Back pain is a symptom that we all suffer at some time, caused mainly by the bad postures that we adopt when sitting and in many occasions also while we walk.
Like almost 80% of the western world, the majority of the sedentary population suffers from this discomfort and many people suffer from it almost daily, chronically. As a general rule the best remedy to relieve back pain is to practice certain exercises with gentle movements that help us feel better.
The Mayo Clinic, one of the most prestigious in the United States, considered by many as the first in the country and a pioneer in the treatment of many ailments, recommends a series of stretching and strengthening exercises that relieve and reinforce our backs. They are very simple exercises that we can do in our house and in which we will not use more than fifteen minutes a day.
If you have time, it is good to do these exercises once in the morning when you wake up and once in the evening.
Foot to the chest. Lying on your stomach with your feet resting on the floor and your knees bent, bring one knee to your chest with your hands. Hold the position for 15 to 30 seconds and change legs. Repeat the exercise about 10 times with each leg.
Feet to the chest. It is an exercise very similar to the previous one, with the only difference that instead of alternating the legs, we put them together and try to approach the chest at the same time.
Lying on your back, with your feet resting on the floor and your knees bent, join both legs, so that they are a single block. Always keeping your shoulders on the ground throughout the exercise, turn your hips to play with both knees to one side and another of your body. Repeat the exercise 5 times for each side.
We start the exercise in the same position as the previous ones. Lying on your back with your feet planted on the floor and your knees bent, we raise the gluteus of the floor a few centimeters and hold the position for 5 seconds. We relax resting again on the floor and tighten the abdomen as if to touch the navel to the floor. We hold the position for a few seconds and relax, to start the full movement again. Repeat the exercise at least eight times and go increasing the repetitions as you can.
On your knees and resting your hands on the floor, as if you were on all fours, push your lumbar and abdomen to the floor, while you raise your head and shoulders. Then perform the opposite movement, raise your abdomen and lumbar as if wanting to touch the ceiling. Repeat the exercise at least 8 times.
Sitting on the floor, with one leg stretched across the other leg above the knee to pose the foot of the leg crossed on the floor. Grab the knee of the crossed leg with the elbow of the opposite arm and pull it backwards. Hold the position for at least 10 seconds and repeat with the opposite leg. Do the exercise at least three times with each leg.
Sitting on a stool with a straight back, try to pull your shoulders back, hold your posture for a few seconds and return to your normal position. Repeat the exercise 8 times.
I think the most important exercise not so much to eliminate discomfort but so that they do not return are those that help strengthen your middle zone. So lie on your stomach with your forearms resting on the ground on one side and on the balls of your feet on the other. Squeeze the abdomen strong and try to hold at least 15 seconds and progress to 30 seconds.
Who has not experienced an insufferable back pain? Poor postures throughout the day, anxiety and stress, excess weight and even how we walk are factors that can cause this delicate area to be exposed to more or less intense discomfort. And it is estimated that almost 85% of the western population has back problems due to different causes. Obviously, these data are accentuated when the population is sedentary, has no healthy habits, does not play sports and does not follow any healthy eating guidelines.
- Lee: Bad postures that cause back pain
- Lee: How to take care of your posture at work to avoid injuries
But, to end these pains do not need sports routines of one hour, much less abuse of painkillers. Simply modify our routine slightly. For example, we can get up every hour and a half of work to stretch our legs, give us a brief two-minute walk down the hall and sit down again. Another idea would be to reduce our lack of activity: the time we spend on the couch watching television, for example. The ideal would be to take advantage of the daily activities to walk, if you have to go buy bread, for example, we can go for a walk and walk 20 minutes instead of five.
Regarding food, if our back hurts continuously, it is probably because we have some extra kilo in the abdominal area. Therefore, if we reduce the intake of fats and alcohol throughout the week, we will surely reduce that abdominal perimeter and our back will not suffer as much.
- Lee: Foods that will help you get a flat stomach
These tips will help us improve our back problems a lot, but if we combine it with these exercises that we propose, you will feel great and you will be able to completely finish with the back discomfort.
Knee to the chest (I). Face up, feet resting on the floor and knees bent in a pyramid shape. Bring one knee to your chest with the help of your hands while the other leg is on the stretched floor. You should notice that the lower back (the lower part of the back) is stretched. Hold the stretch position for 15 seconds and change legs. We should do this exercise three times with each leg.
Knees to the chest (II). Same modus operandi as the previous exercise, but doing it with both knees at the same time. Repeat three times and hold the stretch for 15 seconds.
Hip rotation (see image). Face up, feet resting on the floor and knees forming a pyramid. Join both legs as if they were tied, and keep the upper body still (from the waist up), and bring the knees in a block to the side (this movement is facilitated by the hip). When the legs touch the ground, hold for 10 seconds and bring the legs to the other side with a smooth and quiet movement. It will be enough to do this exercise three times with each side.
The posture of the cat (see image). In quadruped position, the back straight and the view nailed to the ground. Make sure head, neck and back are fully aligned. The movement is as follows: bend your sword upwards - like a cat when it feels threatened - for 10 seconds, hold up and return to the starting position. It will be enough to do it three times.
- In addition: The best exercises to strengthen the back
Finally, we will finish our routine doing some breaths that will help us achieve a pleasant feeling of tranquility and relaxation, while you will feel your back slack and a generalized relief throughout the body. To notice all the benefits of deep breathing, follow these steps.
Sit, back straight, eyes closed and mouth closed. Inhale the air through your nose while you count up to four.
Hold your breath for five seconds.
Exhale slowly while you count to ten. Repeat the entire sequence three more times.
Article written by the team of sports professionals of Infinit Fitness gyms.
Like almost 80% of the western world, the majority of the sedentary population suffers from this discomfort and many people suffer from it almost daily, chronically. As a general rule the best remedy to relieve back pain is to practice certain exercises with gentle movements that help us feel better.
The Mayo Clinic, one of the most prestigious in the United States, considered by many as the first in the country and a pioneer in the treatment of many ailments, recommends a series of stretching and strengthening exercises that relieve and reinforce our backs. They are very simple exercises that we can do in our house and in which we will not use more than fifteen minutes a day.
If you have time, it is good to do these exercises once in the morning when you wake up and once in the evening.
Foot to the chest. Lying on your stomach with your feet resting on the floor and your knees bent, bring one knee to your chest with your hands. Hold the position for 15 to 30 seconds and change legs. Repeat the exercise about 10 times with each leg.
Feet to the chest. It is an exercise very similar to the previous one, with the only difference that instead of alternating the legs, we put them together and try to approach the chest at the same time.
Lying on your back, with your feet resting on the floor and your knees bent, join both legs, so that they are a single block. Always keeping your shoulders on the ground throughout the exercise, turn your hips to play with both knees to one side and another of your body. Repeat the exercise 5 times for each side.
We start the exercise in the same position as the previous ones. Lying on your back with your feet planted on the floor and your knees bent, we raise the gluteus of the floor a few centimeters and hold the position for 5 seconds. We relax resting again on the floor and tighten the abdomen as if to touch the navel to the floor. We hold the position for a few seconds and relax, to start the full movement again. Repeat the exercise at least eight times and go increasing the repetitions as you can.
On your knees and resting your hands on the floor, as if you were on all fours, push your lumbar and abdomen to the floor, while you raise your head and shoulders. Then perform the opposite movement, raise your abdomen and lumbar as if wanting to touch the ceiling. Repeat the exercise at least 8 times.
Sitting on the floor, with one leg stretched across the other leg above the knee to pose the foot of the leg crossed on the floor. Grab the knee of the crossed leg with the elbow of the opposite arm and pull it backwards. Hold the position for at least 10 seconds and repeat with the opposite leg. Do the exercise at least three times with each leg.
Sitting on a stool with a straight back, try to pull your shoulders back, hold your posture for a few seconds and return to your normal position. Repeat the exercise 8 times.
I think the most important exercise not so much to eliminate discomfort but so that they do not return are those that help strengthen your middle zone. So lie on your stomach with your forearms resting on the ground on one side and on the balls of your feet on the other. Squeeze the abdomen strong and try to hold at least 15 seconds and progress to 30 seconds.
Who has not experienced an insufferable back pain? Poor postures throughout the day, anxiety and stress, excess weight and even how we walk are factors that can cause this delicate area to be exposed to more or less intense discomfort. And it is estimated that almost 85% of the western population has back problems due to different causes. Obviously, these data are accentuated when the population is sedentary, has no healthy habits, does not play sports and does not follow any healthy eating guidelines.
- Lee: Bad postures that cause back pain
- Lee: How to take care of your posture at work to avoid injuries
But, to end these pains do not need sports routines of one hour, much less abuse of painkillers. Simply modify our routine slightly. For example, we can get up every hour and a half of work to stretch our legs, give us a brief two-minute walk down the hall and sit down again. Another idea would be to reduce our lack of activity: the time we spend on the couch watching television, for example. The ideal would be to take advantage of the daily activities to walk, if you have to go buy bread, for example, we can go for a walk and walk 20 minutes instead of five.
Regarding food, if our back hurts continuously, it is probably because we have some extra kilo in the abdominal area. Therefore, if we reduce the intake of fats and alcohol throughout the week, we will surely reduce that abdominal perimeter and our back will not suffer as much.
- Lee: Foods that will help you get a flat stomach
These tips will help us improve our back problems a lot, but if we combine it with these exercises that we propose, you will feel great and you will be able to completely finish with the back discomfort.
Knee to the chest (I). Face up, feet resting on the floor and knees bent in a pyramid shape. Bring one knee to your chest with the help of your hands while the other leg is on the stretched floor. You should notice that the lower back (the lower part of the back) is stretched. Hold the stretch position for 15 seconds and change legs. We should do this exercise three times with each leg.
Knees to the chest (II). Same modus operandi as the previous exercise, but doing it with both knees at the same time. Repeat three times and hold the stretch for 15 seconds.
Hip rotation (see image). Face up, feet resting on the floor and knees forming a pyramid. Join both legs as if they were tied, and keep the upper body still (from the waist up), and bring the knees in a block to the side (this movement is facilitated by the hip). When the legs touch the ground, hold for 10 seconds and bring the legs to the other side with a smooth and quiet movement. It will be enough to do this exercise three times with each side.
The posture of the cat (see image). In quadruped position, the back straight and the view nailed to the ground. Make sure head, neck and back are fully aligned. The movement is as follows: bend your sword upwards - like a cat when it feels threatened - for 10 seconds, hold up and return to the starting position. It will be enough to do it three times.
- In addition: The best exercises to strengthen the back
Finally, we will finish our routine doing some breaths that will help us achieve a pleasant feeling of tranquility and relaxation, while you will feel your back slack and a generalized relief throughout the body. To notice all the benefits of deep breathing, follow these steps.
Sit, back straight, eyes closed and mouth closed. Inhale the air through your nose while you count up to four.
Hold your breath for five seconds.
Exhale slowly while you count to ten. Repeat the entire sequence three more times.
Article written by the team of sports professionals of Infinit Fitness gyms.
