Hey Jacksonville, Dr. Renne here. As promised, here are additional tips and exercises that are designed to get in shape safely and with minimal insult to your back.
If you have experienced chronic back pain then you know it can discourage you from getting up and moving around a lot. In particular, it might stop you from doing what we call ‘aerobic’ exercises such as walking, running, biking, and swimming. And you need that kind of exercise!
You might think that aerobic exercises wouldn’t have much to do with back pain, but in fact they can be highly beneficial to sufferers. Aerobic exercise allows blood and nutrients to reach tissues and muscles in your back, promoting healing. It can also reduce stiffness in your joints. The key to achieving these benefits is elevating that heart rate and keeping it in an age-dependent target zone for at least 20 minutes at a time!
Chronic back pain patients who are able to do regular aerobic exercise experience a bunch of benefits: they have fewer episodes of lower back pack pain and those episodes are shorter; they are more likely to stay functional and be able to carry out everyday activities; they have better control over their weight, which decreases stress on their joints and spine; they produce more endorphins, which are natural painkillers; and they experience fewer symptoms of depression, a common side-effect of back problems.
“That’s great, doc,” you might say, “but I’m really hurting! I can’t exactly go run a 5K!” Not to worry! There are plenty of low-impact aerobic exercises that you can start doing right now to get on the road to better health. Here are a few:
- Walking: Walking is great! Most people can do it, you can do it almost anywhere, and no special equipment is necessary. You can even do it on a treadmill in your own home. Studies show that walking 2-3 miles three times per week can greatly contribute to increased spine health.
- Stationary biking: If you are the kind of person that prefers riding a bike, you have more options than ever before. Many gyms offer popular ‘spinning’ classes and there are a wide variety of upright and reclining stationary bikes that can be purchased for your home. You can probably find a perfectly good used bike at a steep discount. And then you can ride while you read a book or watch TV!
- Step machines and elliptical trainers: These machines are somewhere between the treadmill and the stationary bike. You step on pedals or steps, causing them to move along a continuous oval, which is a lower impact motion than stepping onto a hard surface. These machines provide an excellent aerobic workout and can be less jarring than walking. Many of them also provide an upper body workout by giving the arms something to do as well.
- Water therapy: Perhaps the lowest impact of all forms of exercise are water exercises, since water’s natural buoyancy counteracts gravity’s pull on your spine and joints. You probably associate water with swimming laps, which is of course a great aerobic workout, but did you know that you can also lift weights and do stretching in the water? Patients who wouldn’t normally be able to participate in activities such as bicep curls or tricep kickbacks are often able to do so in water. For those in too much pain to tolerate mats on a hard floor or the elderly, I highly recommend water therapy.
Whatever level of physical ability you are currently at, there is a low impact aerobic exercise that you can do. I encourage you to find what that is and start doing it regularly. Before too long you’ll find yourself working up to activities you never knew you were capable of!
If you don’t currently have an aerobic exercise regimen, come in and talk to us. We will show you some exercises that will work for you, fit with your lifestyle, and not exacerbate your back pain. Let’s get you back on the road to recovery.
Yours in health,
Christopher B. Renne, D.C.
Chiropractic Physician
To check out other helpful blog posts, click here: http://www.activechirocenter.com/index.php?p=398237
No comments:
Post a Comment