Back To Basics
How you can take action today to avoid back pain in the future!
Back pain is something many of us deal with on a regular basis. The effects of back pain can range from mild discomfort to altogether debilitating pain. To some extent, we’re all warned that it’s something we can expect to live with as we age.
While it’s true that there may be some cases in which back pain is unavoidable, it’s also true that most of us can take action to prevent back pain from becoming a part of our regular lives. Here we’ll discuss what you can do to take control of potential future back pain before it takes control of your life.
Common causes of back pain and related problems – and what you can do to avoid them
Often, back pain is caused by something we do that’s quite innocuous in and of itself. And because of that, back pain seems to come out of nowhere when it does set in. Let’s look at some of the most common causes of back pain, and what you can do to mitigate the risk.
- Extracurricular Or Leisurely Activity
After a long and challenging work week, we find ways to fill our weekends with activities and excursions to give our mind a break. But if you engage in a physical activity that your body is not prepared to handle, you set yourself up for potential back issues.
For example, if you are a person who does not exercise throughout the work week, and then spends the weekend doing a physical activity such as attending to yard work, spending an entire day fishing with friends or family, or hitting the golf course for an afternoon, then the musculature that you need to perform those activities may not be well-equipped as a result of the lack of exercise in between those events.
In fact, most people who sustain back pain or back-related injuries do so while participating in a weekend event.
The best way to avoid back pain resulting from extracurricular or leisurely activity is to incorporate a few exercises into your regular routine. Your back needs a degree of strength to be able to handle the demands of activities over the weekends, and even just a simple exercise will do wonders to prevent back pain in the future.
- Bad Lifting Technique
You’ve been hearing it your whole life, but once it causes back issues it will be too little too late: Lift with your legs, not with your back. Lifting weights or anything that requires strenuous effort can completely destroy your back if you don’t implement the proper form as you lift.
Whether you’re in a gym or running through your to-do list at home, avoid back pain resulting from lifting by engaging your core, bending at the knee and lifting with your legs rather than your back. No exceptions! It may seem unnecessary, but your back will thank you in the long run.
- Improper Posture In Day-To-Day Life
Modern lifestyle offers remarkable perks, but the problem is, we spend a whole lot of time sitting. From driving to work, sitting down at a restaurant, relaxing in a spa or watching Netflix, our lives are structured in such a way that encourages us to sit. A lot.
Unfortunately your life probably requires you to spend a lot of your day sitting in a chair. But this does not necessarily spell out inevitable back pain. What puts strain on your body — and specifically your back — is poor posture and prolonged, uninterrupted periods of sitting down.
When you engage in poor posture as you sit, you disrupt the distribution of your weight over the parts of your body – namely, your hips and lower back. Given enough time, poor posture can throw your major joints out of whack, cause muscle soreness and irritation, and ultimately lead to chronic back pain.
All of these can be prevented beforehand with conscious attention to your posture, and with regular stretching.
In order to avoid back pain resulting from a lifestyle that requires you to sit, make it a point to get up and move around at least a few times throughout the day. Ideally you’ll want to get up about once an hour and stretch your legs or go for a short walk, even just for a few minutes.
Stretches To Prevent Back Pain
No matter what your lifestyle is like, the fact is: your best bet at preventing back pain from becoming a regular part of your life is to stretch often and stretch regularly. Remember, performing your stretches correctly is crucial to maintaining the health of your back and ensuring its longevity.
Here are a few stretches you can incorporate into your daily routine, at work or at home.
- Walk, Walk, Walk. When you have something short to communicate to a coworker, use the opportunity to get up and take a short walk rather than sending an email.
- Stand Up Without Using Your Arms. Simply stand and sit without the use of your arms or hands a few times.
- Make Circles In The Air With Your Hands. Sounds silly, right? Well, it works! Stretch your arms out in front of you and draw circles in the air. Ten times in one direction, then ten times in the other. You’ll notice great results!
- Twist Your Torso To Do Your Upper Body A Favor. Stand up and inhale. On the exhale, slowly turn to one direction and grab your chair or desk. Hold the position for a second, and slowly return to facing forward before completing this stretch on the other side. Repeat a few times.
- Exercise: You don’t have to spend hours; just incorporate a few simple exercises in your daily routine!
- Shrug Shoulders: Inhale properly and shrug your shoulders. It’s easy! Feel free to shake your head slowly, yes and no!
Five Best Exercises for Your Back!
We know, choosing the right exercises can often be overwhelming. Not only must you develop and stick to an exercise regime, you must do so for a wide variety of muscle groups.
Even ones you may not traditionally think about—such as your back.
If this sounds like you, don’t worry. We have put together five of the best back workouts you can do with simple free weights. Because these exercises don’t require the use of expensive machines, they’re perfect for you!
- Barbell Deadlift
The barbell deadlift remains one of the most common—and effective—back workouts available.
The good news is that it doesn’t require a whole lot of equipment. All you’ll need to perform these exercises is a bar and some weights—making it perfect for those looking to work out from home.
To perform this exercise, place a challenging amount of weight onto the bar and place it in front of your feet. For maximum gains, you’ll want to use heavier weights with fewer reps—but be careful not to overdo it.
Reach down to lock both hands around the bar, with your palms facing your shins. From there, use your legs and back to slowly lift the bar for a set amount of reps.
- Bent-Over Barbell Deadlift
What really sets the barbell deadlift apart is that it boasts several powerful variations. The bent-over barbell deadlift is perhaps the most effective of all.
Typically, those doing this exercise use more weight and do so earlier in their workouts.
To perform this exercise, place the weighted bar in front of you. Then, bend at the waist, keeping your back straight, and clasp the bar with your palms facing the ground.
From there, lift the barbell towards your chest. Once there, contract your back muscles and hold for as long as you can before slowly lowering the bar and repeating.
- Wide-Grip Pullups
Wide-grip pullups are awesome for a number of reasons. First, they target your upper lats and focus on intense musculature buildup in your back. Overhead pullups are notorious for their intensity and can provide serious results.
What’s more, wide-grip pullups put your joints in position to carry wider loads. This means that you can theoretically pull more than you can with close-grip pullups—making them an excellent beginner’s workout and a must for any back exercise routine.
Consider doing your wide-grip pullups in sets of 8-12 for best results.
- Single Arm Dumbbell Row
If you’re looking for a great unilateral exercise that targets your lats and core, this workout is for you. Designed for sets of 10-12, this exercise requires only a bench and single dumbbell.
Basically, you will be required to lean one half of your body on your bench (knee and arm). In the other hand, you will hold a dumbbell that you will lift to build muscle unilaterally on one side of your body. You can switch sides to rotate muscle buildup and to exercise both parts of your body.
This exercise is great for beginners, as it provides for bodily support. You may find that this exercise provides your back with a greater degree of support and allows for easier training.
- Decline Bench Dumbbell Pullover
This hard-hitting pullover exercise targets your back and arms for a great upper body workout. What do you need? This one’s pretty simple. Just a decline bench and a dumbbell!
Once you decline, hold your arms straight out and hold your dumbbell in both hands. Making sure to clear your head, you will lift (or pull over) the dumbbell for a strenuous and effective exercise session. This exercise requires only single-joint movement but targets and effectively works out your lats.
