Thursday, June 20, 2013


Bad-Back Exercises: Can They Help Back Pain?
Performing a few bad-back exercises can be a very important strategy for 
relieving back pain. However, it is important to know the right exercises to 
do. Depending on the cause of your back pain, you could make things worse 
by practicing the wrong exercises. Therefore, we strongly recommend that 
you consult with your doctor or a qualified physical therapist before you 
start. 
Yoga type exercises that stretch the spine in different directions can be 
enormously helpful in building a stronger, more flexible back that is better 
able to cope with the stresses and strains of life. This can help to relieve 
many forms of back pain and may also prevent more serious problems such 
as herniated discs.
In fact, one of the best ways to help back pain is to attend a yoga or Pilates 
class once or twice a week, and perform a few of the exercises by yourself 
between classes. That way you will learn the best exercises under 
supervision, and the instructor can advise on what might be the best types 
of exercises for you.
This type of exercise is not like many workouts where you aim to feel the 
burn. You should feel a stretch in the targeted area, but not actual pain. 
Always stop if the exercise becomes uncomfortable. There is nothing to be 
gained by over-stretching.
The kind of exercises that are most effective for pain relief include forward 
and backward bends, side bends and spinal twists. In most cases you can 
perform different versions of these according to how flexible your back is. 
For example, you can do a spinal twist sitting on a chair, sitting on the floor 
or lying on your back (the supine spinal twist). 
It is always important to balance your stretches. This means that if you curl 
or twist the spine in one direction, you should balance this with a stretch in 
the other direction. Most of us are more flexible on one side or the other so 
you will probably find that you can take a stretch further in one direction. 
That is fine. Go as far as you comfortably can on both sides, no more. Just 
try to give equal time to each side.
Abdominal exercises can also help in strengthening the back muscles, 
especially those of the lower back. The classic abdominal crunch or the 
bicycle crunch can help prevent back pain as well as giving you a firmer, 
stronger abdomen. The feel good benefits of having strong stomach and 
back muscles can be huge. It is worth considering adding a few ab exercises 
into your daily routine. 
A Pain in the Back  Page 22
So the answer is that if you know the right exercises to do, you can certainly 
help to relieve your back pain this way. But it is important to consult an 
expert who can recommend the best bad-back exercises for your particular 
condition.
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