so that the body is in a cross shape with feet together. Knee flexed at 90-degree. The upper body keeps touching the floor. Rotate the pelvis from side to side.

Frequency: 1 rep/second, 2-3 minutes for one set

Range of movement: from small to large

Breathing: keep breathing normally

Common mistake: the upper body lifted or following the rotation
Figure 3: Crook-lying rotation

3. Specific stretching
McKenzie full exercise (figure 4)

Exercise techniques: supine lying on a mat, your trunk is in a straight line with pubis kept touching the floor and abdominal region tightened up. Arms are directly under the shoulder. If the stress in lumbar region is too high, McKenzie half exercise can be used – support the body with forearm and elbows are directly under the shoulder.

Frequency: maintain the stretched posture for 30-60 seconds

Breathing: keep breathing normally

Common mistake: abdominal region is not tightened up or pubis leave the floor
Figure 4: McKenzie full exercise
 

4. Strengthening deep stabilizer muscles
Breathing with pursed lip (figure 5)

Exercise techniques: Stand and breath out with pursed lip. Use abdominal breathing and breath out with sound as far as possible

Breathing: slow and even expiration and breath out all the air inside the body

Common mistake: breathing with chest 
Figure 5: Pursed lip breathing

 

Table top (figure 6)

Exercise techniques: kneel on a mat with your trunk in a straight line. Hands are directly under the shoulder with knees under your hip joint. Feet are kept in the same width of hip joints and support the lower leg with your toes.

Frequency: lower abdomen sinks when breathing in and feels like it is touching the floor. Lower abdomen rises up towards the lumbar spine when breathing out

Common mistake: excessive lumbar spine curvature downward or arching back
Figure 6: Table top
 

Advanced version (figure 7)

Exercise techniques: based on the table top techniques with knees leaving the mat at a palm’s thickness, the abdomen is tightened up all the way.

Frequency: maintain for 10-30 seconds

Breathing: maintain the even chest breathing which means the abdomen is not moving. Use the changes in the size of chest cavity during breathing process

Common mistake: knees leaving the mat too high, arching back and lumbar spine, abdomen muscle relax during exercise
Figure 7

5. Strengthening back and abdominal muscle group
Leg lifting with rolls (figure 8)

Exercise techniques: prone lying on a mat with a roll of thick towel placed under the lower abdomen area. Arms kept by the side of the trunk with abdomen tightened up and raise the leg alternatively

Frequency: maintain for 1 second for each repetition

Breathing: keep breathing normally
Figure 8: Leg lifting with rolls

Prone superman (figure 9)

Exercise techniques: prone lying on a mat with a roll of thick towel placed under the lower abdomen area. Arms stretched out by both sides of the head. Abdomen muscles tightened up. Arms keep lifting above the floor and raise the legs alternatively

Frequency: maintain for 1 second for each repetition

Breathing: keep breathing normally
Figure 9: Prone superman

Content sponsored by Asian Academy For Sports & Fitness Professionals.

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