7 Tips for a Healthy Back
A healthy back requires proper spinal curves, symmetrical muscles, and movement. Inactivity and poor posture are a greater issue during a lockdown. Combine that with less than adequate ergonomics at your workstation at home and it becomes a recipe for back and neck pain.
Pain is the body’s way of telling you something is wrong.
Masking the pain with drugs provides a short-term solution but does not correct the source of the problem. This creates recurrent back pain and can lead to nerve compression resulting in radiating pain, numbness, tingling or hot/cold variations of sensation.
Tips for a healthy back to get through COVID-19 lockdowns
- Maintain good posture as much as possible.
- Follow a healthy diet and drink plenty of water.In general, you should try to drink between half your body weight in ounces per day. For example, if you weigh 150 pounds, that would be 75 ounces of water a day.
- Keep your nose between your toes when exercising, moving, and shovelling snow…no twisting and bending forward.
- Invest in a good chair, pillow, and mattress.
- Get up and move around after each hour of sitting. Set a reminder to help you remember.
- Sleep on your back or side…not your stomach.
- Do light warm up exercises before exercising and stretch afterward
Follow these tips for a healthy back and your spine will thank you with less pain.
What to do if you do have back pain.
If your back does continue to cause pain, then consult a Chiropractor. Abnormal curves of the spine will cause joint irritation and create local “hotspots” of pain in the back. Hypertonic(tight) muscles will cause asymmetrical pulling of the vertebrae increasing your chance of muscle strains. Prolonged sitting and lack of activity deconditions the spine which results in increased chance of injury during exercising.
