I’ve had a number of new clients this week who have come to me specifically because they have chronic low back pain, some of them for over 2yrs. They have been down the usual route of GP, Physio, Osteo & Chiro and have found no relief.
Firstly, if you suffer from LBP it is important that you do see your GP and they will rule out any red flags – they will have ruled out serious spinal pathology (this occurs in less than 1% of the population).
This means that you can now start to help yourself, its important to remember that movement will not cause more harm, in fact not moving will only make your muscles tighter and in the long term cause you more pain.
Movements that you need to focus on to decrease back pain are:
1. Hip Mobility – moving from your hips, instead of constant flexing the spine, remember be kind to your spine!
2. Thoracic Mobility – especially rotation, if your thoracic doesn’t move well, the muscles running either side of your spine will become too tight.
3. Core – and this includes Glutes, these muscles need to be strong and firing correctly so they can do their job, which puts less strain on other muscles.
4. Neutral spine – you need to learn when your spine is in its neutral position, this is the least stressful position for your spine, you need to be able to maintain a neutral spine when standing, sitting, moving etc. Basically we are talking posture 🙂
For your body to be healthy, function properly, be pain free you have to pay attention to what you put into your body. Inflammation causes pain, there are certain foods that increase inflammation and others that decrease inflammation.
Increase your water intake dramatically, 3 ltrs per day, cut out processed foods, eliminate sugar, caffeine, alcohol, gluten & dairy for 2 weeks and give your body a chance to get rid of the inflammation. Increase foods high in Omega 3, oily fish, seeds & nuts, or take supplements, or do both, fill your plate with plenty of green veg, change to sweet potatoes, eat plenty of protein and in a couple of weeks you will feel the difference!
2 simple things to do to switch your Abs on!
1. Lie somewhere comfortable, place your hands on your belly and breathe! Breathe in through your nose, expanding your belly towards the ceiling and out through your mouth, allowing your belly to deflate. Do this 8 -10 times.
2. Rub your inner thighs from your knees up, fairly hard for 15 secs
All done in less than ONE minute!!!