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Tips To Alleviate & Avoid Back Pain

avoid back painBack pain usually originates from the joints, bones, nerves or muscles. It is one of the most common complaints. Back pain may be felt as mild chronic pain going on for years or just for a few seconds or minutes. It can be felt as continuous dull ache, appearing at intervals as well. Constant, sharp pain is usually found in one place or it radiates to other areas like limbs. It can also present a weak, tingling sensation or numbness.

Few Facts About Back Pain 

  • The spine consists of bones, joints, spinal cord, nerves, tendons, ligaments and muscles. Back pain can originate from any of these or overlying muscles
  • In a majority of cases, back pain is self-limited. Most common back pain symptoms are due to inflammation or trauma which may be mild or severe
  • The two most common conditions that cause back pain are degenerative spinal disc disease and spinal disc herniation
  • Innocent causes of the back pain include ligament tear, muscle strain, ruptured or herniated spinal disks, and irritated joints. Environmental factors that cause or aggravate back pain include arthritis, posture at work, obesity, psychological and physical stress.
  • Some other causes include – lack of core strength that creates too much strain on the back, tight muscles which cause inflammation and tight hip flexors as they extend towards the lower back via the pelvic girdle due to improper posture.

Causes and Tips To Avoid Back Pain 

  • Obesity: is a common cause of back pain. As a heavy body contributes to increased pressure on the spine, maintaining a healthy body weight can help reduce your back pain. If you’re seriously overweight, those extra pounds could be straining your spine. Lose some weight and you just might lose the pain. A weight-loss program that includes regular exercise is bound to make your whole body feel better. A nutritious diet, lifestyle modifications and healthy weight can prevent back pain.
  • Poor posture: is a common cause of back pain. Maintain correct postures while standing, sitting and while lifting things. While using a computer or laptop, try to take breaks frequently and practice stretches which will lower your chances of getting back pain. Take regular short breaks in between work. Just getting up from your chair can help break the cycle of clenched muscles.

Tips To Reduce The Pain 

  • Applying a cold compress to the affected area can numb the pain temporarily by desensitizing the underlying nerves. 
  • Heat application through a heating pad, warm bath or hot water bottle can stimulate blood circulation in the area and loosen the tight muscles.
  • Massage therapy could provide short-term relief from acute and chronic back pain.
  • Frequent massages may be costly, but getting a massage once a month can be effective and affordable as well. It is important to select the massage best suited to your problem.
  • Consume a healthy diet consisting of Vitamin D as deficiency and insufficiency can cause or worsen back pain. The correction of it plays an important role in the treatment of chronic back pain. Foods like Fatty fish, liver, egg yolk and mushrooms can improve Vitamin D levels.
  • Avoid high-inflammatory foods such as sugars, trans fats and processed foods to prevent back pain.
  • Train with proper form, regular rehab-strengthening of lower back with exercise such as back extension, superman holds can help strengthen rhomboids to improve posture. 
  • Stretching itself can damage muscle fibers as you’re just tearing them by stretching them instead of contracting them. If you want to stop feeling sore, aggressive stretching is the last thing you’d want to do.

Quick Fix: A foam roller can help in releasing tight muscles. You may look a little weird if you’re the only person in your gym who doesn’t stretch before exercise and prefers to foam roll a sore muscle rather than stretch it out, but your muscles will thank you for it! 

We hope this article helps you alleviate and avoid back pain. If any of the tips above helped you, do share your experience in the comments below! For more tips on improving health and fitness levels, check out Healthy Reads or ask a GOQii Coach by subscribing for personalised health coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce 

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How To Correct Your Posture At Work

Correct your posture

You must have heard that sitting is the new smoking. You might have also started experiencing this in your life since the pandemic, where you might have been inactive and sitting in front of the laptop for long hours. People are getting more backaches and cervical issues due to long sitting hours, majorly due to bad posture. While you may not be able to swap your job to lead an active lifestyle, there is one thing that you can start doing right now and that is correct your posture, especially while sitting. 

How Can You Correct Your Posture? 

Good posture is when your muscles and ligaments that support your back and neck have to bear the least amount of strain while sitting. Besides standing and walking as much as possible, and taking a few breaks from sitting at the desk, the next best thing one can do is to have an excellent sitting posture.

  1. The very first step to find and correct your posture is to adjust your desk height for your eyes to look ahead on your computer screen without the need of flexing your neck to see your work. 
  2. Your ears should be in the same line as your shoulder which means no leaning forward. 
  3. Roll and pull back your shoulders to avoid protracting your shoulders. 
  4. Your feet should be flat on the floor. Neither tucked under the chair, nor stretched out too far away in front of you. Do not cross your legs either. 
  5. Your weight should be evenly spread over both of the hips & lower back. The buttocks should touch the back of the chair.
  6. Natural back curve should be maintained all the time. One can also place a rolled-up towel or lumbar roll.
  7. Your knees should be bent at a 90 degree angle or can be slightly higher than hip level. You can also place a low stool below your feet.

Some Additional Tips 

  • While sitting in a chair that rolls or pivots, rather than twisting at the waist, turn the whole body to prevent any jerks.
  • When standing up from a chair, first move to the front of the chair and then stand up by straightening your legs.
  • Try to avoid sitting for longer hours at a stretch in the same position.
  • Keep frequently used objects within close reach.
  • Keep the keyboard in the right position so as to leave a gap of 4-6 inch between the edge of the keyboard and the table so your wrists can rest while you type something.

Long Term Approach 

Knowing what’s right is definitely the first step if you want to improve your posture, but this is not a one time thing. It does take work and dedication on a regular basis along with some lifestyle changes to improve your posture in the long run. 

  • When you walk, stand, sit or run, make sure you are practicing good posture. If you notice that you are slouching or returning to old bad posture, correct your alignment right away.
  • If you are carrying around some extra weight, try to shed that as having the right body weight for height can do a lot to improve your posture.
  • Practice stretching regularly to ease up stiffness in the muscles that develop due to staying in the same posture for a long time, whether it’s prolonged standing or sitting.
  • Make strengthening exercises a part of your routine as it will improve muscle power to fight gravity and keep you upright in proper posture.

We hope this article will help you correct your posture. Do let us know your thoughts in the comments below! For more tips, check out Healthy Reads or ask a GOQii Coach by subscribing for personalised health coaching here: https://goqiiapp.page.link/bsr

#BeTheForce 

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