The medical community has known for years that arthritis responds well to mild exercise. Now comes word that back pain is often best treated with exercise.
“The group of patients [with back pain] who stayed active showed a higher reduction of back pain. The difference in pain level between the two groups [one with exercise, one without] was not substantial. However, at both time points the ability to function was substantially greater in the group of patients who stayed active,” states a report at Spine Health.
The Mayo Clinic has this simple set of exercises for people who have back problems. About 15 minutes a day is all you need.
Yoga is another exercise that is good for people with back pain. Yoga offers simple, easy moves that are low-stress and low-impact. Breaking Muscle has five yoga exercises to try if you have back pain.
Why does exercise help alleviate the pain? The Mayo Clinic has an answer. “Though you might think exercise will aggravate your joint pain and stiffness, that’s not the case. Lack of exercise actually can make your joints even more painful and stiff. That’s because keeping your muscles and surrounding tissue strong is crucial to maintaining support for your bones. Not exercising weakens those supporting muscles, creating more stress on your joints.”
In other words, use it or lose it. You have to exercise to keep your muscles in shape. Sitting around all day means your muscles lose tone. Stiffness sets in. That means even more pain when you finally decide to start some exercises.
If you are having back pains, talk with your doctor first. If he thinks exercise is a good idea, but you’re not sure where to start, we can help.
We’ll teach you what exercises you can do. Not all back exercises require you to be on the floor. We can also show you simple exercise equipment you can buy and use at home.