Preventative Back Care Made Easy

When it comes to preventing back pain as you age or even relieving back pain right now, preventative back care is vitally important.

Whether you're 30 years old with bad genes, have a previous injury, or are getting up in your years, back pain isn't fun for anyone. In fact, for some people the pain is so bad it's downright unbearable.

Considering you're involved in home improvement and gardening, you can't afford to have a bad back - so read this article carefully and do the exercises.

So let's get into the reasons why people experience back pain.

Most people don't understand that many back problems are caused by 1 of 2 things. These 2 causes are either being overweight or having weak back muscles. Of course you may have gotten hurt, but even still, there's a good chance you could feel much better if you were the correct weight with a strong back.

Let me explain this a bit more clearly.

Preventative Back Care For Overweight Individuals

If you're overweight, there's unnecessary stress being put on your lower back - and all other joints as far as that's concerned. A healthy diet and exercise program including both strength training and cardiovascular training is a great idea for anyone who is overweight and experiencing back pain.

One great method for overweight individuals is to use a stationary exercise bike. These bikes are designed to help support your lower back so you can exercise without pain. While they may cost a little money, they're well worth it.

The Schwinn 230 recumbent exercise bike is one that I'd recommend in a heartbeat. The quality combined with a great price makes it hard to pass up.

But besides weight loss, there is much more you can do to practice preventative back care as well. It's the leading cause of back pain in the world today, and the leading cause of obesity as well.And it's called not exercising.

When you don't exercise, the muscles in your body will start wasting away. It's called "atrophy". They will get smaller, weaker, and less able to support the rest of your body.

In particular, the muscles of your lower back are the cause of your back problems. They're too weak to support your upper body and therefore they tell you that by sending out pain signals to your brain.So what can you do about it?

It's simple, strengthen the muscles!

Here are a few ways to do just that:

Buy an exercise ball - These cheap yet amazingly effective balls are easy to use and provide tremendous results. One great exercise is to simply stabilize your body by holding onto something while you lean backwards over the ball. Lean backwards as far as you can without falling backwards, and hold the position for 10 seconds. Then simply sit back up and you're done. You can perform this as many times as you'd like. By doing this you stretch and strengthen the muscles in your spine. You'll be glad you tried it.

Say Good Morning - The good morning exercise is a very effective exercise that literally anybody can do. Simply stand straight up and, with your arms folded across your chest, bend forward at the hips until your upper body is parallel to the ground. Hold for a moment in that position, and rise back up. If it seems too easy for you after 10 reps, consider holding weight across your chest or behind your neck for more resistance.

Trunk Rotators - To do this great exercise, stand straight up with your hands on your hips. Your feet should be in a wide stance to help with balance. Lean your body forward as you would in the "good morning" exercise, but this rotate your body clockwise. Once you reach the starting position (your head at 12 o'clock), rotate counterclockwise. 3 sets of this and your back will be loose, flexible, and feeling great. When starting off, position your upper body at roughly a 45 degree angle instead of parallel like in the "good morning".

Be active - Another great way to practice preventative back care is to simply be more active. Work on your house, go outside and do some yard work, play with the kids. Whatever you want to do, just don't sit inside and watch TV all night!

Preventative back care shouldn't be a chore. It should be something you look forward to. Something that makes you feel great.

Your spine is considered the powerhouse of energy throughout your body, so if you treat it well - it's going to treat you well.

Practice what this article teaches and within just a few short weeks you'll be doing home improvement and yard work without pain - and you'll love it!

Jeremy Reeves is a certified personal trainer devoted to helping you get in the best shape of your life. His website - http://www.fitness-product-reviews.com - reviews the 4 most effective weight loss products on the market today.

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Posted in: Back Pain