Back Pain Advice - Preventing Back Pain

© Michelle Howard Smith - All Rights Reserved

If you are suffering from back pain, you are not alone.  Rates of back pain from mild to excruciating have doubled since the early 1990s.  Is this because of more strenuous activities like heavy lifting or could it be that the rise in instances of back pain is a result of our bodies being sorely out of shape?  Regardless of the reason, the back pain advice I'm about to share will help in preventing back pain in the future.

The most common cause of back pain is injury. Strengthening your trunk and back muscles will help to support your spine so that your risk for injury is reduced.  By simply improving the strength of these muscles by as little as 15%, you are greatly reducing your chances of having a back injury.

The best way to improve your trunk and back muscles is with exercise.  Now, I know exercise may not be your favorite thing to do but, this is simple back pain advice that you can follow and it doesn't have to take very long. The following are two simple exercises that you can do every day and not feel overwhelmed:

Trunk Muscle Exercise:

0. Lie on your back with your knees bent and your feet flat on the floor, keeping your spine stable without arching your back
0. Raise your left leg while raising your right arm back at the same time.
0. Repeat this on the opposite side
0. Do 5 reps on each side and gradually increase to 10.

Lower Back Exercise:

0. Get down on all fours (like a dog just not as nasty) with your spine in a neutral position
0. Raise your arm parallel to the floor
0. Lower then raise your other arm
0. Repeat 5 times
0. Next, raise one leg up towards your back, keeping it parallel with the floor.
0. Lower and repeat on the other leg
0. Work up to lifting your arm and leg simultaneously
0. Gradually increase your repetitions to 10

That's it.  You may have read other back pain advice that included a whole list of exercises but doing just two simple exercises such as what I've detailed here, should take no more than 15 minutes out of your day (and I'm being generous here).  Follow this back pain advice by consistently doing these two exercises and you will improve the strength of your trunk and back muscles before you know it. Of course, you may be a little sore in the beginning but it's worth it in the long run to preventing back pain.

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