Your back’s feeling good at last. It’s been hurting and now, with time and the right treatment, it’s feeling better. You plunge into your life as if nothing had happened – and in a few weeks, you’re back where you started. What went wrong? You may have slipped back into the habits which caused the problems in the first place.
So, what daily movements shouldn’t you do? Here are our tips to avoid back pain striking this summer.
Don’t lift heavy things. Don’t be tempted to pick up that enormous pot plant or carry that luggage upstairs. If you have to lift, do it the right way: bend the knees not the waist and make your leg muscles – not your lower back – do the work; keep the heavy object close to your trunk and take short steps when carrying it. Moving heavy furniture across carpet? Try slipping a flattened cardboard box under the ‘leading’ edge or feet of the object and then, lifting the opposite side slightly, just push. You should be able to slide it along reasonably smoothly. Best of all, get someone to help you.
Don’t do the twist. Especially around the house and garden, there are so many moments when it feels quicker to lean and twist to pick something up. But it’s the worst position for your joints and the back muscles to cope with lifting weight. Turn to face whatever you’re lifting, even if it’s a saucepan in the kitchen. If you’re going to lift your children or grandchildren, approach the movement as you would that enormous pot plant. Children are heavy so no bending from the waist! Pulling a heavy shopping trolley or wheeled suitcase behind you will twist your torso and put a strain on your back too – better to roll it along in front of you.
Don’t be a couch potato. Or (as it’s summer) a deckchair potato. You need to get up and move about for at least five minutes every half an hour. Even if that’s wandering over to the kettle for another cup of tea, make sure you don’t spend all day on a sunlounger or glued to a screen. Put your mobile phone away – or if you have to keep checking it, position it so that you’re not forever looking downwards and straining your neck.
Hopefully, you’re as determined as we are to get out into the fresh air and sunshine. Here are some low impact exercises which will be kind to your back and still give you the exercise you need.
- Walking (instead of jogging)
- Swimming or water aerobics
- Yoga (make sure the instructor knows about your back issues)
- Pilates
- Dancing
- Lifting light weights or using exercise bands
And you could use one of our gentle exercise routines at home to stretch and strengthen your muscles. Try this one: Home Exercises for Fitness – no gym, no special kit